Paralympics medallist Deepa Malik joins OYO as an independent director

Hospitality unicorn Oyo on Wednesday announced the appointment of Paralympic medallist Deepa Malik as an independent director on the company’s board of directors. The 2016 Paralympic silver medalist is also the President of the Paralympic Committee of India (PCI).

The 51-year-old took to Twitter and said she will be contributing her views on promoting workforce diversity and customer-oriented perspective to the IPO-bound company. 

Welcoming Deepa aboard, Ritesh Agarwal, Chairman, Founder, and Group CEO, OYO, said a diverse board will help inculcate lateral thinking in the board. 

“We have been working on making our company and the Board more inclusive over the last couple of years. Dr Malik’s experience and her passion for travel and adventure would be invaluable for OYO for years to come. She is not just an inspiration to a whole generation of Indians but also embodies the spirit of thriving in the face of adversity,” he added.

Deepa now joins the board that has three other independent directors, including Bejul Somaia, Partner at Lightspeed India Partners; W Steve Albrecht, a certified internal auditor and certified fraud examiner; and Troy Alstead, former COO at Starbucks. The Board also includes Aditya Ghosh, former Director at InterGlobe Group (Indigo), as a non-executive nominee director.

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“I look forward to working with Ritesh who has become an inspiration to the young generation and our country and esteemed fellow members,” Deepa said on Twitter.

Two weeks ago, the hospitality unicorn filed for an initial public offering (IPO) to raise around $1.16 billion (Rs 8,430 crore) with market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI).

At the time, YourStory had exclusively reported details around OYO IPO, where no major investors and Founder Ritesh Agarwal will dilute any stakes in the company in this IPO. It is expected to launch by end of this year or in January.