Ratan Tata: How the introvert, dark horse, rose to become India’s most respected businessman – and how he stayed on top

Ratan’s quality was shaped to an grade by a lonely and strict puerility and a feeling of rejection. His begetter Naval was a disciplinarian. Ratan told me, “It was not that my member Jimmy and I got caned, but helium expected a definite decorum. We were ne'er allowed to flaunt our wealth.’’ Ratan’s grandma Lady Navajbai Tata, widow of Sir Jamsetji Tata’s younger son, was his main anchor erstwhile helium was young. His parent Sooni near Ratan erstwhile helium was lone 10 and his begetter aboriginal remarried and had a 2nd family. Navajbai ingrained successful her grandson the unsocial concern and philanthropic bequest of the Tata group, peculiarly the bonzer past of the far-sighted laminitis Sir Jamsetji, who too respective different pioneering ventures, envisaged India’s archetypal alloy mill, archetypal hydroelectric works and the Indian Institute of Science successful Bangalore.

It was made wide to Ratan by his grandma from a precise aboriginal property that helium had ample shoes to fill. What is not known to galore is that Ratan and his begetter Naval were not really descended from the Tata founder. Neither of Jamseji’s 2 sons had children and aft Ratanji’s decease successful 1918, his widow Navajbai adopted an orphan boy, Naval, from the J N Petit Parsi Orphanage successful Parel, Mumbai.

It was Navajbai who insisted that Ratan instrumentality to India from the US aft graduating from Cornell University successful architecture and engineering Though his grandma had afloat religion successful Ratan, the apical men astatine that clip successful the group, including the chairperson and distant comparative JRD Tata, did not presumption him arsenic aboriginal heir to the empire. If anything, erstwhile Ratan joined the group, the knives were out. He was posted successful Jamshedpur, and moved from 1 section to different without immoderate designation oregon clear-cut duties. “I thought they were investigating maine to spot if I would propulsion successful the towel,” helium admitted.

JRD’s archetypal hostility towards Ratan was possibly connected with the information that helium ne'er got connected with Naval and Ratan confesses helium ne'er dreamed astatine that signifier of being his successor. Ratan admitted that helium lone got adjacent to JRD successful the older man’s past six years astatine Tata erstwhile the JRD began to revise his sentiment astir Ratan aft the group’s fallout with Russi Mody. At 86, the legendary JRD stepped down arsenic chairperson and Ratan astatine 51 was appointed successful his spot successful 1991.

One of Ratan’s archetypal acts arsenic chairperson was to bring down the 3 satraps successful the Tata empire, Russi Modi of the Steel division, Ajit Kerkar heading the Taj edifice concatenation and Darbari Sethi successful Tata Chemicals. The 3 ruled without permitting immoderate interference from the Tata caput office, Bombay House. Gradually from a shy, underconfident youth, whose credentials arsenic a concern enforcement were uninspiring, Ratan blossomed into a larger-than-life chairperson of the Tata group. He gave his radical caller visibility and prominence done a bid of bold gambles. In 2000, helium purchased the British Tetley; successful 2007 helium announced his volition to instrumentality implicit Europe’s second-largest alloy shaper the hugely loss-making Corus; successful 1998, Ratan, who had erstwhile produced the archetypal indigenously built car, the Nano, acquired the luxury car brands, Jaguar and Land Rover. Some fiscal analysts person questioned Ratan’s concern acumen successful costly loss-making overseas acquisitions. A large crushed for the Tata radical to clasp its pre-eminent presumption was the Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), which often bailed retired Tata Sons and buffeted its losses. TCS contributed a large stock of the group’s nett profits for galore years.

Jamsetji, the group’s founder, came from a pious Parsi priestly household successful Navsari, Gujarat and acceptable the benchmark for the family’s extraordinarily philanthropic tone astatine the commencement of the 20th century. Apart from the Indian Institute of Science, institutions funded by the Tata trusts see the Tata Memorial Cancer Hospital, the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research and the National Centre for Performing Arts. Jamsetji besides acceptable the code for the group’s ethical concern practices. The group’s enactment was for generations controlled by members of the tiny number community, the Parsis, who pridefulness themselves connected their uprightness successful doing business. During the epoch of the licence licence raj successful the 1960s, JRD made wide that the Tata radical was unwilling to wage politicians nether the array adjacent if it meant they would not beryllium capable to grow the capableness of their industries. For a while, the Tata radical mislaid its archetypal spot to the Birla companies, but with changes successful authorities policies, it soon recovered. Bombay House, the group’s headquarters, has the Zoroastrian philosophy, “Good Thoughts, Good Words and Good Deeds’’, inscribed arsenic a reminder to each employees.

Ratan epitomised this Tata tradition, successful some concern and his idiosyncratic life. His manner was humble compared to India’s caller billionaires. He had astir nary information extracurricular his home. His concern exploits earned Ratan specified adulatory titles arsenic “India’s champion marque ambassador” and “A exemplary of firm responsibility”. The 2 large Tata trusts are among the world’s largest philanthropic enterprises.

Despite an occasional whiff of ungraded – specified arsenic leaked telephone taps suggesting that Tata executives were colluding with ULFA militants to unafraid their beverage estates successful Assam oregon the publishing of the Niira Radia tapes – thing fundamentally dented Ratan’s pristine image. The lone ungraded which possibly temporarily dimmed Ratan’s halo was his sacking of the chairperson of the group, the precocious Cyrus Mistry, successful 2016. The calculated manoeuvres near the concern satellite and the Parsi assemblage shell-shocked. This was peculiarly due to the fact that Mistry’s rebuttal missive earlier the National Company Law Tribunal accused Ratan of violating rules concerning insider accusation and handing retired favourable deals to friends and a deficiency of transparency successful firm governance. Ratan, however, was vindicated successful 2021 erstwhile the Supreme Court backed him connected each issues raised by the Mistrys concerning the power of the group. Ratan besides had the past laughter implicit sceptics questioning his concern acumen. His prime of Natarajan Chandrasekaran to regenerate Mistry has paid dividends to the group.

The writer is contributing editor, The Indian Express