The Ambuja Story: How a Group of Ordinary Men Created an Extraordinary Company

381 Pages·2022·4.073 MB·English

by  Narotam Sekhsaria

For
my wife Nalini,
son Pulkit, and daughter Padmini
whose unconditional love energised me every day
Contents
Prologue
Destiny’s Child
The Making of a Trader
Gujarat Ambuja’s Unlikely Origins
Idea to Reality
An Emotional Roller Coaster
A Brand Is Born
A New Sense of Confidence
Against the Odds
Stepping into the Unknown
Cancer Is Just Another Distraction
A Social Conscience for Ambuja
Powering Ahead
The Leap into the Major League
The Long Goodbye
Some Last Thoughts
Photographic Inserts
Afterword
Appendix I
Appendix II
Index
Acknowledgements
About the Book
About the Author
Copyright
Prologue
O
n a sweltering day in the summer of June 1982, Suresh Neotia and I flew
to Lucknow to explore the possibility of setting up a cement plant in Uttar
Pradesh. Suresh, who had arrived from Calcutta, was a relative and a
mentor to me. We had come to Lucknow to meet Mr Narayan Dutt Tiwari,
the Union Industry Minister, to submit the initial proposal for the plant, and
to gauge the response. Mr Tiwari had been the Chief Minister of Uttar
Pradesh till a few years ago and retained considerable clout in the state
capital.
We were waiting in the lobby of the iconic Clarks Hotel on our way to
the meeting when I saw a distinguished, tall, and fair gentleman walk in
with a retinue of people. I recognized him immediately. It was Mr N.N. Pai,
the chairman and managing director of Industrial Development Bank of
India (IDBI), the country’s premier bank for development finance in those
days. I had known him well for a few years. He saw me and stopped.
‘Narotam, what are you doing here in Lucknow?’ he asked. I told him about
our mission. He looked slightly amused and indulgently told me, ‘You are
wasting your time. If you are serious about investing, you should consider
Gujarat.’I was taken aback by his bluntness. ‘Sir, Suresh knows Mr Tiwari
well, and we hope to get his support,’ I told him. He wasn’t convinced. He
reiterated that if we were serious about setting up a cement plant, we should
consider Gujarat. He told us that he was flying to Ahmedabad that evening,
and if we were to go with him, he would introduce us to everyone who
mattered. ‘Even if you don’t know anyone in Gujarat, they will welcome
you like a son-in-law,’ he said.
Mr Pai then walked away to his meeting. Suresh and I were puzzled by
his remark and suggestion. We had come to UP on the advice of Dr M.P.
Jain, the managing director of Andhra Cements, one of South India’s best-
known cement companies in those days. I was then a cotton trader, and
Suresh a distributor of petroleum products based out of Calcutta. We
wanted to get into cement manufacturing, and Dr Jain, who was among the
most respected professionals in the industry, was expected to join us as a
partner.
He had told us about the availability of high-quality limestone mines in
the Dehradun valley region of UP and how no one had exploited it as yet.
The other reason he plumped for UP was that the state, despite its size, had
only one small cement plant. Outside manufacturers met the rest of its
cement demand.
We trusted Dr Jain’s judgement on UP. Nevertheless, now that Mr Pai,
who was among the most powerful bankers in the country, had proposed
Gujarat, we decided that I should go with him to Ahmedabad out of
courtesy and respect. The IDBI would be critical to our financing
requirements when we reached that stage. I had never been to Ahmedabad;
it would be a good adventure. I liked meeting new people and getting to
know them.
However, at that moment, we were focused on our meeting with Mr
Tiwari and his team. Unlike Mr Pai, we were still hopeful. Uttar Pradesh
was one of India’s most underdeveloped states, and we were proposing a
significant new industrial investment there. Even if not the red carpet, we
were at least hoping for a hearty and hospitable reception from Mr Tiwari.
Besides, Suresh had known him for a long time.
When we reached Mr Tiwari’s office, the reception was far from what
we had expected. We were made to wait for hours as there was a queue of
people waiting to see him. When we were finally ushered into his presence,
all he did was shake our hands, give a polite smile, and ask us to handover
our proposal to a secretary standing nearby. That was it. No conversation,
no questions. The meeting was over in about two minutes.
What we saw was a live example of why UP had failed to attract
industrial investment even in those days.
To say that we were disappointed would be an understatement. To my
mind, our dream of setting up a cement plant in UP ended there. Seeing Mr
Tiwari’s indifferent response, I had no expectations from the state
government. Disheartened and dejected, we left straight for the airport.
Suresh was taking a flight back to Calcutta, while I had to meet Mr Pai and
travel on his chartered plane to Ahmedabad.
I had no major expectations from this trip to the Gujarat capital. I saw it
only as a minor detour on my way back to Bombay. I was going only
because Mr Pai had invited me. We had a pleasant conversation about my
cement ambition on the flight, and, as always, Mr Pai was very
encouraging. It was dusk when we landed in Ahmedabad. As the small
plane taxied to a stop, I could see a few people waiting on the tarmac.
Those were the days when people could walk to the aircraft to receive their
guests.
Mr Pai told me that Mr H.K. Khan, the chairman of Gujarat Industrial
Investment Corporation (GIIC), had personally come to the airport to greet
us. When we walked down the plane ladder, Mr Khan offered a bouquet to
Mr Pai, and he, in turn, introduced me, saying, ‘This is Mr Sekhsaria from
Bombay. He wants to set up a cement plant in UP. I am trying to convince
him to make this investment in Gujarat.’Mr Khan accompanied us in the car
as we drove to Ahmedabad’s Cama Hotel, where we were staying. As the
chairman of GIIC, Mr Khan was the principal government bureaucrat in
charge of the industrial development of the state. He thanked Mr Pai
profusely for bringing me to Gujarat. Mr Pai said that he was scheduled to
meet Chief Minister Mr Madhav Singh Solanki at 10 a.m. the next day and
that he would inform him about my presence in Ahmedabad and my desire
to set up a cement plant.
At the Cama Hotel, we decided to have a cup of tea with Mr Khan
before retiring to our respective rooms. ‘Khan, how will you make the
cement plant possible for Mr Sekhsaria?’ Mr Pai asked him as we waited at
the coffee shop. ‘Sir, you need not worry. Tomorrow after you meet the