Storyboard18 | Bookstrapping: ‘Rahul Bajaj - An Extraordinary Life’

Industrialist and former chairman of Bajaj Group Rahul Bajaj passed away in February 2022. (Image: Reuters)

‘Rahul Bajaj - An Extraordinary Life’ had to be written. This is the story of the man who built the world’s most valuable two-wheeler company. And just like the book, this review will also refer to Rahul Bajaj as Bajaj and everyone else in the family, by their first names.

The book spans five generations. The book begins with Bajaj’s grandfather Jamnalal, who donated a piece of land in Wardha for Mahatma Gandhi to set up the Sevagram Ashram in 1993. Towards the end, it features nostalgic essays by Bajaj's grandchildren.

Author Gita Piramal delves into the technology of automobile manufacturing, pricing issues, policy initiatives, political machinations, business challenges and also gives a tabulated chronological listing of all Bajaj Group companies from 1926 to the present day. On the other hand, she talks about family values and finds space for a moving tribute to Bajaj's wife of 52 years Rupa, from sons Rajiv and Sanjiv.

The subject's unquestionable stature and the author's approach offer many takeaways -

- The book has the most unusual beginning. It starts with the two-year separation between Bajaj and his mother Savitri, when she was imprisoned for participating in the Quit India Movement. The idea of connecting India’s independence and the involvement of Bajaj’s family in the country's fight for freedom, right at the beginning, sets a positive tone for the book.

Also read: Book excerpt | Rahul Bajaj: An Extraordinary Life by Gita Piramal

- Bajaj’s parents, Kamalnayan and Savitri got married with none other than Mahatma Gandhi’s blessings. There is a softly placed mention of how Savitri wore ‘Khadi' saree embroidered with Zari, for her nuptials, in keeping with the times.

- Let's also talk about the fun parts; close your eyes and visualise Narottam Sekhsaria of Ambuja Cement and Rahul Bajaj playing gully cricket together as young boys. Or that at some point, both Pakistan’s ex-premier Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, Cipla Founder Yusuf Hameid and Bajaj were all contemporaries at Mumbai’s iconic Cathedral school.

- Like most books that cover the period, there is a mention of India’s cumbersome bureaucracy and unstable politics of the late 1960s and 70s. The book makes a special reference to 1966 as the year when India had three Prime Ministers - Lal Bahadur Shastri, Gulzarilal Nanda and Indira Gandhi - in rapid succession. It also covers a difficult period in the 70s, when the Bajaj group faced income tax raids and harassment for over 46 months.

- A pro-liberalisation man, Bajaj specifically laments how new MNCs that entered India upon opening up of the economy, gave in to union and employee demands without full knowledge of what was happening on the ground. To be ‘fair and firm’ at the same time is what Bajaj talks about, while adding that he never believed in absentee landlordism.

- The book credits Bajaj with fearless pragmatism and for always calling a spade a spade, earning the respect of all political parties in the country. Even the taciturn Manmohan Singh has said of Bajaj, “I have always had the highest regard for his business acumen, his entrepreneurial leadership, his deep abiding patriotism and his commitment to our national development.” The book also makes an evidence-backed statement that Bajaj followed the dictum of ‘fair and firm’ not just outside, but also in the manner in which he handled his family and succession issues for group companies.

- As it often happens with global business leaders and people who impacted an industry as much as Bajaj did, I have no doubt that more authors will take slices of his life from different angles and write many more biographies. During my reading of the book, I did miss an index at the end, when I wanted to re-read a portion for clarity. But let that not take away from the fact that ‘An Extraordinary Life’ is a comprehensive effort.

Also read: Gita Piramal: I hope readers will consider the Bajaj history and cherry pick those events which most interest them