Sachin Jain, Regional CEO, India, World Gold Council, in conversation with Saurabh Gadgil, Chairman & Managing Director, PNG Jewellers, was quite literally 24-karat gold.

At the heart of the conversation was Gadgil’s memoir, Choosing Gold—but the spotlight was not on PNG Jewellers or its formidable 194-year legacy. It was on the man behind the legacy: his choices, convictions, successes, failures and the lessons life taught him along the way. The question at the heart of the conversation was simple yet profound:
What does it take to inherit a 194-year-old legacy—and then find the courage to make it your own?

For Gadgil, the answer lies in the choices made along the way.

Choosing Gold is not a corporate success story dressed up as a memoir. It is a candid, deeply personal account of growing up within a legendary family business, inheriting it at a young age and navigating the pressure, uncertainty and responsibility that came with it.

The book opens the door to the moments that shaped him—conversations with his grandfather and mother, the wisdom of Dajikaka, family support, difficult crossroads and decisions where conviction often mattered more than certainty.

Some choices delivered success. Others brought risk, resistance and failure. And, as Gadgil reflected, both are equally important teachers.

His message was particularly powerful for students, managers and entrepreneurs: learn from success, but learn even more from failure. Life is rarely linear; it comes with twists, turns and unexpected detours. The real test is how calmly and consciously we navigate them.

Gadgil also spoke passionately about people being an organisation’s greatest asset. For him, culture is not what a company claims to be—it is who you truly are, and what you want your organisation to become.

Leadership, he believes, begins with the self. A healthy mind and a healthy body are critical to sustaining the demands of leadership and success. When faced with challenges, his philosophy is simple: stay calm, work towards solving the problem—and when something is beyond your control, learn to leave it to fate.

At the core of his journey is gratitude. Gadgil remains deeply indebted to Dajikaka for believing in him and, importantly, giving him the freedom to make his own choices. Family support, he acknowledges, has been equally fundamental.

And perhaps the most telling insight from the conversation was how Gadgil wants to be remembered: Not merely as the person who inherited a legacy, but as the custodian who took it to a different level.

At 49, Gadgil looks back not simply at what he built, but at who he became while building it.
Choosing Gold is therefore not just a story of inheritance. It is a story of identity—of respecting the past without being imprisoned by it, of having the courage to evolve, and of making choices that are truly your own.

Because ultimately, legacy may be inherited. But what you do with it is always a choice