Ratan Tata : A Life ~ Thomas Mathew (111 of 2024)

 

Ratan Tata’s story is that of a man who overcame extraordinary obstacles and whose compassion took priority over business profit objectives, uniquely achieving both goals. As the head of India’s oldest and largest business house, his story also encapsulates the narrative of India’s growing ambitions on the world stage and rising clout in the last few decades.

A bachelor  Ratan Tata (1937–2024) was one of the most influential and inspirational personalities of our times—an iconic business leader who was instrumental in transforming independent India’s industrial landscape. He developed a romantic relationship with Carolyn Emmons, a 19-year-old college student and the daughter of famed architect Frederick Earl Emmons. who partnered with fellow designer Archibald Quincy Jones to form Jones and Emmons, a prominent architectural firm soon after his studies in US, but came back to India as his grandmother was unwell. 

About Ratan Tataji's first love.... if this story grows too big.... It will over shadow the rest of his 60+remarkable life.   This MAN lived a life of integrity and was a human being beyond compare  .  Let his memory be forever focussed on his remarkable contribution to Bharat, in his life's work..... do not reduce His life  to a romantic love story.   One way WE can Thank Him for his profound contribution  is to respect his private life  and not reduce it to a Mills and Booth story. Book says, she soon got married after his return to India, as she could not come because of the India China War. She was married to another person, who like RNT was an architect and could fly planes.  She had two children, RNT met them after the second child was born, and said would never meet again as he believed they were leading a happy life. But then she came to meet him, after her husband passed away. 

During his tenure, Ratan Tata transformed the Tata Group from a collection of disparate companies into a unified powerhouse. Today, it is one of the world’s largest business conglomerates and is greatly admired for its compassionate capitalism and trusteeship model of holding wealth. He showcased calm demeanour but extraordinary courage. Carolyn, flying, dogs, pranks where his four loves - other than country and work. Tito, Goa - his love for dogs, surpass everything except for his grandmother.

Established in 1868, the Tata Group spans a gamut of industries, from salt to steel to software, and is synonymous with quality and trust. It operates in more than 100 countries, impacting the lives of billions of people around the world. The abiding goodwill and respect that the Tata brand carries today can be traced back largely to the vision and integrity of one individual who spearheaded the conglomerate for over two decades—Ratan Tata.

Starting out as a novice on the shop floor of a Tata company, Ratan Tata achieved an unequalled growth rate for the Tata Group as chairman and took India to the world through global acquisitions, overcoming many serious challenges along the way.

This fascinating biography traces Ratan Tata’s years in immaculate detail, from his lonely childhood to his irrepressible youthful exuberance, from his first major job in the conglomerate to being appointed chairman of Tata Sons in 1991 to his role as the head of Tata Trusts, India’s largest philanthropic enterprise. It is as much a story of determination and an unwavering commitment to enduring principles and values as it is a testament to achieving unprecedented corporate success.

ETOS and cardinal principals of this group were laid by Jamshedji Tata. He appointed Cyrus Mystry as his successor. Had high hopes. Considering that things were not working as expected, Nitin Nohria was brought in to support Cyrus Mistry. Cyrus said, I am not going to disassociate with his father's company. Many favours were shared against company law. Regrettable inevitability, Removing Cyrus, hurt him the most.

His simplicity was more daunting. His aim was to convert socially relevant decision,  into Business proposal. Resplinded - 26/11 crises changed the man - he was standing outside the hotel for 2 days....he felt that Tata family consist not only of Tata - there was no procedure, no prescription - he was melted by the devotion of the Taj employee showed for the group. You can beat us, but we will not kneel. People who received his support considered him equivalent to God. 

There were issues and controversies too. ULFA and Tata Tea - Walki Talki , Tax and few others. 

To create an Indian environment with fresh air to breathe, clean water to drink, nutritious food with no one left hungry, and a way to care for everyone’s health should be the priority for you and me.—Ratan Tata

This is the only comprehensive, definitive and authorized account of Mr. Tata’s life and times, his struggles and his important contributions to contemporary India. It is the story of a private individual, a great industrialist, and a remarkable leader who steadfastly believes, above all, in the values that he inherited, and who spent his life in the service of his fellow humans and a fledgling nation.

Drawing on hundreds of hours of interviews with Ratan Tata, his family, friends, former colleagues and business associates, and filled with previously unknown facts, anecdotes and the author’s insights, this is a comprehensive account of a life the likes of which the world has seldom seen.