Chandrika Krishnamurthy Tandon (née Krishnamurthy; born 1954) is an Indian-American

businesswoman A businessperson, also referred to as a businessman or businesswoman, is an individual who has founded, owns, or holds shares in (including as an angel investor) a private-sector company. A businessperson undertakes activities (commercial ...

philanthropist Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives for the public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private good, focusing on material ...

, and a Grammy-winning musical artist. She is primarily known for her business ventures as the first Indian-American woman to be elected partner at

McKinsey and Company McKinsey & Company (informally McKinsey or McK) is an American multinational strategy and management consulting firm that offers professional services to corporations, governments, and other organizations. Founded in 1926 by James O. McKinse ...

. In 2015, Chandrika Tandon and her husband, Ranjan Tandon, donated $100 million to the NYU Polytechnic School of Engineering, now named the

NYU Tandon School of Engineering The New York University Tandon School of Engineering (commonly referred to as Tandon) is the engineering and applied sciences school of New York University. Tandon is the second oldest private engineering and technology school in the United St ...

, in what was the largest donation by an Indian American in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. Tandon has served as a trustee to

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a Nondenominational ...

NYU Langone Health NYU Langone Health is an integrated Health system, academic health system located in New York City, New York, United States. The health system consists of the New York University Grossman School of Medicine, NYU Grossman School of Medicine and NY ...

American India Foundation The American India Foundation (AIF, founded 2001) is a nonprofit American organization working in India. It is one of the largest secular, non-partisan American organizations supporting development work in India. It also runs the ServiceCorps Fel ...

, and was a member of the President's Council on International Activities at

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...

and the President's Advisory Council at the

Berklee College of Music Berklee College of Music () is a Private university, private music college in Boston, Boston, Massachusetts. It is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known for the study of jazz and modern Music of the United ...

. She also is on the

Board of Governors A board of directors is a governing body that supervises the activities of a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government agency. The powers, duties, and responsibilities of a board of directors are determined by government regulations ...

for the

New York Academy of Sciences The New York Academy of Sciences (NYAS), originally founded as the Lyceum of Natural History in January 1817, is a nonprofit professional society based in New York City, with more than 20,000 members from 100 countries. It is the fourth-oldes ...

. Chandrika Tandon is also a composer and vocalist, trained by masters in Hindustani, Carnatic, and Western traditions. Tandon released her first studio album, ''Soul Call'', in 2009 which received a Grammy nomination for contemporary world music in 2011. In 2024, she released her latest album ''Triveni'', for which she won her first

Grammy The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious a ...

for Best New Age, Ambient or Chant Album at the age of 70.

Early life

Chandrika Tandon was born into a conservative

Tamil Tamil may refer to: People, culture and language * Tamils, an ethno-linguistic group native to India, Sri Lanka, and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka ** Myanmar or Burmese Tamils, Tamil people of Ind ...

family in

Chennai Chennai, also known as Madras (List of renamed places in India#Tamil Nadu, its official name until 1996), is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Tamil Nadu by population, largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost states and ...

alongside her sister,

Indra Nooyi Indra Nooyi (née Krishnamurthy; born October 28, 1955) is an Indian-born American business executive who was the chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of PepsiCo from 2006 to 2018. Nooyi has consistently ranked among the world's 100 mos ...

, and brother. Her mother was a

musician A musician is someone who Composer, composes, Conducting, conducts, or Performing arts#Performers, performs music. According to the United States Employment Service, "musician" is a general Terminology, term used to designate a person who fol ...

while her father was a state

banker A bank is a financial institution that accepts Deposit account, deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital m ...

. As the first daughter in the family, Tandon was to be arranged to marry at eighteen, however, influenced by her grandfather, she pursued a higher education at

Madras Christian College Madras Christian College (MCC) is a liberal arts and sciences college in Chennai, India. Founded in 1837, MCC is one of Asia's oldest extant colleges. The college is affiliated to the University of Madras but functions as an autonomous institut ...

. When her mother initially refused to let her attend, Tandon went on a

hunger strike A hunger strike is a method of non-violent resistance where participants fasting, fast as an act of political protest, usually with the objective of achieving a specific goal, such as a policy change. Hunger strikers that do not take fluids are ...

for almost two days before her mother was convinced by the headmistress of Tandon’s

convent A convent is an enclosed community of monks, nuns, friars or religious sisters. Alternatively, ''convent'' means the building used by the community. The term is particularly used in the Catholic Church, Lutheran churches, and the Anglican ...

school,

Holy Angels Anglo Indian Higher Secondary School Holy Angels Anglo Indian Higher Secondary School or Holy Angels' AI Hr. Sec School is an all-girls Roman Catholic, private, convent school located in Chennai, India, which offers education from nursery level to higher secondary (XII) level. The ...

, to let her enroll. After finishing her

education Education is the transmission of knowledge and skills and the development of character traits. Formal education occurs within a structured institutional framework, such as public schools, following a curriculum. Non-formal education als ...

, Chandrika Tandon initially desired to go to

law school A law school (also known as a law centre/center, college of law, or faculty of law) is an institution, professional school, or department of a college or university specializing in legal education, usually involved as part of a process for b ...

and follow the footsteps of her grandfather, who was a

judge A judge is a person who wiktionary:preside, presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a judicial panel. In an adversarial system, the judge hears all the witnesses and any other Evidence (law), evidence presented by the barris ...

. However, one of her

professors Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an academic rank at universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a 'person who professes'. Professors ...

recommended she apply to the

Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad The Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIM Ahmedabad or IIM-A), is a business school, located in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India. It is one of the Indian Institutes of Management and was accorded the status of an Institute of National Impor ...

and pursue a career in

business Business is the practice of making one's living or making money by producing or Trade, buying and selling Product (business), products (such as goods and Service (economics), services). It is also "any activity or enterprise entered into for ...

instead. Amongst thousands of applicants, Tandon was accepted into

IIM Ahmedabad The Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIM Ahmedabad or IIM-A), is a business school, located in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India. It is one of the Indian Institutes of Management and was accorded the status of an Institute of National Impor ...

as one of eight women in her class.

Business

Graduating from

in 1975, Chandrika Tandon worked as an executive for

Citibank Citibank, N.A. ("N. A." stands for "National bank (United States), National Association"; stylized as citibank) is the primary U.S. banking subsidiary of Citigroup, a financial services multinational corporation, multinational corporation. Ci ...

Beirut Beirut ( ; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, just under half of Lebanon's population, which makes it the List of largest cities in the Levant region by populatio ...

during the

Lebanese Civil War The Lebanese Civil War ( ) was a multifaceted armed conflict that took place from 1975 to 1990. It resulted in an estimated 150,000 fatalities and led to the exodus of almost one million people from Lebanon. The religious diversity of the ...

. At age twenty-four, she was offered a position at

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

and became the first Indian-American to become partner in the company. In 1992, she formed Tandon Capital Associates and has advised clients including Chase Manhattan Corporation,

Comerica Comerica Incorporated is an American financial services company, headquartered in Dallas, Texas. It is the parent of Comerica Bank, a regional commercial bank with 413 branches in the U.S. states of Texas, Michigan, California, Florida and Arizon ...

Unibanco Unibanco S.A. was a Brazilian bank which operated from 1924 to 2009, when it was merged into Banco Itaú. The name stood for ''União de Bancos Brasileiros'' ("Union of Brazilian Banks"). Foundation In 1924 João Moreira Salles established the ...

(Brazil), Suncorp-Metway Ltd. (Australia),

Fleet Financial Group FleetBoston Financial was a Boston, Massachusetts–based bank created in 1999 by the merger of Fleet Financial Group and BankBoston. In 2004 it merged with Bank of America; all of its banks and branches were converted to Bank of America. Hist ...

Bank of America The Bank of America Corporation (Bank of America) (often abbreviated BofA or BoA) is an American multinational investment banking, investment bank and financial services holding company headquartered at the Bank of America Corporate Center in ...

Rabobank Rabobank (; full name: ''Coöperatieve Rabobank U.A.'') is a Dutch multinational banking and financial services company headquartered in Utrecht, Netherlands. The group comprises 89 local Dutch Rabobanks (2019), a central organisation (Raboban ...

and ABN Amro.

Philanthropy

In 2004, Tandon started the Krishnamurthy Tandon Foundation, a

private foundation A private foundation is a Tax exemption, tax-exempt organization that does not rely on broad public support and generally claims to serve humanitarian purposes. Unlike a Foundation (nonprofit), charitable foundation, a private foundation does no ...

located in

that partners with organizations in the fields of

community A community is a social unit (a group of people) with a shared socially-significant characteristic, such as place, set of norms, culture, religion, values, customs, or identity. Communities may share a sense of place situated in a given g ...

building,

arts The arts or creative arts are a vast range of human practices involving creativity, creative expression, storytelling, and cultural participation. The arts encompass diverse and plural modes of thought, deeds, and existence in an extensive ...

and

spirituality The meaning of ''spirituality'' has developed and expanded over time, and various meanings can be found alongside each other. Traditionally, spirituality referred to a religious process of re-formation which "aims to recover the original shape o ...

. After serving as a distinguished executive in residence at

, Tandon joined several of the university’s

board of trustees A board of directors is a governing body that supervises the activities of a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government agency. The powers, duties, and responsibilities of a board of directors are determined by government regulatio ...

and donated $100 million to the NYU Polytechnic School of Engineering which was renamed NYU Tandon School of Engineering. She also made several contributions to her

alma mater Alma mater (; : almae matres) is an allegorical Latin phrase meaning "nourishing mother". It personifies a school that a person has attended or graduated from. The term is related to ''alumnus'', literally meaning 'nursling', which describes a sc ...

and founded the Boyd-Tandon School of Business of which she is the advisory council

chairman The chair, also chairman, chairwoman, or chairperson, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the gro ...

. Since 2009, the Krishnamurthy Tandon Foundation has donated to several organizations including: the

Art of Living Foundation The Art of Living Foundation is a volunteer-based, humanitarian and educational non-governmental organization (NGO). It was founded in 1981 by Ravi Shankar. The Art of Living Foundation has centers in 180 countries. The foundation is dedicate ...

, World Music Institute,

Lincoln Center Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts (also simply known as Lincoln Center) is a complex of buildings in the Lincoln Square neighborhood on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. It has thirty indoor and outdoor facilities and is host to 5 ...

Teach for America Teach For America (TFA) is an American nonprofit organization whose stated mission is to "enlist, develop, and mobilize as many as possible of our nation's most promising future leaders to grow and strengthen the movement for educational excell ...

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (The Academy) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and other ...

, and

Music

Albums

For her father-in-law’s 90th birthday, Tandon created a studio recording of his favorite

chants A chant (from French ', from Latin ', "to sing") is the iterative speaking or singing of words or sounds, often primarily on one or two main pitches called reciting tones. Chants may range from a simple melody involving a limited set of not ...

as a gift. This inspired her first full-length studio album, ''Soul Call'' in 2009, a continuous recitation of the mantra's eight phonemes:

Om Namo Narayanaya ''Om Namo Narayanaya'' (), also referred to as the ''Ashtakshara'' (eight syllables), and the Narayana Mantra, is among the most popular mantras of Hinduism, and the principal mantra of Vaishnavism. It is an invocation addressed to Narayana, the go ...

. The album was later nominated for

Best Contemporary World Music Album The Grammy Award for Best Contemporary World Music Album was an honor presented to recording artists between 2004 and 2011 for quality contemporary world music albums. The Grammy Awards, an annual ceremony that was established in 1958 and originall ...

for the 53rd Annual

Grammy Awards The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious a ...

in 2011. Tandon followed up her nomination with her second studio album: ''Soul March'' in 2013, which was inspired by Mahatma Gandhi's peaceful

Salt March The Salt march, also known as the Salt Satyagraha, Dandi March, and the Dandi Satyagraha, was an act of Non violence, non violent civil disobedience in British Raj, colonial India, led by Mahatma Gandhi. The 24-day march lasted from 12 March 19 ...

in 1930. Classical Hindustani music with aspects of

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

and

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

, it featured over 75 musicians and was recorded in the

and

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

. In 2014, Tandon released her third studio album: ''Soul Mantra'', featuring the chant

Om Namah Shivaya Om Namah Shivaya (Sanskrit, Hindi, Devanagari: ; IAST: Oṃ Namaḥ Śivāya) is one of the most popular Hindu mantras and the most important mantra in Shaivism. Namah Shivaya means "O salutations to the auspicious one!", or "adoration to Lord ...

in nine

ragas A raga ( ; , ; ) is a melodic framework for improvisation in Indian classical music akin to a melodic mode. It is central to classical Indian music. Each raga consists of an array of melodic structures with musical motifs; and, from the perspec ...

. Three years later in 2017, Tandon released her fourth studio album: ''Shivoham - The Quest'' which merged

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural ...

prayer with verses in

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

. Recorded in nine studios across four

continents A continent is any of several large geographical regions. Continents are generally identified by convention rather than any strict criteria. A continent could be a single large landmass, a part of a very large landmass, as in the case of As ...

, Tandon states that ''Shivoham - The Quest'' is “a musical expression of my intensely personal journey over the last 20 years.” In 2023, Tandon released her fifth studio album titled: ''Ammu’s Treasures'', a three-volume collection of songs inspired by her grandchildren in different genres and languages. The album features 17 musicians including

Béla Fleck Béla Anton Leoš Fleck (born July 10, 1958) is an American banjo player. An acclaimed virtuoso, he is an innovative and technically proficient pioneer and ambassador of the banjo, playing music from bluegrass, jazz, classical, rock and various ...

Romero Lubambo Romero Lubambo (born 1955) is a Brazilian jazz guitarist. Career He was born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. He grew up with American jazz and classical music in the house because his uncle played guitar, lived next door, and visited frequently. Luba ...

Kenny Werner Kenny Werner (born November 19, 1951) is an American jazz pianist, composer, and author. Early life Born in Brooklyn, New York, on November 19, 1951, and then growing up in Oceanside, Long Island, Werner began playing and performing at a young ...

Maeve Gilchrist Maeve Gilchrist is a Scottish harpist and composer currently living in New York City. She is known for combining traditional folk music, jazz, improvisation, and experimentation. Early life and education Gilchrist grew up in Edinburgh, where ...

Jamey Haddad Jamey George Haddad (born July 2, 1952 in Cleveland, Ohio) is an American percussionist who works primarily in the fields of jazz and world music and specializes in hand drums. Biography Haddad is of Lebanese ancestry. From the age of four, he ...

Cyro Baptista Cyro Baptista (born December 23, 1950) is a Brazilian-born percussionist in jazz and world music. He creates many of the percussion instruments he plays. Career Born in São Paulo, Brazil, Baptista arrived in the U.S. in 1980 with a scholarship ...

Eugene Friesen Eugene Friesen (born 1952) is an American cellist and composer. Early life Friesen was born in 1952 to Russian Mennonite parents. He is a graduate of the Yale School of Music. Career Friesen has been a member of the Paul Winter Consort since ...

, Bobby Keyes,

Sérgio Mendes Sérgio Santos Mendes (; 11 February 1941 – 5 September 2024) was a Brazilian musician. His career took off with worldwide hits by his band Brasil '66. He released 35 albums and was known for playing bossa nova, often mixed with funk. He ...

, among others and won a Gold Medal in

Children's Music Children's music or kids' music is music composed and performed for children. In European-influenced contexts this means music, usually songs, written specifically for a juvenile audience. The composers are usually adults. Children's music has hi ...

at the Global Music Awards in 2023. In 2025, Tandon released her sixth and latest studio album titled ''Triveni'', a collaboration between South African flutist

Wouter Kellerman Wouter Kellerman (born 20 September 1961) is a three-time Grammy Award-winning South African flautist, producer and composer who has won nine South African Music Awards. Classically trained, Kellerman performs primarily World, Roots and New Ag ...

and Japanese-American cellist Eru Matsumoto. ''Triveni'' won a 2025 Grammy award for Best New Age, Ambient, or Chant album.

Involvement with Multiple Choirs

Tandon has worked with choral groups of all sizes, ages, skill levels, and backgrounds from around the world. For many years, she led a senior community choir in Queens, creating Western choral pieces for its untrained singers. She has worked extensively with the award-winning

Young People’s Chorus of New York City Young People's Chorus of New York City (YPC) is a children's chorus based in New York City. YPC provides children of all ethnic, religious and economic backgrounds with a program of music education and choral performance and seeks to enrich the ...

(YPC) and was named their 2024 to 2025 Artist-in-Residence. Receiving a grant from the

New York State Council on the Arts The New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA) serves to foster and advance the arts, culture, and creativity throughout New York State, according to its website. The goal of the council is to allow all New Yorkers to benefit from the contribution ...

, she will work with YPC to create an original work titled Soul Harmony, drawing inspiration from ancient Sanskrit texts and other mystical traditions with eastern and western orchestration.

Select Performances

Tandon has conducted numerous benefit concerts on world stages to sold-out audiences, including the

John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, commonly known as the Kennedy Center, is the national cultural center of the United States, located on the eastern bank of the Potomac River in Washington, D.C. Opened on September 8, ...

, Olympiastadion,

Lobkowicz Palace The Lobkowicz Palace () is a part of the Prague Castle complex in Prague, Czech Republic. It is the only privately owned building in the Prague Castle complex and houses the Lobkowicz Collections and Museum. The palace was built in the second h ...

, and in the

National Mall The National Mall is a Landscape architecture, landscaped park near the Downtown, Washington, D.C., downtown area of Washington, D.C., the capital city of the United States. It contains and borders a number of museums of the Smithsonian Institu ...

for the World Culture Festival.

Awards and Honors

Music Awards

Discography

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tandon, Chandrika Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Businesspeople from Chennai American women chief executives American women musicians American musicians of Indian descent Grammy Award winners McKinsey & Company New York University people American people of Indian Tamil descent American women philanthropists Indian emigrants to the United States 21st-century American women