'Bawajis will now eat idlis?'

Prime Minister Narendra Modi shakes hands with Ratan Tata

It is goodbye to ‘patra ni macchi' and welcome to ‘ven pongal' times for the country's behemoth business house, Tata Sons. With Cyrus Mistry's ouster, in comes N Chandrasekaran or N Chandra, as he is popularly known. Chandra - a Tamilian - will take the Tata Sons chair on February 21 this year, becoming the first non-Parsi chairman of the business house that is synonymous with Parsis.

Tata Sons' new chairman, N Chandrasekaran. Pics/PTI

The corporate response
Business czar Zavaray Poonawalla was working out zealously on his treadmill when asked about the community and corporate reaction to what is being perceived as an ‘outsider' taking the Tata reins. Zavaray or Mr Z, said, "Obviously I would have loved it if a Parsi had headed this great conglomerate. Times have changed though and good counsel has prevailed." Zavaray, however, admits that when the announcement was made, a frisson of shock ran through the community. "At that time, it was as if the unthinkable had happened, but after that knee-jerk reaction, it was time to rationalise, look at dwindling numbers and think that just maybe, it was time to pass on the baton to what looks like the best man or woman for the job, never mind if from another community," finished Poonawalla, a little wistfully.

Esplanade House, Mumbai, residence of the founder of the Tata empire, Jamsetji Nusserwanji Tata, received an Honourable Mention in the 2014 Unesco Asia-Pacific awards for cultural heritage conservation

A deviation from tradition is, "a sign of the times. There are no Tata descendants," says Capt. Jamshed Appoo, director, Herald Maritime Services. "The honchos do not want the group to sink; what would they do? There is nothing wrong with this choice." Appoo added that, "We are now approximately 80,000 Parsis in the world. I remember, as an 18 year-old, I had gone to Jamshedpur and accompanied Tata personnel on a picnic. There were busloads of Parsis. Today, we just don't have those numbers." Ultimately, Appoo says, "We have to be democratic and liberal. This may be a precursor of things to come, it is the future and we have to accept it," adding, "Ratan Tata is no fool. Look at the Tata history and their philanthropy. You will realise that this is a different class of people."

Panchayat weighs in
For Bombay Parsi Panchayat (BPP) chief, Yazdi Desai, "Of course, there is disappointment. No use shying away from that, but there was nobody else on the horizon. Investor fancy will also be diluted to some extent. Not taking away from anybody, but it will affect the ethos of the company; companies are, after all, run by individuals."

Kersi Randheria, CMD of ‘Ahura Mazda' a furniture manufacturing company laughs, "Of course, the chair will go to a competent person. If they give it to a fool like me, the company will close down. Then, there are others who are cracking jokes on social media that, ‘abhi toh bawajis will eat idlis', which means there is a light hearted acceptance too," but later adding seriously, "Tata is a public company, it is answerable to shareholders. We have to be secular and display that inclusiveness in all aspects of life."