“What I would like to do is to leave behind a sustainable entity of a set of companies that operate in an exemplary manner in terms of ethics, values and continue what our ancestors left behind.” Ratan Naval Tata

On 9th October 2024, at exactly 11.30 pm IST,  the towering 5 feet 10 inches tall Surat born Parsee industrialist-philanthropist Padma Vibhushan Ratan (meaning “precious jewel”) Naval Tata, the Chairman Emeritus and the patriarch of the House of Tata, the largest business conglomerate in India (having a staggering annual revenue of over 165 billion US Dollars and encompassing a grand well knit family of over 1 million happy, well cared for and dedicated members worldwide!), breathed his last at the iconic Beach Candy Hospital nestled atop the Arabian Sea facing Cumballa Hill (popularly called “Diplomat’s Hill” or “Ambassador’s Row” and home to the most prominent billionaires in Mumbai, including my old friend Mukesh Ambani) at the age of 86.  He was hospitalised on 7th October, 2024 owing to a critical combination of senescence and hypotension. It was in the very same hospital that my very dear titanic friend and sincere well-wisher Dhirajlal “Dhirubhai” Hirachand Ambani passed away way back on 7th July 2002. At the time of his death, Ratan held a 0.83 percent stake in Tata Sons and had a net worth of Rs 7,900 crores. A large part of his wealth—nearly 75 percent—was tied to his shares in Tata Sons. For Ratan, accolades poured in from across the country and from all corners of the world in a torrential stream. In an impassioned eulogy that reflected the melancholy mood of a shattered nation, our Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted - “Shri Ratan Tata was a visionary business leader, a compassionate soul, and an extraordinary human being. He provided stable leadership to one of India’s oldest and most prestigious business houses. At the same time, his contribution went beyond the boardroom. He endeared himself to several people thanks to his humility, kindness and an unwavering commitment to making our society better.”

On 10th October 2024, Eric Garcetti, the US Ambassador to India, lamented the death of the former architecture and structural engineering graduate from the Cornell University College of Architecture, University of California (in 2008, Ratan gifted Cornell University $50 million, becoming the largest international donor in the university’s history!) and the graduate in architecture from the University of California, Berkeley (named after George Berkeley, the distinguished Anglo-Irish philosopher, known as “Bishop Berkeley”, and in collaboration with which Ratan set up the UC-RNT Fund primarily to back Indian startups) who had completed the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School, “He was one of those people whose vision was as limitless as the horizon, who helped show what was possible in India and what was possible in the world.” On 13th October 2024, the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin “Bibi” Netanyahu condoled Ratan’s death and highlighted his immense contributions to foster Israel-India ties, “I and many in Israel mourn the loss of Ratan Tata, a proud son of India and a champion of the friendship between our two countries.” On 14th October 2024, Padma Bhushan Natarajan Chandrasekaran, (popularly known as “Chandra”), the most worthy successor of Ratan (he effortlessly stepped into Ratan’s distinguished shoes and proudly donned his enviable mantle on 12th January 2017!) and my personal friend for over 15 years since my heady days as a long term Advisor to Tata Consultancy Services Ltd. (“TCS”), the flagship of the prodigious Tata fleet, paid an effusive heartfelt homage to his former boss and mentor, “Anybody who met Mr. Tata came away with a story about his humanity, warmth, and dreams for India. There was no one like him.” 

Joseph Bitner Wirthlin, the renowned American businessman and religious leader rightly observed, “Some memories are unforgettable, remaining ever vivid and heartwarming!” In a moment of helpless nostalgia, my mind goes back irresistibly to the rather sultry summer day in the year 1986 when I fortuitously met Ratan (he was then the Chairman of Tata Industries and had in that capacity drafted the Tata Strategic Plan) for the very first time within the majestic confines of the Taj Palace Hotel, the only “palace” hotel in the national capital since 1983. I briefly introduced myself to Ratan telling him four distinct facets about myself : (a) I was a limb of the law and my senior and guru was Asoke Kumar Sen (“Asoke Mamu”), the then Union Law Minister in the Cabinet of my charismatic friend Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi (“Rajiv Bhai”), and the undisputed leader of the Indian Bar; (b) the two topmost Parsee lawyers of the country viz. Nanabhoy “Nani” Ardeshir Palkhivala, one of the inextricable doyens of the House of Tata, and Uncle Fali, were not only close to me and Asoke Mamu but were my professional heroes and role-models; (c) I was a close friend and fervent associate of  “PV” Narasimha Rao, the then Union Minister of Home Affairs, who was my steadfast mentor and father figure (“Uncle PV”); and (d) I had a close association with Tata Steel and in particular with Russi Mody, its effervescent foodaholic Chairman & Managing Director, whom I had introduced to Uncle PV and who had scrupulously mulled the idea of using my voice for a documentary film entitled “Tata Steel - Challenge of the 80s” as the narrator because he felt (in all seriousness!) that I possessed a “Voice of Steel”. Ratan looked visibly impressed and disclosed to me that he had indeed seen the film on Tata Steel on one of his numerous visits to Jamshedpur.

Ratan often stayed at a modest guest house in the Tata Apartments at 23, Prithviraj Road, New Delhi. During those vibrant days, Uncle PV, residing at 9, Motilal Nehru Marg, frequently visited the iconic coffee shop Machan in Taj Mansingh Hotel. There, he would catch up with friends like me over endless cups of freshly brewed, sugar-free filter coffee, accompanied by steamed idlis and vadas soaked in mild sambar. If Ratan happened to be at the hotel during these visits, he never missed the opportunity to greet Uncle PV, whom he deeply admired. After Uncle PV assumed the role of Prime Minister on 21 June, 1991, following the tragic assassination of Rajiv Bhai on 21 May 1991, but before moving into the official residence at 7, Race Course Road (now Lok Kalyan Marg), a special suite was arranged for his family and close associates at the Taj Mansingh Hotel. This arrangement, facilitated through Ratan's efforts, ensured the comfort and security of Uncle PV's family. The suite was guarded round the clock by the Special Protection Group (SPG), and Ratan personally oversaw their well-being during their stay. I had the extraordinary privilege of staying with Uncle PV at his residence even before he became the Prime Minister, a position that would later redefine the country's destiny. As a frequent visitor to the Taj Mansingh suite, I often interacted with Uncle PV’s sons, Rajeshwar and Prabhakar, under the vigilant watch of SPG personnel. It was there that I first met one of my close friend Prashant Tewari, who worked closely with Uncle PV and Hansraj Bhardwaj, co-ordinating key developments during that pivotal period. Ratan, as always, proved to be a gracious and hospitable host throughout these memorable interactions.

On 26th November, 2008, “a date which will live in infamy”, Mumbai, the financial capital of India, witnessed a brutal, dastardly terrorist attack orchestrated by the Pakistani sponsored group Lashkar-e-Taiba, when the Indian Home Secretary Madukar Gupta, by an ominous coincidence, was enjoying Pakistan’s hospitality in Murree, a mountain resort city close to Islamabad. Ten highly trained and heavily armed terrorists infiltrated the city, having stealthily landed in inflatable speed boats at Macchimar Nagar, in Mumbai's Cuffe Parade neighbourhood, and heinously targeted several meticulously planned locations, including the Taj Mahal Palace.  The Indian Government’s response to the attack was “pusillanimous”, as aptly observed by the Hindustan Times on 26th November, 2023! Lamentably, the UPA Government was being led by a weak, diffident, rudderless and indecisive Prime Minister Manmohan Singh (who had blamed his mentor Uncle PV for the massacre of Sikhs in 1984 without a shred of evidence and had done precious little to bring the perpetrators of the genocide to book or alleviate the suffering of the victims, particularly widows!), reminiscent of Sir Arthur  Neville Chamberlain at the outbreak of the Second World War. The attack claimed 166 lives, including 33 at the Taj Mahal Palace, and did not spare even the General Manager of the hotel Karambir Singh Kang’s wife Niti and his two young teenage sons Uday and Samar. Gautam Shantilal Adani, the Indian billionaire businessman (who has recently been in the eye of a storm!), by a superb stroke of luck, managed to save himself by hiding in the kitchen of the hotel! Defying all odds, it was Ratan who in a truly Churchillian manner valiantly rose to the occasion and provided the much-needed leadership to an embattled nation facing an “ordeal of the most grievous kind”! In the face of the attack watched by a shell-shocked nation, Ratan, who was then 70, displayed superhuman courage, resolve and determination. He strode like a colossus and stood like the Rock of Gibraltar at the Colaba end of the Taj Mahal Palace for 3 days, as security forces fiercely battled the terrorists in the Taj Mahal Palace. Everyone became just those inches taller, every back just that much broader, as Ratan’s own was. This was undoubtedly Ratan’s finest hour when he embodied the will, spirit and grit of our people..indomitable, undaunted, relentless!

I have a myriad of friends who knew Ratan intimately and worked with him closely. All of them are unquestionably ad idem about Ratan: “He was a genuinely good, dedicated and large-hearted soul filled with the milk of human kindness and  our age is hardly fit to understand him.” At the same time, I can assert, without mincing words, that there are many unscrupulous men and women, including foreign nationals, who conveniently basked in the warmth of Ratan’s sunshine, recklessly flaunted, dropped or exploited his name for personal gain and private considerations in India and even beyond its frontiers and promoted, projected and publicised themselves by misusing his name thereby bringing unspeakable disgrace, dishonour and discredit to Ratan and the House of Tata. It is heartening to note that Chandra has managed to astutely keep at bay all such persons in the best interests of the House of Tata!

Be that as it may, we should remember the stellar quality of Ratan’s character as well as the remarkable range of his achievements. In his love of adventure and his imaginative powers, he was far removed from the modern industrialist-philanthropist. Yet everyone who came in contact with him paid tribute to the unimaginable power of his mind. He had an aptitude for business which raised him far above the ordinary levels of our generation. He had a firmness of spirit that was not often elated by success, seldom downcast by failure and never swayed by panic.  He loved life and was perfectly at peace with himself and the world around him. He could be helplessly uproarious. He wanted everyone to be happy. He wanted to taste and try everything that life could offer. Power never corrupted him, nor did success make him conceited, arrogant, or pompous. Beyond his reputation as a business magnate and animal lover, Ratan’s tenure as Chairman of the Tata Trusts has left an inerasable mark on India’s cultural kaleidoscope. The trusts have spearheaded numerous initiatives across healthcare, education, environment and disaster relief and their manifold contributions to art and culture stand out as particularly noteworthy. With no thought of the length of time he might be permitted on Planet Earth, Ratan was concerned solely with the quality of the service he could render to his nation and humanity.

I cannot do better than conclude with Modi’s emotional tribute in the press and media on 9th November 2024:

“As we remember him today, we are reminded of the society he envisioned—where business can serve as a force for good, where every individual’s potential is valued and where progress is measured in the well-being and happiness of all. He remains alive in the lives he touched and the dreams he nurtured. Generations will be grateful to him for making India a better, kinder and more hopeful place.”

The author is an internationally reputed senior lawyer practicing in the Supreme Court of India and various High Courts and Tribunals in India.

“What I would like to do is to leave behind a sustainable entity of a set of companies that operate in an exemplary manner in terms of ethics, values and continue what our ancestors left behind.” Ratan Naval Tata

On 9th October 2024, at exactly 11.30 pm IST,  the towering 5 feet 10 inches tall Surat born Parsee industrialist-philanthropist Padma Vibhushan Ratan (meaning “precious jewel”) Naval Tata, the Chairman Emeritus and the patriarch of the House of Tata, the largest business conglomerate in India (having a staggering annual revenue of over 165 billion US Dollars and encompassing a grand well knit family of over 1 million happy, well cared for and dedicated members worldwide!), breathed his last at the iconic Beach Candy Hospital nestled atop the Arabian Sea facing Cumballa Hill (popularly called “Diplomat’s Hill” or “Ambassador’s Row” and home to the most prominent billionaires in Mumbai, including my old friend Mukesh Ambani) at the age of 86.  He was hospitalised on 7th October, 2024 owing to a critical combination of senescence and hypotension. It was in the very same hospital that my very dear titanic friend and sincere well-wisher Dhirajlal “Dhirubhai” Hirachand Ambani passed away way back on 7th July 2002. At the time of his death, Ratan held a 0.83 percent stake in Tata Sons and had a net worth of Rs 7,900 crores. A large part of his wealth—nearly 75 percent—was tied to his shares in Tata Sons. For Ratan, accolades poured in from across the country and from all corners of the world in a torrential stream. In an impassioned eulogy that reflected the melancholy mood of a shattered nation, our Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted - “Shri Ratan Tata was a visionary business leader, a compassionate soul, and an extraordinary human being. He provided stable leadership to one of India’s oldest and most prestigious business houses. At the same time, his contribution went beyond the boardroom. He endeared himself to several people thanks to his humility, kindness and an unwavering commitment to making our society better.”

On 10th October 2024, Eric Garcetti, the US Ambassador to India, lamented the death of the former architecture and structural engineering graduate from the Cornell University College of Architecture, University of California (in 2008, Ratan gifted Cornell University $50 million, becoming the largest international donor in the university’s history!) and the graduate in architecture from the University of California, Berkeley (named after George Berkeley, the distinguished Anglo-Irish philosopher, known as “Bishop Berkeley”, and in collaboration with which Ratan set up the UC-RNT Fund primarily to back Indian startups) who had completed the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School, “He was one of those people whose vision was as limitless as the horizon, who helped show what was possible in India and what was possible in the world.” On 13th October 2024, the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin “Bibi” Netanyahu condoled Ratan’s death and highlighted his immense contributions to foster Israel-India ties, “I and many in Israel mourn the loss of Ratan Tata, a proud son of India and a champion of the friendship between our two countries.” On 14th October 2024, Padma Bhushan Natarajan Chandrasekaran, (popularly known as “Chandra”), the most worthy successor of Ratan (he effortlessly stepped into Ratan’s distinguished shoes and proudly donned his enviable mantle on 12th January 2017!) and my personal friend for over 15 years since my heady days as a long term Advisor to Tata Consultancy Services Ltd. (“TCS”), the flagship of the prodigious Tata fleet, paid an effusive heartfelt homage to his former boss and mentor, “Anybody who met Mr. Tata came away with a story about his humanity, warmth, and dreams for India. There was no one like him.” 

Joseph Bitner Wirthlin, the renowned American businessman and religious leader rightly observed, “Some memories are unforgettable, remaining ever vivid and heartwarming!” In a moment of helpless nostalgia, my mind goes back irresistibly to the rather sultry summer day in the year 1986 when I fortuitously met Ratan (he was then the Chairman of Tata Industries and had in that capacity drafted the Tata Strategic Plan) for the very first time within the majestic confines of the Taj Palace Hotel, the only “palace” hotel in the national capital since 1983. I briefly introduced myself to Ratan telling him four distinct facets about myself : (a) I was a limb of the law and my senior and guru was Asoke Kumar Sen (“Asoke Mamu”), the then Union Law Minister in the Cabinet of my charismatic friend Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi (“Rajiv Bhai”), and the undisputed leader of the Indian Bar; (b) the two topmost Parsee lawyers of the country viz. Nanabhoy “Nani” Ardeshir Palkhivala, one of the inextricable doyens of the House of Tata, and Uncle Fali, were not only close to me and Asoke Mamu but were my professional heroes and role-models; (c) I was a close friend and fervent associate of  “PV” Narasimha Rao, the then Union Minister of Home Affairs, who was my steadfast mentor and father figure (“Uncle PV”); and (d) I had a close association with Tata Steel and in particular with Russi Mody, its effervescent foodaholic Chairman & Managing Director, whom I had introduced to Uncle PV and who had scrupulously mulled the idea of using my voice for a documentary film entitled “Tata Steel - Challenge of the 80s” as the narrator because he felt (in all seriousness!) that I possessed a “Voice of Steel”. Ratan looked visibly impressed and disclosed to me that he had indeed seen the film on Tata Steel on one of his numerous visits to Jamshedpur.

Ratan often stayed at a modest guest house in the Tata Apartments at 23, Prithviraj Road, New Delhi. During those vibrant days, Uncle PV, residing at 9, Motilal Nehru Marg, frequently visited the iconic coffee shop Machan in Taj Mansingh Hotel. There, he would catch up with friends like me over endless cups of freshly brewed, sugar-free filter coffee, accompanied by steamed idlis and vadas soaked in mild sambar. If Ratan happened to be at the hotel during these visits, he never missed the opportunity to greet Uncle PV, whom he deeply admired. After Uncle PV assumed the role of Prime Minister on 21 June, 1991, following the tragic assassination of Rajiv Bhai on 21 May 1991, but before moving into the official residence at 7, Race Course Road (now Lok Kalyan Marg), a special suite was arranged for his family and close associates at the Taj Mansingh Hotel. This arrangement, facilitated through Ratan's efforts, ensured the comfort and security of Uncle PV's family. The suite was guarded round the clock by the Special Protection Group (SPG), and Ratan personally oversaw their well-being during their stay. I had the extraordinary privilege of staying with Uncle PV at his residence even before he became the Prime Minister, a position that would later redefine the country's destiny. As a frequent visitor to the Taj Mansingh suite, I often interacted with Uncle PV’s sons, Rajeshwar and Prabhakar, under the vigilant watch of SPG personnel. It was there that I first met one of my close friend Prashant Tewari, who worked closely with Uncle PV and Hansraj Bhardwaj, co-ordinating key developments during that pivotal period. Ratan, as always, proved to be a gracious and hospitable host throughout these memorable interactions.

On 26th November, 2008, “a date which will live in infamy”, Mumbai, the financial capital of India, witnessed a brutal, dastardly terrorist attack orchestrated by the Pakistani sponsored group Lashkar-e-Taiba, when the Indian Home Secretary Madukar Gupta, by an ominous coincidence, was enjoying Pakistan’s hospitality in Murree, a mountain resort city close to Islamabad. Ten highly trained and heavily armed terrorists infiltrated the city, having stealthily landed in inflatable speed boats at Macchimar Nagar, in Mumbai's Cuffe Parade neighbourhood, and heinously targeted several meticulously planned locations, including the Taj Mahal Palace.  The Indian Government’s response to the attack was “pusillanimous”, as aptly observed by the Hindustan Times on 26th November, 2023! Lamentably, the UPA Government was being led by a weak, diffident, rudderless and indecisive Prime Minister Manmohan Singh (who had blamed his mentor Uncle PV for the massacre of Sikhs in 1984 without a shred of evidence and had done precious little to bring the perpetrators of the genocide to book or alleviate the suffering of the victims, particularly widows!), reminiscent of Sir Arthur  Neville Chamberlain at the outbreak of the Second World War. The attack claimed 166 lives, including 33 at the Taj Mahal Palace, and did not spare even the General Manager of the hotel Karambir Singh Kang’s wife Niti and his two young teenage sons Uday and Samar. Gautam Shantilal Adani, the Indian billionaire businessman (who has recently been in the eye of a storm!), by a superb stroke of luck, managed to save himself by hiding in the kitchen of the hotel! Defying all odds, it was Ratan who in a truly Churchillian manner valiantly rose to the occasion and provided the much-needed leadership to an embattled nation facing an “ordeal of the most grievous kind”! In the face of the attack watched by a shell-shocked nation, Ratan, who was then 70, displayed superhuman courage, resolve and determination. He strode like a colossus and stood like the Rock of Gibraltar at the Colaba end of the Taj Mahal Palace for 3 days, as security forces fiercely battled the terrorists in the Taj Mahal Palace. Everyone became just those inches taller, every back just that much broader, as Ratan’s own was. This was undoubtedly Ratan’s finest hour when he embodied the will, spirit and grit of our people..indomitable, undaunted, relentless!

I have a myriad of friends who knew Ratan intimately and worked with him closely. All of them are unquestionably ad idem about Ratan: “He was a genuinely good, dedicated and large-hearted soul filled with the milk of human kindness and  our age is hardly fit to understand him.” At the same time, I can assert, without mincing words, that there are many unscrupulous men and women, including foreign nationals, who conveniently basked in the warmth of Ratan’s sunshine, recklessly flaunted, dropped or exploited his name for personal gain and private considerations in India and even beyond its frontiers and promoted, projected and publicised themselves by misusing his name thereby bringing unspeakable disgrace, dishonour and discredit to Ratan and the House of Tata. It is heartening to note that Chandra has managed to astutely keep at bay all such persons in the best interests of the House of Tata!

Be that as it may, we should remember the stellar quality of Ratan’s character as well as the remarkable range of his achievements. In his love of adventure and his imaginative powers, he was far removed from the modern industrialist-philanthropist. Yet everyone who came in contact with him paid tribute to the unimaginable power of his mind. He had an aptitude for business which raised him far above the ordinary levels of our generation. He had a firmness of spirit that was not often elated by success, seldom downcast by failure and never swayed by panic.  He loved life and was perfectly at peace with himself and the world around him. He could be helplessly uproarious. He wanted everyone to be happy. He wanted to taste and try everything that life could offer. Power never corrupted him, nor did success make him conceited, arrogant, or pompous. Beyond his reputation as a business magnate and animal lover, Ratan’s tenure as Chairman of the Tata Trusts has left an inerasable mark on India’s cultural kaleidoscope. The trusts have spearheaded numerous initiatives across healthcare, education, environment and disaster relief and their manifold contributions to art and culture stand out as particularly noteworthy. With no thought of the length of time he might be permitted on Planet Earth, Ratan was concerned solely with the quality of the service he could render to his nation and humanity.

I cannot do better than conclude with Modi’s emotional tribute in the press and media on 9th November 2024:

“As we remember him today, we are reminded of the society he envisioned—where business can serve as a force for good, where every individual’s potential is valued and where progress is measured in the well-being and happiness of all. He remains alive in the lives he touched and the dreams he nurtured. Generations will be grateful to him for making India a better, kinder and more hopeful place.”

The author is an internationally reputed senior lawyer practicing in the Supreme Court of India and various High Courts and Tribunals in India.