Plaudits for Pilloo

"A lifetime award is given to say bye-bye, but I am not going to say bye-bye... I shall always be around to help, mentor and guide, in whatever capacity needed, also for the AIRIA (All India Rubber Industries Association) and its members when called for,” stated Pilloo Aga, rubber industry veteran and director of Gold Seal Group of companies. She was being honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award for outstanding contribution to the industry at the National Rubber Conference organized by AIRIA and held in the first week of August 2017 in Bombay. One of the longest serving members on the national executive committee of the Automobile Component Manufacturers’ Association, Aga has also served as chairperson of that body’s western region from 1995 to 2003.

Pilloo with, from left, Vikram Makar, Kamal Chaudhari and Vinod Bansal, AIRIA office bearers

Flanking Pilloo Aga’s portrait, from left, Sidharth Bhimrajka, Darius and Urvaksh Aga, Pilloo, Cyrus and Khursheed Aga.

In her acceptance speech, Aga recalled her "30 plus years... in this industry, which (she) entered as a novice and a non technical person,” and remembered to thank the "raw materials suppliers, the capital equipment makers, and the various service providers” she had worked with over the years, details a note received by Parsiana from the Group. The award ceremony included the drawing of a sketch of Aga’s face by artist Sarvam Patel.
According to the write-up, Aga began her career as a management trainee under the stewardship of father-in-law Hoshang, the founder of the Group in 1981. Along with husband Cyrus, chairman of the Group, Pilloo was instrumental in launching two joint ventures — Gold Seal-Saargummi India Private Limited and Gold Seal Avon Polymers Private Limited. While the parent company Gold Seal Engineering Products Private Limited specializes in door seals and window channels for automobiles, the firm also manufactures extruded sealing profiles for non-auto applications. Gold Seal-Saargummi manufactures rubber body seals and supplies the products to leading automobile manufacturers worldwide. Gold Seal Avon Polymers manufactures coolant and water conveying radiator hose systems to Ford in India and globally from their plant in Daman.