Dr.A.V.ANOOP, PhD., the Director of Cholayil Group of Companies, makers of the famed “Medimix”, brand of products, is a multifaceted personality.

He took the bold decision of plunging into the world of business following the demise of his father, who was a Government Servant, after considering various options, including a government job.

In 1983, he joined his maternal uncle Dr.V.P.Sidhan, who was engaged in the manufacturing of Ayurvedic Bath Soap, which later acquired fame as MEDIMIX. The company was then making only ten thousand soaps a day and today it manufactures about 10 lakhs soaps per day.

A.V.Anoop, together with his brother-in-law, Mr.V.S.Pradeep, and father-in-law, Dr.V.P.Sidhan, commenced their travels through KAIZEN-Continuous Improvement path innovatively and the company started growing exponentially. From humble beginnings, the company has ensured that Medimix became World's largest selling Ayurvedic Soap!!

Under their leadership, Cholayil has a rare achievement to its credit. In this era of Liberalisation when MNCs are gobbling up Indian Companies, Cholayil has gone ahead and acquired an MNC. Cuticura, a name of renown in the Talcum & Cosmetics Industry now belongs to Cholayil!

A pioneer in the supplies of Mini soaps to hotels, Cholayil Pharmaceuticals, supplies soaps at the last count to 3500 hotels. In addition to the Hotels, Medimix is the preferred soap used in
Leading Hospitals. The Railways too use Medimix Soap in the 1 AC Compartments. What sets Medimix apart is the fact that Medimix soap is used in RASHTRAPATHI BHAVAN.

A.V.Anoop is a keen proponent of Ayurveda and has conducted several Seminars & Symposiums to propogate Ayurveda and have documented and preserved the proceedings consisting of rare pearls of wisdom from people of eminence in Ayurveda, for posterity. The in-house, State of the Art, Research & Development Facility of Cholayil is bestowed with Accreditation by Department of Science & Technology, Government of India and its services are much sought after by many Ayurvedic manufacturers for their product approval. Similar is the story of its in- house Testing Laboratory. This Laboratory is accorded Recognition by the Department of Scientific & Industrial Research, Government of India and also received Accreditation from Department of Indian System of Medicine ie.AYURVEDA, UNANI, SIDDHA & HOMEOPATHY-AYUSH, Ministry of Health, Government of India. This Herbal & Pharmaceutical Testing Laboratory is the FIRST PRIVATE LABORATORY in India to be approved by Director Drug Control for Testing Ayurveda Products!

In furthering the cause of Ayurveda, he has taken on a very Unique Project in which Total Health Solutions Under One Roof is provided for the benefit of humanity. The Project “Cholayil Sanjeevanam” houses Ayurveda, Naturopathy and Yoga in one Complex. Cholayil Sanjeevanam offers Specialised Treatment based on Ayurvedic & Naturopathic methods with In-Patient facilities.

CHOLAYIL SANJEEVANAM is now poised to go Global. A Natural Food Restaurant offers pure vegetarian Bill of Fare where the food is prepared without the use of Onion, Garlic, Tamarind, Maida, Red Chilli, Vinegar, Asafoetida, Sugar. This Restaurant does NOT use Fridge or Deep Freeze as food unused for more than 3 (Three) hours are NOT served and is discarded. A.V.Anoop is the MD of KADALIVANAM Natural Food Restaurant running at Trivandrum on these very same principles too.

A.V.Anoop, Director Cholayil Pharmaceuticals (P) Limited
& Dr.K.M.Cherian, Chairman & CEO, Frontier Lifeline Pvt. Ltd.
exchanging the MOU.

A.V.Anoop had been able to enter into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with “Frontier Lifeline Private Limited” headed by the World Renowned Heart Surgeon Dr.K.M.Cherian to provide Ayurvedic, Yoga & Naturopathic Treatments to the heart patients at Frontier. He has thus been able to achieve a fusion of Allopathy & Ayurveda through the kind consent of Dr.K.M.Cherian.

A.V.Anoop takes leading part in the functioning of “Federation of All India Marunadan Malayalee Associations” (FAIMA) as its Organising Secretary. It is FAIMA which had succeeded in bringing different splinter Associations & Samajams of Keralities under one Umbrella. As General Convenor, A.V.Anoop was the Principal Organisor of the All India Marunadan Malayalee Sangamams. These events held at Pragati Maidan New Delhi on 04-05 December 1999 and the one at Thrissur on 29-30 December 2001 were attended by thousands of Delegates from hundreds of Malayalee Associations from All over India as well as Union & State Ministers and other dignitaries from other walks of life.

He is fully involved in all the Social, Educational, Cultural, Philanthropic and sporting activities. There are numerous students including those studying Engineering & Ayurvedic Medicines, pursuing their studies with his support.

A.V.Anoop is a member of the Managing Committee of ASAN MEMORIAL ASSOCIATION OF CHENNAI, and is an active member of all its activities. ASAN MEMORIAL ASSOCIATION OF CHENNAI, a premier organisation, runs schools, colleges including Engineering College, having on its roll over 5000 students.

He has been active in the functioning of WORLD MALAYALEE COUNCIL (WMC) for the last 4 years and has made rapid rise through its Organisational structure. WMC Chennai Province was started under his stewardship on 18 September 2001 of which he is one of the
Founder Member and the First, elected Founder President. All the other Founder Members and other members who joined subsequently share the common vision of serving the society. With this in view, WMC Chennai Province had been running a Charitable Medical Centre called Kairali Medical Centre that had been dispensing Free Consultation, Medication & Treatment to the patients belonging to the economically deprived sections of society.

Every year Kairali Medical Centre provides Free Medical Aid to TEN THOUSAND rd patients. A.V.Anoop had attended the 3 Global Conference 2002 at Dingden Germany held from 21 to 25 August 2004 where he was elected to the Global Executive Committee. During
th the 4 Global Conference 2004 held from 19 to 21 August 2004 at Bahrain, he was elected as rd Global General Secretary. It was during the 3 Global Conference that the idea of having a Global Chamber of Commerce to serve the interests of Malayalee Entrepreneurs spread around the world originated which later got translated into INDIAN WORLDWIDE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE. He is the Founder Member and First Elected President of Indian Worldwide Chamber of Commerce (IWCC), a Global Organisation which seeks to harness the Energy, Experiences, Expertise, Entrepreneurial Skills and Resources of Indian Industrialists Businessmen from around the globe, with a view to facilitating their business progression. He was instrumental in successfully getting the IWCC registered under the Company's Act 1956 as a Section 25 Company with limited liability, in Chennai on 23 December 2003.

A.V.Anoop had been the Secretary of The Malayalee Club of Chennai for four (4) consecutive years. What is significant is the fact that The Malayalee Club of Chennai is the oldest Malayalees' Club outside Kerala. A.V.Anoop as Secretary Organised its Centenary Celebrations during 1997. It was he who took the initiative to hold the “SWATI SMRITI” Music & Dance festival during his Secretary tenure, which has now become an annual event. During the Swati Smriti festival eminent patrons of art are honoured, the very FIRST receipient being (Late) Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer.

Another notable feature of his tenure at The Malayalee Club is the instituting of “National Harmony Programme” in which all the Association of people from Kashmir to Kanyakumari speaking all the different languages of the country, in their language hold music & dance programmes at The Malayalee Club, which too has been institutionalised as an Annual Programme.

JYOTHIRGAMAYA, 3 LAKH MEGA EYE DONATION CAMPAIGN was undertaken under his chairmanship by WMC Chennai Province and Media Arts, both Social Organisations which by its culminating day on 29 March 2004 achieved the donation of 3,19,952 Eyes from 20 contiguous Panchayats of Mannathoor in Ernakulam District of Kerala. This has been entered a “WORLD RECORD” by LIMCA BOOK OF RECORDS.

WMC Chennai Province, under the guidance & leadership of A.V.Anoop has taken upon itself an extremely noble project. There are scores of Unclaimed, Unidentified Dead bodies lying in the mortuary of Government General Hospital Chennai. They too have been Fathers, Mothers, Brothers, Sisters to some one, to accord decent final burial to these bodies. This is a continuous ongoing task as the number of such bodies in the hospital keep accumulating due to accidents and other factors.