Wit Wisdom and Whoop

I t seems as if the curtains have been rung down on the 1 st chapter of the Tata Group, Shapoorji Pallonji or SP Group saga that began centuries ago as fellow members of the Parsi community aiming to make a mark on the Indian business scene. For very long many even in business circles knew that the SP group was the single biggest shareholder of the Tata Group. A private joke some of us had when involved with the SP group and dealing with a Tata company as customer was – we are your biggest shareholder not your vendor. When Ratan Tata flagged off a massive exercise to find and appoint a successor to himself and we kept reading of some or the other high profile name being in contention that when Cyrus Mistry was selected, it was a anti climax. If you are going to find someone within the family why make such a hullaballoo was a question that was asked. The new Chairman was feted, greeted and introduced to the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Commerce Minister Anand Sharma, Chief Minister...

I looked at him as he passed me by. It had been over 6 months since we had spoken. The pandemic had resulted in a breakup in our relationship. We know that we loved each other but then stuff happens. As I looked at him walking past without even looking at me, I felt a surge of memories come gushing out. We used to spend a lot of time together. He insisted that I accompany him whenever he travelled. It was not easy. The long flights, the waiting at airports, sleeping in a strange room each night and those taxi rides. I did not enjoy any of them but then he insisted, and I would agree. He enjoyed these trips and I loved him too much to object. The trips especially to USA were more tiring but then that was when we enjoyed ourselves the most. The walk all over those big beautiful airports, those colourful shops with all kinds of stuff that one would be tempted to buy. But luckily, I was one of those who didn’t buy much but preferred to see and enjoy. That way we were a perfect couple. Th...

Honestly I would be wrong if I said that I had worked closely with her since she was the CEO of a giant organisation and I was just the junior most lackey. But 2 incidents gave me an education that I have carried with me. The first was when we built a set of apartments and everybody from the head office designers to the architects had approved everything. Ready for occupancy she came for a visit. In the Kitchen she asked that we find something that could resemble in size to a typical vessel used for cooking at home. She asked us to try washing it under the sink tap and as we washed the water spilt all over the edges. She said – “Change every tap in every apartment. People can’t stay like this. This is common sense, not engineering and learn to use that more often to be successful.” The second I would actually say I should be personally indebted to her. In the initial stages of the project I just blindly did whatever any of the different big bosses told us. One such was purchasing a the...

Its been 6 months since I saw the inside of a plane, office, taxi, hotel or even for that matter shook hands, hugged a friend. Instead its been staring at laptop screens, switching from one MS Teams call to another Zoom call to even a Whatsapp video call at all times of the day or night. Instead of turning your head as you looked at different people and things in a room, swiveling in a chair, getting up, stretching, grabbing coffee, joking and arguing, using the white board and large screen for PPT meetings we now stare at one small screen, eyes flickering from one participant to the other. Life has changed so much and it doesn't seem like life as we knew it is coming back anytime soon. I am not pessimistic and know that things will be back to normal but then it would be the new normal. Many companies including even those in manufacturing are finding that business can indeed be done even when working at home. This is giving many the idea to make this system, even if partially, as a...