New Delhi:

Remembering industrialist Ratan Tata, Bangalore-based rangoli artist Akshay Jalihal created a colorful rangoli of him at the Nadaprabhu Kempegowda metro station, popularly known as Majestic metro station. The rangoli has a portrait of Ratan Tata, in a blue blazer. Behind him, we see a staircase, indicating the departure of soul.

The artwork, created by Akshay Jalihal, honours Tata’s legacy following his death on October 9 at the age of 86. Ratan Tata was admitted to Mumbai’s Breach Candy hospital in a critical condition, where he breathed his last. N Chandrasekaran, Chairman of Tata Sons, confirmed the news late night on Wednesday.

In a statement, Mr Chandrasekaran said, “It is with a profound sense of loss that we bid farewell to Mr. Ratan Naval Tata, a truly uncommon leader whose immeasurable contributions have shaped not only the Tata Group but also the very fabric of our nation.”

pic.twitter.com/QmtipQIovR

— Tata Group (@TataCompanies) October 9, 2024

Earlier, on Monday, Ratan Tata had dismissed speculation surrounding his health and had said he was undergoing medical check-ups due to his age and related medical conditions.

“Thank you for thinking of me,” he said.

Ever since the news broke, grief is pouring in from all parts of the world. Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his condolences and titled the businessman, “a visionary business leader, a compassionate soul and an extraordinary human being”.

Ratan Tata was cremated on Thursday with full state honours in Worli, Mumbai.

Also Read: Ratan Tata’s Last Rites With State Honours, Thousands Pay Tribute

New Delhi:

Ratan Tata, chairman emeritus of one of India’s biggest conglomerates, Tata Sons, got the reins of Tata Group in March 1991. Almost three decades ago, in 1997, Ratan Tata appeared on the show ‘Rendezvous with Simi Garewal’ where he revealed how the takeover happened. JRD Tata was suffering from heart disease and was admitted to Breach Candy Hospital in Mumbai when he broke the news and asked Ratan Tata to take over.

“We were in Jamshedpur together for a function and I had to go to Stuttgart for some negotiations. When I came back, I heard he had a heart problem and he was in Breach Candy Hospital. He was there a week and I’d see him every day. He was out on a Friday and the following Monday, I went to see him in the office,” Ratan Tata recalled.

Narrating the incident, he added, “He would always start meeting by asking, ‘Well, what’s new?’ And I said, ‘J I’d been seeing you every day, there is nothing new since I saw you last.’ He said, ‘Well, I have something that is new that I want to tell you. Sit down. What has happened to me in Jamshedpur has made me think that I need to step down and I have decided that you should take my place.’ After a few days, he took it to the board.”

While Ratan Tata didn’t remember the date the news was broken to the board, Simi Garewal suggested it was March 25, 1991.

Further narrating the scene from the boardroom when “history was created” and how everyone “was moved”, he said, “I have heard many of my colleagues say that there was a history that day because apart from the fact that he was stepping down from a position that he had held for 40 to 50 years, there was a lot of emotion attached to his giving up this position in favour of someone. But the history and emotion that everyone talks about is not that move.”

JRD Tata revisited all the years he had put into the business. “He reminisced through years at that meeting and I can’t reproduce any of that emotionally or otherwise but that meeting went on like an archival recount of all his days in Tata. Never his own praise but his experiences as he went through. There was history that day and we all came out very moved.”

It was the end of an era and at the same time, the beginning of a new one.

When asked what he learned from JRD Tata, which he carries with him, Ratan Tata said, it is his sense of justice which was prevalent. “His value system, his simplicity, and his sense of justice have stayed with me and I hope I can emulate them even half.”

Ratan Tata, 86, died on Wednesday night. He was admitted to Mumbai’s Breach Candy hospital in a critical condition, where he breathed his last. Ever since then, his previous interviews have been doing rounds on the internet.

Mumbai:

The final rites of Ratan Naval Tata – the industrialist with a heart of gold – were performed with full State honours at a Mumbai crematorium this afternoon.

Home Minister Amit Shah was among the many high-profile dignitaries on hand to pay their final respects to Mr Tata; he stands in for Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is en route to Laos to attend the ASEAN-India and East Asia summits. Mr Modi last night hailed Mr Tata as a “an extraordinary human being”.

Mr Shah was accompanied by Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal, and Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and his deputies, Devendra Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar.

Earlier today  Ratan Tata lay in state, wrapped in the national flag, at the National Centre for Performing Arts in Nariman Point, before his body was transported to the crematorium in Worli, a distance of 12 km.

Thousands lined the streets to bid goodbye to one of their own, an unassuming Mumbai-born and bred ‘chhotu‘ who transformed the Tata brand into a global powerhouse.

And the country’s most powerful politicians were joined by its most influential celebrities – actors and sportspersons – and the country’s richest, including the Ambanis and the Adanis, in paying their respects.

Maharashtra has announced a day of mourning as a mark of respect for a business leader and philanthropist admired in India and abroad for his simplicity, sincerity, and humanity.

READ | Ratan Naval Tata: Industrialist, Philanthropist, And Indian Icon

Ratan Tata’s contributions to the industrial and development sectors, to the economy and to the lives of tens of thousands of men and women, are too many to count.

Some, perhaps, deserve mention, such as the ‘revenge’ purchase of luxury brands Jaguar and Land Rover, which heralded India’s arrival on the global automotive stage, and his commitment to the welfare of dogs, exemplified by the Rs 165 crore hospital in Mumbai.

READ | The Jaguar Land Rover Story:  Ratan Tata’s ‘Revenge’ For Ford Snub

But his death unquestionably marks the end of an era; he was, perhaps, the last of his kind, someone who, despite fabulous privilege, never appeared to flaunt his wealth.

Indeed, Mr Tata could never be found on a list of billionaires simply because he donated the vast majority – 60 to 65 per cent, if some sources are to be believed – of his income.

The End

Ratan Tata died at Mumbai’s Breach Candy Hospital late last night at the age of 86.

READ | Ratan Tata, Industry Legend National Icon, Dies At 86

He was admitted Monday but, as was his nature, played down any fuss, declaring he was undergoing routine age-related medical check-ups. “There is no cause for concern. Thank you for thinking of me…”

Thank you for thinking of me pic.twitter.com/MICi6zVH99

— Ratan N. Tata (@RNTata2000) October 7, 2024

Hours later, just as discreetly and quietly, the Tata family broke the news.

“It is with a profound sense of loss that we bid farewell to Mr Ratan Naval Tata, a truly uncommon leader whose immeasurable contributions have shaped not only the Tata Group but also the very fabric of our nation,” the group’s Chairperson, N Chandrasekaran, said.

As the news spread the outpouring of grief underlined Mr Tata’s stature, but it was a fellow industrial titan, Anand Mahindra, who best captured the emotions of 145 crore Indians.

“I am unable to accept…” he said.

NDTV is now available on WhatsApp channels. Click on the link to get all the latest updates from NDTV on your chat.

Sudha Murty, author-philanthropist and Rajya Sabha MP, on Thursday, paid homage to noted industrialist Ratan Tata, saying his death marked the “end of an era”, adding she felt “vacuumed in my personal life.”

“… In my life, I met him (Ratan Tata), a man of integrity, and simplicity, always caring for others and compassionate… I really miss him… I don’t think in my experience I met anyone like him. May I only pray, may his soul rest in peace. He was a legend, there was an era, but this is the end of an era for me,” Murty told ANI. 

Murty said that Tata was a “person of integrity,” which was so important.

“He was like that. He had enormous patience. He was a simple man… I learn philanthropy in the House of Tatas only. It’s my personal loss… I feel now vacuumed in my personal life,” she added.

#WATCH | Bengaluru, Karnataka | On the demise of Ratan Tata, author-philanthropist and Rajya Sabha MP Sudha Murty says, “… In my life, I met him (Ratan Tata), a man of integrity, and simplicity, always caring for others and compassionate… I really miss him… I don’t think in… pic.twitter.com/hDb6Qbfhau

— ANI (@ANI) October 10, 2024

Eighty-six-year-old Ratan Tata, chairman emeritus of Tata Sons and a philanthropist, died at the Breach Candy Hospital in Mumbai on October 9.

According to reports, he was admitted to the hospital in a critical condition. 

“It is with a profound sense of loss that we bid farewell to Mr Ratan Naval Tata, a truly uncommon leader whose immeasurable contributions have shaped not only the Tata Group but also the very fabric of our nation,” Tata Sons Chairman N Chandrasekaran said in a statement.

Earlier in the day, President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid tribute to Tata.

The President noted the country “lost an icon who blended corporate growth with nation building, and excellence with ethics.” 

Offering condolences to his family and the entire team of the Tata Group, she said Tata’s contribution to philanthropy and charity is “invaluable.” 

Prime Minister Modi also expressed his condolences on Tata’s death and said he was “a visionary business leader, a compassionate soul and an extraordinary human being”.

Tata’s last rites will be performed with full state honours, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde announced on Thursday.

While PM Modi has left for Laos to attend the ASEAN-India and East Asia summits, Union Home Minister Amit Shah will be at the late billionaire industrialist’s funeral.

New Delhi:

Industrialist Ratan Tata, in an exclusive interview with NDTV in 2010, recalled an interesting conversation he had with a fellow billionaire. Mr Tata said the billionaire suggested he pay Rs 15 crore to a minister for an undisclosed business deal. 

Mr Tata, of course, refused. The fellow industrialist then asked Mr Tata, “How do you avoid corruption?”

To which, Mr Tata replied, “It has to be self-regulating. You will never understand.” 

Mr Tata died at the age of 86 in a Mumbai hospital on Wednesday. Mr Tata’s death marks the end of an era in Indian business, where a man reshaped the country’s industrial landscape and catapulted his family-owned conglomerate into a global powerhouse. His death has drawn an outpouring of grief and tributes from across the country. 

“I want to go to bed at night feeling that I have not done it (corruption),” Mr Tata said. 

Mr Tata will be cremated today with full state honours. Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde also announced a day of mourning to honour the legendary industrialist and philanthropist. The national flag will be flown at half-mast across government offices in Maharashtra as a mark of respect. Many events scheduled for Thursday have been cancelled.

Mr Tata’s body will be kept at the National Centre for Performing Arts (NCPA) in Mumbai’s Nariman Point from 10 am to 4 pm today, where people can pay their last respects. 

New Delhi:

In February 2007, Ratan Tata took to the skies in a high-speed adventure that few would ever experience. At the Aero India Show held in Bengaluru, Mr Tata, 69 at the time, was invited by US defence contractor Lockheed Martin to co-pilot an F-16 fighter jet. 

Known for his aviation skills, Mr Tata, who held licenses to fly both jets and helicopters, seized the opportunity to co-pilot the combat aircraft. Under the guidance of a seasoned Lockheed Martin pilot, he took over the controls during the half-hour flight. Soaring through clear skies and reaching altitudes as low as 500 feet, Mr Tata’s experience was described as nothing short of “exhilarating.”

READ | Ratan Tata To Get State Funeral, Day Of Mourning Declared In Maharashtra

Speaking to NDTV shortly after his flight, Mr Tata couldn’t contain his excitement. 

“You end up feeling very timid. We did a few things when the commander took over and did some roles, and all of it was very exciting. We went down to around 500 ft of the deck and it flew around the topography, and it’s just unbelievable because you just climb over a hill and come down, turn on your side or turn over. It’s just unbelievable,” Mr Tata told NDTV.

READ | Ratan Tata: Industrialist, Philanthropist, And Indian Icon

The Lockheed Martin pilot, who guided Mr Tata through the flight, shared the excitement. “He was absolutely thrilled. The highlight was when we flew at low altitudes-around 500 feet-at 600 knots. You get a real sense of how fast this aircraft can move,” the pilot recalled.

On landing, Mr Tata was greeted by Lockheed Martin officials who presented him with a miniature replica of the F-16. The American defence giant was at the time competing for a major multi-billion-dollar defence contract with India.

READ | “Thank You For Thinking Of Me”: Ratan Tata’s Last Social Media Post

But the F-16 wasn’t Mr Tata’s only airborne conquest that week. The very next day, he took to the skies once more – this time in Boeing’s F-18 Super Hornet. Larger and more powerful than the F-16, the F-18 is a key asset in the US Navy’s aircraft carrier operations. For Mr Tata, who has long harboured a passion for aviation, flying two of the world’s most advanced fighter jets back-to-back was a dream come true.

Mr Tata died at the age of 86 in a Mumbai hospital on Wednesday and will be cremated with full state honours today. 

Mumbai:

Industrialist Ratan Tata, who died at the age of 86 in a Mumbai hospital on Wednesday, will be cremated with full state honours, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde announced. The state government has also declared a day of mourning on Thursday to honour the late industrialist. 

Mr Shinde announced that the national flag will be flown at half-mast across government offices in Maharashtra as a mark of respect. Entertainment events scheduled for Thursday have been cancelled.

Mr Tata’s body will be kept at the National Centre for Performing Arts (NCPA) in Mumbai’s Nariman Point from 10 am to 4 pm today, where people can pay their last respects. The cremation will take place in the Worli area later in the day.

READ | Ratan Tata: Industrialist, Philanthropist, And Indian Icon

Chief Minister Shinde called Mr Tata an “ideal amalgamation of ethics and entrepreneurship”. “He was a role model for future generations of entrepreneurs and a symbol of India’s industrial growth,” said Mr Shinde.

खो गया देश का अनमोल रत्न

रतनजी टाटा नैतिकता और उद्यमशीलता के अपूर्व और आदर्श संगम थे.लगभग 150 वर्षों की उत्कृष्टता और अखंडता की परंपरा वाले टाटा ग्रुप की कमान सफलतापूर्वक संभालने वाले रतनजी टाटा एक जीवित किवदंती थे.उन्होंने समय-समय पर जिस निर्णय क्षमता और मानसिक दृढ़ता का परिचय… https://t.co/u6MdkdheCC

— Eknath Shinde – एकनाथ शिंदे (@mieknathshinde) October 9, 2024

“Everyone will always remember the determination shown by him after the 2008 Mumbai attack. His firm decisions, courageous attitude and social commitment will always be remembered. The last rites of late Ratanji Tata will be performed with full state honours,” Mr Shinde added.

READ | Ratan Tata Dies: 10 Facts On India’s Most Beloved Industrialist

Mr Tata, who took over the reins of the Tata Group in 1991, was instrumental in the conglomerate’s acquisition of international firms such as Corus and Jaguar Land Rover. He expanded the group’s influence across multiple sectors, from steel and automotive to information technology. A recipient of the Padma Vibhushan, Mr Tata retired in 2012 but continued to guide the group and remained active in philanthropy.

READ | “Thank You For Thinking Of Me”: Ratan Tata’s Last Social Media Post

His death has drawn an outpouring of grief and tributes from across the country. Prime Minister Narendra Modi remembered Mr Tata as a visionary business leader and a compassionate soul. Business leaders Gautam Adani, Anand Mahindra, and Sundar Pichai also shared their condolences.

New Delhi:

Ratan Naval Tata, the business titan and global icon who led the Tata behemoth from thirty countries to over a hundred since becoming chairman in 1991, died today at Mumbai’s Breach Candy Hospital. He was 86 and was undergoing routine medical investigation due to his age.

Paying a tribute to Ratan Tata, his company Tata Sons today shared a remembrance note recalling his growing up years and his journey through the decades.

Ratan Tata, who became one of the most respected industrialists and philanthropists globally, was born to Naval and Soonoo Tata on December 28, 1937. He and his younger brother, Jimmy, were raised by their grandmother, Navajbai R Tata, in a baroque manor called Tata Palace in downtown Bombay (now Mumbai).

Navajbai, a formidable matriarch, instilled a strong set of values in her grandchildren. “She was very indulgent, but also quite strict in terms of discipline.” Mr Tata would recall in one his interviews where he opened up about his growing-up years. “We were very protected and we didn’t have many friends. I had to learn the piano and I played a lot of cricket,” he said.

RATAN TATA – SCHOOL AND COLLEGE YEARS

Mr Tata was schooled at Campion and then at Cathedral and John Connon – both in Mumbai. He then pursued his higher education at Cornell – an Ivy league university in the United States.

At Cornell he studied architecture and structural engineering, and his years in America from 1955 to 1962 influenced Mr Tata tremendously. It was, in multiple ways, the making of him. He travelled across America and was so charmed by California and the West Coast lifestyle that he was ready to settle down in Los Angeles, as per details shared by Tata Sons.

THE JOB AT IBM

When Navajbai’s health deteriorated. Mr Tata was forced to return to a life he thought he had left behind. “I was in Los Angeles and very happily so. And that was where I was when I left before I should have left,” Mr Tata had said in a 2011 interview with CNN.

Once back in India, Mr Tata had a job offer from IBM. JRD Tata wasn’t amused. “He called me one day and he said you can’t be here in India and working for IBM. I was in [the IBM office] and I remember he asked me for a resume, which I didn’t have. The office had electric typewriters so I sat one evening and typed out a resume on their typewriter and gave it to him.”

RELATIONS WITH HIS FATHER

Unlike his eldest son, Naval Tata was a gregarious and outgoing personality, equally at home in the company of kings and commoners. He became a director of Tata Sons, an eminent figure in the International Labour Organisation and a well-regarded sports administrator. Between father and son, though, the difference in temperament showed. “We were close and we were not,” Mr Tata would write in a special publication that celebrated the lives of Jamsetji Tata, JRD Tata and Naval Tata. “I left India when I was 15 for a decade. I would have to say that, as often happens between a father and a son, there was, perhaps, a divergence of views,” Tata sons shared in remembrance of Mr Tata.

“[My father] hated confrontations. He was very good at negotiating settlements… Frequently, that settlement would involve a compromise, and he was all for ‘give and take’. As a person, he gave in a great deal and sometimes, as younger and less mature people, we would fight with him for conceding ground in the quest for a solution, for peace or whatever,” he wrote, as per a remembrance tribute shared by Tata Sons.

THE ARCHITECT

As he has often said, architecture provided him with the equipment to be a perceptive business leader. Pity was that Mr Tata had only a handful of opportunities to use that equipment in the discipline proper, a house he designed for his mother, an abode in Alibaug and his own seafront home in Mumbai being the most prominent of these.

HIS PASSION AND HIS LOVE FOR PETS

Mr Tata had a bit more time for his other desires. Flying and fast cars, both of them, like so much else, born in the Cornell cauldron, were enduring passions. As was scuba diving till his ears could take the pressure no more.

A teetotaller and a nonsmoker, Mr Tata consciously chose to stay single. That seems so much like the man: a lonesome warrior wedded to the Tata cause. The company he kept in his book-lined abode in Mumbai were his German Shepherds, Tito and Tango, and his fondness for them was always boundless.

Too many of these pets of Mr Tata were snatched away by death and the loss took its toll, but he never gave up on the chance to bond with yet another loyal bounder. “My love for dogs as pets is ever strong and will continue for as long as I live,” he had once said.

“There is an indescribable sadness every time one of my pets 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.”

A TIMELINE OF RATAN TATA’S LIFE AND TIMES

• 1937: Ratan Tata is born to Soonoo and Naval Tata.

• 1955: Leaves for Cornell University (Ithaca, New York, USA) at age 17; goes on to study architecture and engineering over a seven-year period.

• 1962: Awarded bachelor of architecture degree.

• 1962: Joins the Tata group as an assistant in Tata Industries; later in the year, spends six months training at the Jamshedpur plant of Tata Engineering and Locomotive Company (now called Tata Motors).

• 1963: Moves to Tata Iron and Steel Company, or Tisco (now called Tata Steel), at its Jamshedpur facility for a training programme.

• 1965: Is appointed technical officer in Tisco’s engineering division.

• 1969: Works as the Tata group’s resident representative in Australia.

• 1970: Returns to India, joins Tata Consultancy Services, then a software fledgling, for a short stint.

• 1971: Is named director-in-charge of National Radio and Electronics (better known as Nelco), an ailing electronics enterprise.

• 1974: Joins the board of Tata Sons as a director.

• 1975: Completes the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School.

• 1981: Is appointed Chairman of Tata Industries; begins the process of transforming it into a promoter of high-technology businesses.

• 1983: Drafts the Tata strategic plan.

• 1986-1989: Serves as Chairman of Air India, the national carrier.

• March 25, 1991: Takes over from JRD Tata as Chairman of Tata Sons and Chairman of the Tata trusts.

• 1991: Begins restructuring of the Tata group at a time when the liberalisation of the Indian economy is underway.

• 2000 onwards: The growth and globalisation drive of the Tata group gathers pace under his stewardship and the new millennium sees a string of high-profile Tata acquisitions, among them Tetley, Corus, Jaguar Land Rover, Brunner Mond, General Chemical Industrial Products and Daewoo.

• 2008: Launches the Tata Nano, born of the trailblazing small car project he guided and commanded with zeal and determination.

• 2008: Is awarded the Padma Vibhushan, the country’s second-highest civilian honour, by the Government of India.

• December 2012: Steps down as Chairman of Tata Sons after 50 years with the Tata group; is appointed Chairman Emeritus of Tata Sons.

• October 9, 2024: Ratan Tata dies at the age of 86.

New Delhi:

Ratan Naval Tata, the business titan and global icon who led the Tata behemoth from thirty countries to over a hundred since becoming chairman in 1991, died today at Mumbai’s Breach Candy Hospital. He was 86 and was undergoing routine medical investigation due to his age.

Paying a tribute to Ratan Tata, his company Tata Sons today shared a remembrance note recalling his growing up years and his journey through the decades.

Ratan Tata, who became one of the most respected industrialists and philanthropists globally, was born to Naval and Soonoo Tata on December 28, 1937. He and his younger brother, Jimmy, were raised by their grandmother, Navajbai R Tata, in a baroque manor called Tata Palace in downtown Bombay (now Mumbai).

Navajbai, a formidable matriarch, instilled a strong set of values in her grandchildren. “She was very indulgent, but also quite strict in terms of discipline.” Mr Tata would recall in one his interviews where he opened up about his growing-up years. “We were very protected and we didn’t have many friends. I had to learn the piano and I played a lot of cricket,” he said.

RATAN TATA – SCHOOL AND COLLEGE YEARS

Mr Tata was schooled at Campion and then at Cathedral and John Connon – both in Mumbai. He then pursued his higher education at Cornell – an Ivy league university in the United States.

At Cornell he studied architecture and structural engineering, and his years in America from 1955 to 1962 influenced Mr Tata tremendously. It was, in multiple ways, the making of him. He travelled across America and was so charmed by California and the West Coast lifestyle that he was ready to settle down in Los Angeles, as per details shared by Tata Sons.

THE JOB AT IBM

When Navajbai’s health deteriorated. Mr Tata was forced to return to a life he thought he had left behind. “I was in Los Angeles and very happily so. And that was where I was when I left before I should have left,” Mr Tata had said in a 2011 interview with CNN.

Once back in India, Mr Tata had a job offer from IBM. JRD Tata wasn’t amused. “He called me one day and he said you can’t be here in India and working for IBM. I was in [the IBM office] and I remember he asked me for a resume, which I didn’t have. The office had electric typewriters so I sat one evening and typed out a resume on their typewriter and gave it to him.”

RELATIONS WITH HIS FATHER

Unlike his eldest son, Naval Tata was a gregarious and outgoing personality, equally at home in the company of kings and commoners. He became a director of Tata Sons, an eminent figure in the International Labour Organisation and a well-regarded sports administrator. Between father and son, though, the difference in temperament showed. “We were close and we were not,” Mr Tata would write in a special publication that celebrated the lives of Jamsetji Tata, JRD Tata and Naval Tata. “I left India when I was 15 for a decade. I would have to say that, as often happens between a father and a son, there was, perhaps, a divergence of views,” Tata sons shared in remembrance of Mr Tata.

“[My father] hated confrontations. He was very good at negotiating settlements… Frequently, that settlement would involve a compromise, and he was all for ‘give and take’. As a person, he gave in a great deal and sometimes, as younger and less mature people, we would fight with him for conceding ground in the quest for a solution, for peace or whatever,” he wrote, as per a remembrance tribute shared by Tata Sons.

THE ARCHITECT

As he has often said, architecture provided him with the equipment to be a perceptive business leader. Pity was that Mr Tata had only a handful of opportunities to use that equipment in the discipline proper, a house he designed for his mother, an abode in Alibaug and his own seafront home in Mumbai being the most prominent of these.

HIS PASSION AND HIS LOVE FOR PETS

Mr Tata had a bit more time for his other desires. Flying and fast cars, both of them, like so much else, born in the Cornell cauldron, were enduring passions. As was scuba diving till his ears could take the pressure no more.

A teetotaller and a nonsmoker, Mr Tata consciously chose to stay single. That seems so much like the man: a lonesome warrior wedded to the Tata cause. The company he kept in his book-lined abode in Mumbai were his German Shepherds, Tito and Tango, and his fondness for them was always boundless.

Too many of these pets of Mr Tata were snatched away by death and the loss took its toll, but he never gave up on the chance to bond with yet another loyal bounder. “My love for dogs as pets is ever strong and will continue for as long as I live,” he had once said.

“There is an indescribable sadness every time one of my pets 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.”

A TIMELINE OF RATAN TATA’S LIFE AND TIMES

• 1937: Ratan Tata is born to Soonoo and Naval Tata.

• 1955: Leaves for Cornell University (Ithaca, New York, USA) at age 17; goes on to study architecture and engineering over a seven-year period.

• 1962: Awarded bachelor of architecture degree.

• 1962: Joins the Tata group as an assistant in Tata Industries; later in the year, spends six months training at the Jamshedpur plant of Tata Engineering and Locomotive Company (now called Tata Motors).

• 1963: Moves to Tata Iron and Steel Company, or Tisco (now called Tata Steel), at its Jamshedpur facility for a training programme.

• 1965: Is appointed technical officer in Tisco’s engineering division.

• 1969: Works as the Tata group’s resident representative in Australia.

• 1970: Returns to India, joins Tata Consultancy Services, then a software fledgling, for a short stint.

• 1971: Is named director-in-charge of National Radio and Electronics (better known as Nelco), an ailing electronics enterprise.

• 1974: Joins the board of Tata Sons as a director.

• 1975: Completes the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School.

• 1981: Is appointed Chairman of Tata Industries; begins the process of transforming it into a promoter of high-technology businesses.

• 1983: Drafts the Tata strategic plan.

• 1986-1989: Serves as Chairman of Air India, the national carrier.

• March 25, 1991: Takes over from JRD Tata as Chairman of Tata Sons and Chairman of the Tata trusts.

• 1991: Begins restructuring of the Tata group at a time when the liberalisation of the Indian economy is underway.

• 2000 onwards: The growth and globalisation drive of the Tata group gathers pace under his stewardship and the new millennium sees a string of high-profile Tata acquisitions, among them Tetley, Corus, Jaguar Land Rover, Brunner Mond, General Chemical Industrial Products and Daewoo.

• 2008: Launches the Tata Nano, born of the trailblazing small car project he guided and commanded with zeal and determination.

• 2008: Is awarded the Padma Vibhushan, the country’s second-highest civilian honour, by the Government of India.

• December 2012: Steps down as Chairman of Tata Sons after 50 years with the Tata group; is appointed Chairman Emeritus of Tata Sons.

• October 9, 2024: Ratan Tata dies at the age of 86.

New Delhi:

Google CEO Sundar Pichai offered his condolences on the passing away of businessman Ratan Tata and said that Tata leaves an extraordinary business and philanthropic legacy.

In a post on X, Mr Pichai said that Ratan Tata “deeply cared about making India better.”

The veteran industrialist, 86, passed away on Wednesday evening at Breach Candy Hospital in Mumbai.
“
My last meeting with Ratan Tata at Google, we talked about the progress of Waymo and his vision was inspiring to hear.” Mr Pichai said. “He leaves an extraordinary business and philanthropic legacy and was instrumental in mentoring and developing modern business leadership in India,” he said.

My last meeting with Ratan Tata at Google, we talked about the progress of Waymo and his vision was inspiring to hear. He leaves an extraordinary business and philanthropic legacy and was instrumental in mentoring and developing the modern business leadership in India. He deeply…

— Sundar Pichai (@sundarpichai) October 9, 2024

“He deeply cared about making India better. Deep condolences to his loved ones and Rest in Peace Ratan Tata Ji,” he added

Chairman of the Mahindra Group Anand Mahindra expressed his heartfelt condolences on the passing away of Ratan Tata.

I am unable to accept the absence of Ratan Tata.

India’s economy stands on the cusp of a historic leap forward. And Ratan’s life and work have had much to do with our being in this position.

I am unable to accept the absence of Ratan Tata.

India’s economy stands on the cusp of a historic leap forward.
And Ratan’s life and work have had much to do with our being in this position.

Hence, his mentorship and guidance at this point in time would have been invaluable.… pic.twitter.com/ujJC2ehTTs

— anand mahindra (@anandmahindra) October 9, 2024

“I am unable to accept the absence of Ratan Tata,” Mr Mahindra said. “India’s economy stands on the cusp of a historic leap forward. And Ratan’s life and work have had much to do with our being in this position.”

“Hence, his mentorship and guidance at this point in time would have been invaluable. With him gone, all we can do is to commit to emulating his example. Because he was a businessman for whom financial wealth and success was most useful when it was put to the service of the global community. Goodbye and Godspeed, Mr. T You will not be forgotten. Because Legends never die. Om Shanti,” he added.

Ratan N Tata was among India’s most respected and loved industralists, who took Tata Group to new heights and touched the fabric of the nation through his contributions across different areas including philanthropy.

Tata, born on December 28, 1937, in Mumbai, is the Chairman of Ratan Tata Trust and Dorabji Tata Trust, two of the largest private-sector-promoted philanthropic trusts in India.

He was the Chairman of Tata Sons, the holding company of the Tata Group, from 1991 until his retirement in 2012. Then he was appointed Chairman Emeritus of Tata Sons. He was honoured with the country’s second-highest civilian award, the Padma Vibhushan, in 2008.

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