Board of Directors

An international authority on microwave technology, Shiban K Koul is Professor at the Centre for Applied Research in Electronics at the Indian Institute of Technology Delhi. Prof Koul is a BE (Electrical) from REC, Srinagar, and holds an MTech and PhD in microwave engineering from IIT Delhi; he has held visiting assignments with several universities across the world and has authored/co-authored several research papers and books.
In a recent rare honour, Prof Koul is elevated to Fellow of IEEE Class of 2010, for his contributions to analysis and design of microwave and millimeter wave components and circuits.

In charge of overall business and strategy at Astra Microwave, B Malla Reddy is among Astra Microwave's core founders. Mr Malla Reddy worked for over two decades the Systems Division, Indian Space Research Organisation, Bangalore, and with Defence Research and Development Laboratory, Hyderabad, before taking charge of software development and R&D at OMC Computers Ltd, Hyderabad. Mr Malla Reddy holds a Master's in Engineering (Automation) from the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore.

Head of operations at Astra Microwave, PA Chitrakar had been with the Defence Electronics Laboratory, Hyderabad, as a scientist for over 20 years before co-founding Astra Microwave. An MSc (Physics) from Mysore University and an MTech (Advanced Electronics) from JNTU, Hyderabad, Mr Chitrakar is an expert in, among others, the design of microwave components.

Among Astra Microwave founders, C Prameelamma has had a distinguished career with the Electronics Research and Development Establishment, Bangalore, and the Defence Electronics Research Laboratory, Hyderabad. An expert in the manufacture and testing of microwave components and computer-aided design, Ms Prameelamma is a Master's in Engineering (Instrumentation & Control Systems) From SV University, Tirupati.

In his 35-plus years of corporate banking and venture capital investing, J Venkatadas worked 25 years at Canara Bank of which 6 years were as Managing Director of Canbank Venture Capital Fund Ltd, and 2 years as Senior Faculty in Management Development Institute, Gurgaon, on secondment by the bank in the area of development and commercial banking. Mr Venkatadas is a BE (Mechanical) from Mysore University and is a Certified Associate of the Indian Institution of Bankers.

Founding Partner of Frontline Strategy Limited, among India's earliest independent private equity advisory firms, Atim Kabra has worked for over 17 years with global institutions such as ABN AMRO Bank and ANZ Grindlays Bank in portfolio management, equity sales, and equity research. A BA Hons (Economics) from Delhi University and an MBA (Finance) from Bombay University, Mr Kabra has lived and worked in India, USA, and Singapore, where he is currently based.