The one habit that Deepak Parekh can’t give up

HDFC Chairman Deepak Parekh

At 78, Deepak Parekh may have given up alcohol, but there is one habit he still holds on to. When Moneycontrol caught up with the chairman of Housing Development Finance Corporation at his sixth-floor office in HDFC House, Nariman Point, Parekh admitted that he flouted most rules of good health through most of his life, but lost his taste for alcohol after battling Covid-19.

“I can admit that I mostly flouted all the rules in life when it comes to good health. I ate everything and used to enjoy a drink almost every night,” the veteran banker confessed. “Then in December 2021, I got Covid and post that, I've just lost the fondness for any alcohol. Even with friends, they'll drink while I’ll just have nimbu paani.”

But there is one habit he has no plans of giving up. “The one thing I won’t give up is doing a Sudoku every night before I sleep,” said Deepak Parekh, adding that the logic puzzle keeps his mind sharp.

“I’ll work on the most challenging, hardest Sudokus I can get my hands on. That excites me and helps keep the mind sharp,” he told Moneycontrol.

Parekh stepped down as CEO of HDFC more than a decade ago, but it’s clear he likes to remain in the thick of things. In fact, he still comes to office for a few hours every day, mostly for meetings and to stay connected with what’s happening in the business world. The 78-year-old is still on the boards of HDFC Life, HDFC AMC and Siemens India.

His focus these days is on ensuring that the mega-merger between HDFC and HDFC Bank goes through smoothly. This could take a bit of time, given that it entails approvals from Indian and US authorities (HDFC offers American Depository Receipts, too).

He had said last year that once this is done, he is looking forward to “keep my feet up and relax”. By his own admission, though, his Sudoku-a-day routine is unlikely to change even after the merger is done and dusted.