Ratan Tata: Renowned Business Leader & Philanthropist, Leaves Lasting Legacy at 86

GUWHATAI: Ratan Tata, the visionary businessman who transformed one of India's oldest companies into a global giant through a series of major acquisitions, passed away on Wednesday at 86.

The Tata Group announced the news late Wednesday: "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."

Former chairman of Tata Sons, and owner of the Tata Group, Ratan Naval Tata was the greatest phenomenon of Tata becoming one of the top-of-the-line Indian brands. At 86, Chairman Emeritus of Tata Sons, Tata Industries, Tata Motors, Tata Steel, and Tata Chemicals, he earned great respect in the business world for his acuteness, vision, and graft. He died on Wednesday after falling critically ill at a hospital in Mumbai.

Ratan Tata was born on December 28, 1937. He was an Indian industrialist and philanthropist who headed Tata Group and Tata Sons from 1990 to 2012. In 2016 he served as interim chairman from 25 October until 12 February 2017. His work was appreciated with the Padma Vibhushan, India's second-highest civilian honour, in 2008 and previously he had received the Padma Bhushan in the year 2000.

Ratan Tata was the son of Naval Tata, adopted into the Tata family, and the grandson of Jamsetji Tata, founder of the Tata Group. Ratan graduated in architecture from Cornell University. He joined Tata Steel in 1961 as an executive assistant. He took over as chairman of Tata Sons in 1991 succeeding the legendary JRD Tata.

Many global acquisitions were made during the leadership of the Tata Group, such as Tetley, Jaguar Land Rover, and Corus. This has helped shift the company from a local focus to a global enterprise. Many have also known Ratan Tata for his work in philanthropy and he has invested in over 30 different start-ups.

Ratan Tata is a Parsi Zoroastrian born in Bombay, now Mumbai, during the British rule. His parents got divorced when he was 10, and it was Navajbai Tata who raised the young Ratan Tata. Before graduating from Cornell University in 1959, where he joined the Alpha Sigma Phi fraternity, he had attended many of the top-notch schools. In 2008, he was back in the limelight for donating $50 million to Cornell, making him the largest international donor of the university.

In the 1970s, he accepted a managing position in the Tata Group, from which he successfully rebuilt the subsidiary National Radio and Electronics (NELCO). His first big change was the takeover as chairman of Tata Sons in 1991. The subsidiary heads welcomed him initially coldly since they were familiar with a reasonable level of independence. To get the group together, he introduced some retirement age and direct reporting to the group office directly from subsidiaries. He focused on innovation, giving youth more powers, and harmonization of subsidiary operations; globalization and the phased out of unrelated businesses.

Revenues of the Tata Group grew more than 40 times while profits more than 50 times over his 21-year tenure. The Group, which began as a house of commodities, has over time evolved into one of the world's most respected consumer brands: key acquisitions included Tetley for Tata Tea, Jaguar Land Rover for Tata Motors, and Corus, which significantly enhanced international revenues for Tata to over 65%.

Ratan Tata resigned from his administrative position on December 28, 2012; this happened coincidentally to be his 75th birthday, thereby turning it into a leadership crisis and creating a succession crisis. The board would not accept Cyrus Mistry, the grandson of Tata and son of the largest shareholder, Pallonji Mistry, to be appointed as chairman. On October 24, 2016, Mistry was replaced as the chairman, and Ratan Tata was appointed interim chairman while a selection committee looked for a replacement. Natarajan Chandrasekaran was inducted as chairman on January 12, 2017, and took over the office in February. Mistry quit as director and has been vindicated by the Supreme Court in his ouster.

Ratan Tata was bestowed with many awards and honors; some of them were the Padma Bhushan in 2000 and the Padma Vibhushan in 2008. He was 'Maharashtra Bhushan' awardee in 2006 and 'Assam Baibhav' in 2021 for the betterment of Assam cancer care.

Following Tata's passing, there are rumors of who will succeed him. He was never married and had no children although he headed one of the most powerful business empires in India, which brought forth conversations about his future legacy. The nearest successors could come in the form of members of his extended family and, particularly, his half-brother Noel Tata.

Maya Tata is the daughter of Noel Tata. She will likely be a successor to the huge empire of Ratan Tata. Presently, Maya is a member of the Tata Medical Centre Trust board. Maya graduated from Bayes Business School and also from the University of Warwick. She began with the Tata Opportunities Fund and then did the Tata Neu App development work.

Maya's maternal lineage is also notable; her mother, Aloo Mistry, is the sister of the late Cyrus Mistry, a former chairman of the Tata Group, and the daughter of the late billionaire Pallonji Mistry.

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