He grew up in Brook Village and Inverness before moving to Antigonish to complete his high school diploma.

[9] On December 3, 2016, Pillai was sworn into the Cabinet of Premier Sandy Silver as Deputy Premier and Minister of Energy, Mines and Resources, and Economic Development.

[10] Pillai was also the executive director of the Champagne and Aishihik First Nations, and has held senior roles with Northern Vision Development and Yukon College.

[11] On November 25, 2022, Pillai announced his candidacy for leader of the Yukon Liberal Party.

[3] He is the second Indo-Canadian to become premier of a province or territory, after Ujjal Dosanjh in British Columbia.