T.T. Jagannathan, the esteemed chairman emeritus of T.T.K. Prestige, passed away peacefully in Bengaluru on Friday, October 10, 2025, at the age of 77. His departure marks an irreplaceable loss for the company, with all directors and employees of T.T.K. Prestige — a leading kitchen and home products firm and the flagship of the T.T.K. Group — expressing their profound sorrow and offering heartfelt condolences to his family, as stated in a recent stock exchange filing.
A brilliant mind, Mr. Jagannathan was the grandson of former Union Finance Minister T.T. Krishnamachari. He distinguished himself as a gold medallist from IIT Madras and further earned a PhD in operations research from Cornell University, USA. The T.T.K. business itself was founded by his grandfather, Krishnamachari.
In a pivotal moment in 1972, his father, T.T. Narasimhan, traveled to Cornell to urge Mr. Jagannathan to return home and take the reins of the family business, which was then facing collapse.
Transforming the brand
Since taking the helm of T.T.K. Prestige Ltd. in 1975 as a promoter-director, Mr. Jagannathan’s leadership was transformative. He steered the company to become a dominant force in India’s small appliances industry, a testament highlighted in the company’s 2025 annual report. Under his guidance, T.T.K. Prestige soared to a market capitalization exceeding one billion dollars. His contributions were immense, not only in astute management but also in pioneering technical inputs for product development, robust research and development, and the strategic application of technology within the company.
Long legacy
Mr. Jagannathan’s tenure at T.T.K. Prestige was extensive and impactful. He served as managing director for over 26 years until 2000, subsequently transitioning to executive chairman for another 19 years until 2019. Even after stepping down from executive duties in 2019, he remained an active non-executive director and chairman, a role he held until March 25, 2025. He holds the distinction of being the longest-serving director and chairman in the company’s history.
His insights and journey are chronicled in his book, ‘Disrupt and Conquer: How T.T.K. Prestige became a billion dollar company.’ This work vividly recounts the company’s numerous achievements and its remarkable journey from near bankruptcy to becoming a thriving enterprise. He famously attributed the turnaround of the entire T.T.K. Group, making it debt-free, to ‘a huge dose of common sense.’
One of his most significant innovations, the gasket release system for pressure cookers, which he intentionally never patented, revolutionized kitchen safety. This simple yet profound invention effectively ended the widespread issue of bursting pressure cookers, a development that single-handedly saved the company from potential ruin.
Love for cooking
Beyond his business acumen, Mr. Jagannathan harbored a deep passion for cooking, a skill he cultivated from the tender age of eight.
He often remarked, ‘It was while cooking that I discovered the problem points in the kitchen, and that helped me innovate. I have made sure that all my executives and managers also know how to cook.’ His philosophy was clear: ‘If you don’t know how to cook, then you are not in the cooking business.’