‘I have endeavoured to do the best I could…’
You have been at the helm of the Tata organisation for more than two decades. If you were to reflect on this period of your life, what would be your most satisfying memories?
This period has probably been one of the most important in my life. At the same time, it has also been the most demanding that I have experienced. There have been several satisfying memories and some disturbing ones, too. Perhaps the most satisfying is that during this period one was able to weld the organisation together in a more cohesive way than it had been in its past, that it was able to identify itself more as a group, and that we took bold and, in some cases, rewarding decisions in terms of growth, including the making of acquisitions overseas.
Ratan Tata has always seemed to be a contemplative kind of person, an introvert who appears to be most comfortable away from the glare. How have you been able to manage the attention and the limelight that came with the chairmanship responsibility? What kind of defence mechanisms have you had to employ to deal with the expectations and the unrelenting scrutiny?
When I took up the position of chairman, I had an underlying dilemma in my mind on how to fill the shoes of a very great person. The decision I made was to just be myself. That, I think, carried on to the interactions with media and in public life.
I am an introvert, kind of a private person, and I tried to remain that way. Some of the media glare I could not escape, so I faced up to it as part of the job. But in every other way, maybe to some extent to the detriment of the group and myself, I stayed away from the media unless I had to. I avoided being an easily accessible person and, as a consequence, the group has probably not had the visibility and the public relations positives that it should have garnered.
You appear to be a person who is at home in the world, more comfortable in a global business environment than in your ‘Indian business leader’ skin.
I am, to an extent, very comfortable in the United States, where I spent 10 years of my life. In my interactions with business leaders in India, as against elsewhere, there is this feeling that they are looking for cracks in your armour in order to pull you down; this happens not just to me but to everybody. There is a tendency to look at the dark side of everybody and everything, every situation and every government move.
Outside of India, in the business environment, there is genuine and much greater appreciation of the good that a person does and the success that he or she has achieved. Some element of this thinking has led me to foster closer relations with business leaders from abroad that I like.
You will remain the chairman of the Tata Trusts even after you relinquish the helmsman role at the group. There has been speculation that you plan to enhance the spread and profile of the charity work that the Trusts do, that much of your time will be directed towards this objective.
I think there is potential for a fresh look at the manner and scope of philanthropic grants we make in the areas in which we operate — in rural development, in water conservation, in enhancing the quality of life in rural areas, in health and education. I believe we can bring more technology to bear on our initiatives and that we can be a more effective grant giver than we have been thus far. I believe we can make a great difference to the communities we serve.
We can always continue to donate to NGOs working in their areas of expertise and base such giving on their track record. The question I ask is: is that all we are, a supplier of funds, or an identifier of good NGOs? Or should we be more creative in terms of considering solutions for a given social or demographic problem, in terms of finding solutions that are innovative and more effective than those that have been tried in the past?
If business and the Tata group had not come to dominate your existence, how would your life have played out?
I don’t know; it depends on how things happen over a long time. If I had not come back to India, if I had continued practising as an architect [in America], I would have had a completely different life. From 1962 onwards, my life has been about living in different Tata organisations in different positions. Each of these experiences has had its attributes, its pulls and pressures. It’s an impossible question to answer.
In some of our earlier discussions, you mentioned designing the odd house or two. What were those experiences like and what did it feel like to use the skill you were trained for?
In both cases, in Jamshedpur and with my mother’s house, I never had a proper place to work, so it was a drawing board on my lap, sitting by the side of my bed. Both of them went the same way: enjoyable to design, frustrating to build.
I seek perfection and this has been a source of motivation for me and also frustration. Architecture — if you do it well, if it results in achieving what you want — can be a fount of extraordinary motivation, and unending frustration if you are not able to accomplish what you have set your mind on. In my life, in business, motivation and frustration have gone together. And frustration is the worst of it, not having things come out as you had perceived or conceived them, and having to sometimes live with what is less than best.
Dogs and cars, flying and doodling, that much the world knows of what Ratan Tata likes when the world of business does not crowd him. What about your other interests?
I used to really enjoy scuba diving. I have done it since 1962 in various waters, in the Pacific and in North America. I perforated my eardrum too many times and it has become difficult for me to dive without suffering pain in the ears, which is why I gave it up about five years back. Flying I continue to be involved with. I love flying and I hope to keep doing it so long as I can pass my medicals and stay proficient. It would be the same with cars, I think. Maybe the desire for fast cars has mellowed in the course of time as one’s reactions got slower, but I will always remain fond of cars and the technology that goes into crafting them.
My love for dogs as pets is ever strong and will continue for as long as I live. There is an indescribable sadness every time a pet passes away and I resolve I cannot go through another parting of that nature. And yet, two-three years down the road, my home becomes too empty and too quiet for me to live without them, so there is another dog that gets my affection and attention, just like the last one. Dogs will forever be a part of my future. I have not given my pets the time I would have liked to; it has always been little snatches. I look forward to having the luxury of time on my hands for my dogs.
What about art, music, books and movies?
All of those I enjoy and would love to have time to pursue. Some are within me, things that I would like to express. I would like to formally relearn music so I can enjoy it by myself. It would be wonderful if I could learn to play a musical instrument; it would absorb me to learn to play the piano, for instance.
What kind of music do you listen to?
All kinds of western music; classical, rock, jazz, I’m equally fond of all of them.
What do you reckon is the greatest legacy of Ratan Tata as chairman of the Tata group?
I have been asked that question before and I have always dodged it. That’s because it is for others to decide, not for me. The legacy I leave behind — that which I am aware of, that which I can express — is that I myself have lived by the principles that I have desired for the group. I have led by example in that sense and I have devoted my life, as best I could, to the welfare of the group. I have endeavoured to do the best I could with the responsibilities I have had. I have always tried to do the “right thing”.
