It is known as one of the epic battles of corporate India, so trust a seasoned newsman like Minhaz Merchant to go to where the heart of the story lies
It is known as one of the epic battles of corporate India, so trust a seasoned newsman like Minhaz Merchant to go to where the heart of the story lies.
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Merchant, whose biography of Anil M Naik, the chairman of Larsen & Toubro, titled 'The Nationalist' will be published next month, revealed a riveting anecdote about the time when the R1,20,000-crore global powerhouse went mano a mano with the formidable Reliance and Aditya Birla groups, when we spoke about the book yesterday.
Minhaz Merchant
"Mr Naik was in Chicago when he received a phone call from Anil Ambani at 2 am one day," says Merchant about those heady days. "Ambani told him, "You never wanted us, Anilbhai, so we're leaving. We have sold our entire stake in L&T to the Birlas.""
"At 7 am that same day, Kumar Mangalam Birla called Naik, explaining why he had acquired an unsolicited stake in L&T from the Ambanis. "You did not come to us Naikji, so we have come to you," recounts Merchant, who has also written a biography of the late industrialist Aditya Birla.
"The ensuing battle would last for years and ended with L&T remaining an independent company, while the Birlas bought its cement division, now the successful UltraTech Cement," he said. As for what inspired Merchant during the writing of the biography, its author says "During my several interviews with Naik, he constantly stressed his humble background.
He was once turned away from a job as a young man because of his lack of proficiency in English." He said, "For him to overcome great odds and transform L&T into a global powerhouse is nothing short of inspiring."
Dressing down is dressing up
The fifth instalment of the country's only resort and beach wear fashion show, which kicks off this week in Goa, promises a fair share of glamour.
Participants at the fashion week
The three-day fashion extravaganza, which shows some of the country's leading names, including Pallavi Jaikishan, Vikram Phadnis and Manoviraj Khosla, will also feature a sun downer show by the 'LOVE GEN' girls, Nandita Mahtani, Dolly Sidhwani and Bhavana Pandey, whose creations are said to be favoured by the likes of Sonakshi Sinha, Raveena Tandon and Mehr Rampal.
"And with Bhavana and Chunky's pretty daughter Ahanya (signed on by Karan Johar as the leading lady for his next directorial biggie) being sure to flaunt her mom's designs more prominently, it's a label to watch," says a spokesperson of the show.
Another highlight will be fashion doyenne Pallavi Jaikishan showcasing her first resort collection 'Pristine', inspired by muse society diva Anju Chulani. And going by its young, easy-glam theme, athleisure appears to be the order of the day. "Gone are the days when looking good meant dressing up. Dressing down is the new thing for our love generation," says Bhavana Pandey.
Setting things right
We had written this week about the hilarious Diwali hamper mix up that had taken place between Bollywood stars Jacqueline Fernandez and Shraddha Kapoor.
Shraddha Kapoor and Jacqueline Fernandez
Now, word comes in that the mix up has been rectified, and many feathers patted down. We are informed that upon realising its error, the said brand has put things right, and sent an additional hamper to Jacqueline Fernandez with a handwritten note apologising for the goof-up on its part.
Following this, the actress once again took to social media to confirm that all is well, while uploading a photo of the note and spanking new hamper with the caption, "Yayy! Shraddha Kapoor was feeling very bad for me!!!" All's well that ends well, as they say.
Robust discussions
FOR the past couple of days, the city's corporate spotlight has been on Ashoka University. The world-class interdisciplinary research university, with a focus on liberal arts, had been set up by a slew of leading financial statesmen in Haryana in 2014.
MJ Akbar and Swapan Dasgupta
Monday evening saw the likes of Hemendra Kothari, Rajiv Lal, Russell Mehta, TNâu00c2u0080u00c2u0088Nainan and Leo Purie attend a lively discussion by three of the institution's faculty, its Chancellor and historian Rudrangshu Mukherjee, its Vice Chancellor and political scientist Pratap Bhanu Mehta, and war historian and international relations faculty Srinath Raghavan on the last 70 years of India's development.
Followed by dinner, the gathering was hosted by Great Eastern Shipping's Bharat and Ravi Sheth. Last evening, the conversation continued when CEO of Central Square Foundation Ashish Dhawan, one of the University's founders and driving forces had Mehta and Mukherjee talk about India and its place in the world in its 70th year of Independence.
And the takeaway? According to those who attended, a robust discussion on names of the country's leading 'intellectuals' ensued. Those who supported the government's recent economic policies had thrown up only two names: Minister of State for External Affairs and Rajya Sabha MP MJ Akbar, and columnist and Rajya Sabha MP Swapan Dasgupta! "Even those who had earlier preferred to be silent on the government's economic policies spoke up," says a source.
Hot water
Word comes in that a leading SoBo five-star found itself in a bit of hot water during the Diwali break last week. An elite civic and philanthropist club with a long association with the hotel, had put together its annual get together for members to celebrate the festive season by booking its banquet hall.
The celebrations were going well and everyone seemed to be reveling in festive cheer, when one of the serving staff accidentally dropped a full cup of boiling hot water on one of the guests. The incident soon took a serious turn when it transpired that the guest had to be rushed to a south Mumbai hospital and ended with second-degree burns on his chest! Obviously, the elite group was not pleased by the incident and left with a bitter taste about the affair. Ouch!
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