The Hindu Business Line : The future belongs to Murthys & Nooyis

A white Tata Indica drove up at the Taj hotel and a tall Sardar ushered in JRD, Nehru and Gandhi. The three honourable men had to crawl out prompting Nehru to remark, "Can't you get Ratan to manufacture a spacious car. I have to check out whether my limbs are in place." A laughing JRD led the three into the lobby of the old Taj and up the wide, curving staircase topped with a dome to a quiet corner for a lunch sprinkled with drinks.

JRD always made it a point to lunch at the Taj on Parsi New Year day and Sunday afternoon became special with Nehru and Gandhi. A lady draped in a pink sari offered each of the three aged men a fragrant, black rose (not the hybrid variety) with Gandhi graciously rising to his feet to accept the flower. "You can't beat the Old Man when it comes to women," remarked JRD drawing a Gandhian reply, "I am learning the graces of life standing like a statue at Nariman Point."

The three settled down in deep, cane chairs when JRD reminded the audience that everything was on the house. JRD put away his coat, Nehru removed his jacket and Gandhi his wind-cheater, made in China. Outside a cool wind surfed the Arabian Sea raising a spray to catch marble-sized raindrops from a gloomy sky and the poet in Nehru wistfully watched the hastily drawn up, hazy debate. The waiter stood still a feet away as the three scratched themselves to place orders for the drinks.

JRD went for a rum with soda, Nehru for a vodka with orange juice being a Leftist and Gandhi was firm on French wine. The drinks came and the group clinked their glasses for the celebratory `Cheers and Happy New Year.' "So folks, what have you been doing," asked JRD sipping his rum. "Well, I watched the World Cup football on a giant screen at the Press Club. I saw every match and lost a small bet on England. I liked the head butting of Zizou; it was novel," said Bapuji. Nehru and JRD broke into loud laughs spraying each other with their drinks as they could not believe Gandhiji watching football. "What's wrong in watching the World Cup," wondered Gandhiji, and Nehru caught him with a "you are getting worse by the day."

Nehru was tracking the fate of the Right to Information Bill, which had the backing of his distant relative Sonia Gandhi. "She is doing a fine job with Manmohan Singh ably fronting for her. That's what all the newspapers say," Nehru observed. JRD ordered a second round of drinks and in passing loudly appreciated the manner Narayana Murthy stepped down as chief of Infosys at 60, while a young Indian lady made it to the top of PepsiCo, the US multinational.

"I admire Murthy. None of us quit our jobs. I stayed on while you (pointing to Nehru) never retired. Bapu was always around - a bit of a nuisance. It takes something to step out of a company or a country one has fought for and built. Its a fresh take on Indian business," mused JRD.

Gandhiji nodded his bald head in agreement, while Nehru disputed the point: "See, Murthy has stepped down but will be there as a non-executive chairman. Murthy told a TV news channel that he will not be going to office every day and yet keep an eye on Infosys. As a Leftist, I do not see much merit in Indra Nooyi becoming the CEO of PepsiCo International after the company has been caught in India serving pesticolas." The chat was warming up.

JRD requested a third round of drinks. "Come on Jawaharlal, that's not the way of looking at Murthy or Indra. You try to set up a business in India and try to run it. It's not like operating a government as you did. Bapu's khadi business was a flop, never making any money. For the young of this country, Murthy and Nooyi are honest humans with something to show. India is creating its own business editions.

"In one lifetime, Murthy has built a high-tech company to take on the world's best, and, perhaps, even my TCS cannot match Infosys. Check out for yourself. Every young man and woman wants to work at Infosys and they realise only the best will make it. Murthy never got his relative to head Infosys. That's as fresh as the beginning of a new day. After me came Ratan Tata and the Nehru dynasty continues to rule India forever and ever. As for Bapu, he did not count; more like Lord Emsworth of Wodehouse," said JRD and realised he had made a long speech.

Gandhiji chuckled over his French wine to add, "I wish I owned a pig." Nehru couldn't but smile at the literary abilities of Gandhiji. For a few moments, JRD and Nehru meditatively pulled at their cigarettes, while Gandhiji chewed at a Cuban cigar. He went with JRD saying, "I read in business newspapers that Indra is religious and has a prayer room. Maybe that made the critical difference. A woman from Chennai clambering to the top of PepsiCo. Its like the first Indian to pass an ICS exam in our times. Sometime from now, new batches of Murthys and Indras may not need to fly to US."

Over lunch, Nehru graciously admitted: "We couldn't make the cut. India 2006 belongs to Murthy and Indra."

P. Devarajan