Om Wadhwa lived a life full of surprises and dramatic upheavals. Born in 1938 in Malakwal village in undivided Punjab to a wealthy Zamindar (landlord), his family lost everything during the Partition of 1947 and moved to India to start afresh. Although formal schooling was not common at the time, Om was the only one among his siblings to complete high school, fulfilling his father’s wish while his brothers helped with the family business. At the age of 16, while working at Mercury Travels, a chance encounter with an American couple changed his life forever. They offered him a scholarship to study in America, which he impulsively accepted. This became the first of many bold decisions that would define his extraordinary journey. As Om would later say, “Whatever I have achieved in life is because I met the right people and did the right things at the right time.”

Om reached New York with just five dollars in his pocket and enrolled at Northwestern University, Chicago, to pursue an MBA. He went on to earn a Master’s degree in Economics as well as a Law degree, while also teaching business management and simultaneously working toward his PhD. During this period, an old American acquaintance reconnected with him and offered him a job at the Associated Commodity Corporation. Since his education did not match the position’s requirements, Om underwent a full year of rigorous training before finally securing a role with a starting salary of $400. About a year and a half later, the company opened an office in India and Om was asked to head it. He established a mica extraction factory in Bihar, producing insulation material that was in great demand in the electronics industry. This marked the humble beginnings of his journey into electronics.

In 1980, Om founded JV Electronics in Faridabad, producing mica capacitors, EMI filters, and LED lamps. He established a 100% export-oriented unit in Haryana, pioneering electronic component exports to Japan and Europe. Through Olympia Electronics, he introduced iconic brands such as Samsung and Sony to the Indian market. At the young age of 36, Om became the Managing Director of JV Electronics, which grew into a great success and won the first President’s Award for Electronics Exports. He also served multiple terms as President of ELCINA, India’s oldest and largest electronics industry association, between 1980–1982, 1986–1987, and 1991–1992. Om’s leadership and vision positioned him as a revered name in the Indian electronics industry, though he humbly attributed his achievements to “pure luck.”

In 1980, Om sold his factory and used the proceeds to establish the Metores Trust, focusing on the causes of girls’ education and healthcare. Even while dedicating the latter part of his life to social service, he remained closely connected to the electronics sector. In his own words, “Now, I am dedicated to social work, but I cannot part ways with electronics.” His lifelong contributions were recognized in 2018, when the industry honoured him with the prestigious Special Jury Award at the ELCINA–EFY Awards. Om Wadhwa’s legacy lives on—not just as a pioneer who helped shape the Indian electronics industry, but as a visionary who dedicated his later years to serving humanity with humility, focus, and unwavering dedication.