Comment by Gentil | Hacker News Reader

Comment by Gentil | Hacker News Reader

I don't think people outside India understand what Tata means. Who Ratan Tata was. He was not some random rich person who did some philanthropy. ~66% of everything that Tata companies make goes back to philanthropy and the people of India. And these days to people where Tata companies operates (I presume). To the TATAs, people are of primary importance. They are a behemoth of a group comparable to Samsung or other big companies/conglomorates.

They don't deceive, they don't put money over people. Because their mission IS to the people. You can buy a Tata product with a level of trust that no other brand can provide. Seeing TATA along with a product is more than enough. They are the best definition of capitalism I have ever come across.

This is why you don't see Ratan Tatas in billionaire's list or rich people's list.

Everything India is because of the Tatas. They single handledly is responsible for building India's foundations. Whether it is in Health, Nuclear, Tech or anywhere. You will see Tata's presence everywhere.

I genuinely shed a tear today morning because of his passing. And I am not sure I would do the same for any other business man.

Today is indeed a sad day. May he rest in peace.

The reputation of the Tata group is not as stellar as it was under the leadership of JRD Tata.

Nonetheless, it is one of the few large industrial groups in India to go above and beyond their commercial interests to look at the interests of Indians as a whole.

I remember the day JRD Tata died. I was still in college then and I had an overwhelming sense of grief over his death. It was a huge loss to lose a man of his caliber and my grief was for the country. With Ratan Tata, it is similar but not on the same scale as JRD.

Probably. I don't think it's possible to please everybody. Also, under Rata Tata, Tata went truly global. I can only presume that it means increased responsibilities & increased issues. JRD Tata didn't go through the same problems as Ratan Tata did. And I don't mean that JRD Tata struggled less. Or more for the matter. The problems were simply different.

There is also the fact that we humans are connected 24/7 unlike previous generations. This also means you don't hear the negativity or problems like we do today about someone. This is the norm these days. If you need to find the same for older generations, you really need to dig through it.

I say this cos everyone I admire from yester generations come out with a lot more mistakes and issues as I learn more about them. I find it humane. It just makes them human. What I admire about Ratan Tata is that he tried to be better person. As much as he can. And he was one of the nicest human as well. That is enough. :)

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