Ratan Tata: A visionary and a gentleman

It was the launch of the Tata Indigo in Mumbai, and Ratan Tata had just completed the formalities on stage, unveiling the new car. As the attendees headed for the buffet, we in the media spotted Ratan Tata too making his way there. As is normally the case, the media then went up to him for his comments on the car and other things Tata. Ratan Tata smiled, and chatted with us patiently, in his typical, soft-spoken manner. As we chatted, I noticed his plate was empty. As we apologized and requested him to have his dinner, Tata waited until all of us had taken our servings. Only after that did he start. That, in essence, is Ratan Naval Tata. A gentleman at the core, despite the legendary status his leadership of the Tata group has led him to have. As Tata bid his final goodbye on October 9, legions of admirers were left teary-eyed and bereft of words. Tata was much beyond a business leader—he was an icon in the truest sense of the word.

In 2012, after he retired as the Chairman of the Tata group, we did a cover on him in another magazine I was editing at the time. The story looked at his time at the helm of the group, his leadership and how he transformed the conglomerate. A few days after the issue hit the stands, I received a personally signed note from Ratan Tata, saying how he was grateful that the story was a balanced assessment of his tenure. He need not have sent me that note. But that was Ratan Tata. And anyone who has come in contact with him has some fond memory or other of the man. That is perhaps what distinguishes him from most others.

Tata was gentle, but he could be tough when he chose to be. Early into his tenure as group chairman, he famously took on some of the powerful chief executives at various group companies—who came to be known in the media as the ‘satraps’. It was clear to those CEOs that Tata meant business, and soon enough they made way for Tata to implement his vision for the group, step by step. That he could choose to be tough was also in evidence years later during his serious disagreement with his successor Cyrus Mistry (now deceased), which blew up into a major confrontation in the group, and eventually led to Natarajan Chandrasekaran, who was leading group software giant Tata Consultancy Services at the time, taking charge as Tata group Chairman.

Tata also demonstrated his aggression and growth ambition when the group took over Tetley, a global tea major much bigger in size than Tata Tea for about $430 million, setting the stage for the globalization of the group in a major way. In 2007, Tata group paid a hefty $12 billion for global steelmaker Corus Group. The $2.3-billion acquisition of British car brands Jaguar Land Rover in 2008 surprised many, but demonstrated the determination of Ratan Tata to make the group a global car maker to contend with. Today, JLR is a key contributor to the growing success of Tata Motors.

Ratan Tata had said he likes to do what most think cannot be done. In this spirit, Tata ventured into making cars when the naysayers warned him against it, and Indica was born. Ditto for the Nano, which ran into trouble later. However, true to his entrepreneurial nature, challenges never deterred Tata from venturing into the unknown and taking risks. A keen lover of flying, Tata was visibly delighted when the group brought back Air India to its fold in January 2022, nearly nine decades after it was taken over by the government.

A lover of animals, Tata’s love for dogs is legendary. And so is his passion for doing good. A keen philanthropist, Tata cared deeply for the community, a core value of the group he led. But even as he retired from active chairmanship of the group and became Chairman Emeritus, it was clear that Ratan Tata wasn’t out of touch with the world of business, particularly the start-up ecosystem. He turned investor, making investments in several start-ups in a kind of second innings which saw several founders getting a serious leg up, since a Ratan Tata investment in one’s company is nothing short of a badge of honour.

Ratan Tata’s soft-spoken demeanour, his deep baritone and his gentle nature will be remembered by the many who came in contact with him. Kindness, dignity, ethics, integrity—these weren’t merely words for Ratan Tata. These were the tenets by which he lived his storied life. As Tata bids goodbye to the country he loved so much, he does so after putting the Tata group on a firm growth trajectory. The group—with revenues of $165 billion, with over Rs 33 lakh crore in market capitalization—is truly the giant Tata wanted it to be.

Tata Trusts, which control 66% of Tata Sons, the holding company of the group, will have huge shoes to fill after the passing of Ratan Tata. But whoever comes in his place will have Ratan Naval Tata’s life and value systems as guiding principles. Ratan Tata was, and will always be, a guiding light.