By Kavita Chhibber
Talking of people I admire, when Ratan Tata passed away on 9th October 2024, I couldn’t stop crying for weeks and I did not understand my grief over a man I got very close to interviewing twice, but have never met.
Even as I write, on what would have been his 87th birthday, there is a lump in my throat.
My father was not well and I did not want to fly to Bombay and leave my dad alone even for a day when a mutual friend said they could arrange the interview.
I had not come to India for some time and when I did, the first words out of my dad’s lips were that I had ignored him.
Daily phone calls are never a good substitute for physical reunions. And so I turned down the invitation. I think Ratan would have approved.
October 9th is a day I will also not forget for the rest of my life. It was the day the father of my children passed away in his sleep, It was also the day Troy Davis , a death row inmate who changed the way I looked at the death penalty and was a very positive influence on my kids, was born. Two of my most influential teachers are born on that day.
And so Ratan Tata leaving that day meant we were now tied by this cosmic thread of always thinking of him and remembering him on that date.
A friend of mine who is a homeopath pinpointed my tears to the fact that I have two vulnerabilities even though I am seemingly tough.
I am deeply moved by those who are kind to animals and by those who live their life with compassion and integrity.
Ratan Tata epitomized that. His love of animals and protection of strays, his involvement with many agencies doing work for prevention of cruelty to animals, is widely known.
But then I also realized, as I watched his interviews, read books on him and the Tatas, heard what people had to say about him, that he reminded me of my dad, and I am still grieving. The same good looks, the same dignity, the same ethics.
And that you can reach at the top without compromising on those values.
In 2008, I had done an extensive coverage of the Mumbai terror attacks, interviewing many stalwarts in politics, spirituality, security, and the entertainment world.
In all of that, it was the personal stories from people who worked at the Taj hotel, and their sharing of Ratan Tata spearheading compassionate treatment, financial and emotional support, for not only his employees but those who were not even part of the Tata Group that moved me deeply. Those were the most important pieces of journalistic coverage for me.
And of course what drew me to admire Ratan even more was his love of animals. That his last gift was the 98,000 square foot not-for-profit small animal hospital, that opened on July 1st 2024. Like the Tata headquarters, it is a sanctuary for stray dogs and is a state of the art hospital, offering comprehensive care for pets.
When I’m emotionally upset one of the people I always turn to is #KapilDev . For others he is a sports legend, a super successful businessman, and now a golf ace. But for me he is a friend who is just a phone call away and always puts things in perspective.
Kapil immediately called and of course he had met Ratan Tata many times but about 11 years ago he was invited to do a joint interview with Ratan.
Kapil told me he readily agreed to do the interview because “I may have been very good in my own field, but to be able to sit down with someone like Ratan Tata meant learning some valuable life lessons. I always admired the way he conducted himself, his courtesy and humility, the topics he chose to discuss and the wonderful way in which he shared knowledge. He was not just great in his own space, but he was such an extraordinary human being. I believe when you are able to be in the company of such people, you become a better human being yourself. You learn to evolve in the right direction… if you want to evolve that way.”
Kapil added, “You know there are big business houses who make a big deal of doing charity and it is really for publicity. Ratan Tata never did that.”
“When you are famous and you get many awards and then people around you and sometimes those within your family fawn over you, it takes a very sound head not to succumb to that hype. Ratan was like that. He put Tatas on the global map but he did it with integrity, ethics and humility. I always say genuinely rich people don’t make noise about their achievements. Those who want to make the noise are genuinely poor, insecure, no matter how much money they may have acquired. Still waters always run deep.”
Kapil sent me the interview which I’m posting here. Please do watch it because it has so many good life lessons from both men.
But what I noticed in the interview was how subtly and without being in anyone’s face, Ratan Tata made it a point to include Kapil even in the questions that were directly addressed to him.
So it does not seem that he was trying to hog the limelight.
Kapil said to me he wishes Ratan Tata had been given the Bharat Ratna award when he was still around, that he should have been the President of India, because heads of states should command the kind of love and respect he commanded.
I follow Ratan Tata on Instagram and there was this note from him, that said he was doing fine. He passed away shortly after. The first message on that thread said “Sir, you lied”, and the outpouring of grief, love and longing was never-ending.
JRD Tata once said “Business cycles are temporary, class is permanent.”
Ratan Tata epitomised that class in every way possible. His legacy is not just that he was an astute superstar in the business world, but that he was a man of substance and so loved even after he has left the planet.
Happy birthday Ratan ji! I am sure you are charming a greater Universe with that natural charisma and elegance with which you charmed this Planet, not so long ago.