Cover Story
- M.V. Subbiah is one of the very few leaders of a business family who, after his retirement, chose to study family business—the subject he had practised for over two decades.
- Every year, business school IMD awards one family business from around the world. BT picked the award's selection parameters and asked three experts in family business to rank each parameter's relevance in the Indian context.
- The fourth generation of the Rs 16,000-crore Murugappa Group consisting of seven cousins/siblings get away three times a year for a retreat outside Chennai with no structured agenda to understand each other and their business better.
- When he was still a teenager, Anand Piramal wanted to launch a platform from where young Indians could contribute to the nation's growth. At 19, he had started his NGO, Dia.
- The door to a job in the family concern, Dabur India, was bolted when he was in his late teens: the Burman family decided to get their family business run by professionals.
- Ask Ashni Biyani, a director of the Future Ideas Group, about how she got interested in her dad's retail business empire, and pop comes the reply: "I have been working for the last 15 years!"
- At Apollo Charities, Kamineni has supported initiatives such as Sach (Save a Child's Heart) Foundation, Sahi (for the hearing impaired) and Cure for cancer.
- There had never been any doubt that Harish would enter the family business, so his overseas study plans were tailored to this end.
- Ever since the Piramal family split in 2004, the three sons of the late Ashok Piramal bounced back to craft their own niches, guided by mother Urvi Piramal.
- Pallavi Gopinath combines the heart of a poet with the mind of a businesswoman.
- While Jyotsna Suri still calls the shots, clearing every major decision, other operational decisions are taken to a large extent by her children, whose educational specialisation fit in perfectly with the needs of a fastgrowing hotel chain.
- Now 30, and Executive Director with the Prestige Group, the Bangalore-based real estate company, Uzma Irfan has revived Sublime—to handle the group's advertising.
- As the son of India Inc.'s biggest party animal, Siddharth Mallya is like a (much slimmer) chip off the old block.
- Despite being heir to the large, family-run media business, 29-year-old Lara Balsara knew that there was never going to be an easy path to the top slot at Madison World.
- After picking up two degrees— one in Systems Engineering and the other in Economics— from the University of Pennsylvania, Vir Advani headed for a private equity job.
- When Hathway Cable and Datacom Ltd, a provider of cable TV and broadband services, closed its initial share sale recently, Akshay Raheja's 17 per cent stake turned out to be worth some Rs 625 crore.
- Heirs at India's leading IT families say "No, Thank You", play reticent, or even walk away as their fathers get ready to retire.
- They are also inheritors being groomed to take over the baton—but away from the media glare.
- A pick of books, courses, and experts on family business.
- Most of them started from the bottom, and today under the eagle supervision of senior family members, a whole host of inheritors is pulling out all stops to earn their spurs.
- Nisa, daughter of Adi Godrej, Chairman of the Godrej Group, would rather be known just by her first name as she helps transform the 113-year-old company.
- When the Great Depression hit in 1930, three Lalbhai brothers from Ahmedabad— Kasturbhai, Narottambhai and Chimanbhai— pooled their money to set up a textile mill.
From the Editor
Today's young inheritors of business-a large number of whom have taken guard in the past one year as the 3rd or 4th generation of their family businesses-are faced with unprecedented opportunities. How to rock with Reindeer
I found out at minus 15 degrees in Lapland, Finland, that nothing in this world is immune to marriage with wine, not even reindeer meat. Her act in the play, The Vagina Monologues, got her meaty roles in Bollywood. Single, this Kashmiri model now shuttles between Scotland and Mumbai. Every issue we ask a prominent business person about the books that made them the people they are today. When it comes to designing your home, it pays to seek advice from the best talent out there. FEB. 23-MAR. 23. What's new and what's happening this month. Interior designer Anjali Goel tells us that when it comes to furniture, context is everything. Art has always been the ultimate collector's item, but increasingly it is becoming more of a commodity of beauty that you can hang on your wall. From sevilla style king beds to como sofas and Imola chairs, the furniture at these design studios spell luxury and opulence. If we're living in the golden age of superhero movies, then Watchmen is the best of the lot. Fitness freak Rahul Dev sheds light on the importance of functional training in workouts. That's what Bali is. Beyond its picturesque setting, the island is a haven for water babies and beach bums alike. Dhyan is the journey of concentration and tranquility of the mind depicted using paintings. Green spaces don't just help you breathe and grow; they offer you solace and friendship. Landscape architect Aniket Bhagwat muses on what gardens mean to him. The Flute is a new restaurant packed with great food and in the middle of the city. Indian fans are now getting their first "taste" of Man U.Delhi: In the name of the emperor
The Emperor's Kitchen combines an enviable ambience with Pan-Asian flavours. The mercury's soaring, and it's all thanks to these hot new buys. On the centennial year of one of the world's most prestigious fashion houses, Ermenegildo Zegna, we speak to the man himself on the brand, its history and ethos.Television in the third dimension?
TV companies are going ga-ga about 3Ds. But should you really look at buying one ahead of the curve? There are few cars that inspire love at first sight and the Volkswagen Beetle tops that list. We drive the icon. Bollywood's Brightest
SRK Inc. (BT cover, Feb. 21) is a vivid tribute to the actor's phenomenal cinematic career and box office success. Well said
"Well, I do not accept a second place for the United States of America… it's time to get serious about fixing the problems that are hampering our progress" — Barack Obama,Most watched ads in January 2010
Abhishek "Sirji" Bachchan has now become a tree to promote Idea Cellular's new "Green Planet" campaign and the ad has already topped the Business Today-TAM Peoplemeter System's monthly ranking of India's most watched ads.Why veto rights does not mean "control"
Over the last decade, as the private equity (PE) and venture capital (VC) activities have gained traction in India, the definition of what constitutes "control" of a company has emerged as a thorny issue.Different outside, same inside
Car makers have always relied on mint-fresh models to drive sales and wrest market share.India Inc. delivers, but speedbreakers ahead
India Inc. seems to be on a roll with a stellar performance in the third quarter of the 2009-10 financial year. India's and the world's most talked-about CEOs in January."India Must Rein in (Wage) Inflation"
Novell, a global leader in enterprise solutions, is scaling up operations at its development centre in Bangalore to develop core technologies, products and solutions. The government may have erred in stalling Bt-Brinjal. For GM crops offer a quickfire way for India to become the bread basket of the world. The only way to make India's fiscal deficit look less threatening, than it really is, would be to compare it with the budget deficit of the United States.India - an emerging Nuclear hub
Global nuclear equipment makers have chalked out ambitious plans to make India their manufacturing base.Downturn spikes patent filings
International patent filings under the World Intellectual Property Organization's Patent Cooperation Treaty fell by 4.5 per cent in 2009. The government "deems" it fit to see income even where there may be none. The menace has been growing over the years. While the worst of the recession seems behind us now, 2010 brings with it fresh challenges for the world economy."Half of our new jobs are in India"
Donna Morris, 42, heads Adobe Systems' global human resources and manages 8,000 employees. A frequent visitor to India in the last seven years, the Adobe Senior VP spoke to BT's Saumya Bhattacharya on the lessons of 2009 and the challenges ahead. The "how to" advisor
One of India's most intelligent economists has the chance to redefine the role and relevance of the office of the Chief Economic Advisor, and influence the political economy. Like in the past, on Budget day, we turn on the television to watch the dull, dreary but still-considered-important Budget speech of the Finance Minister.Matching outlays with outcomes
As government remains confused between outlays and outputs, the 5-year old promise of matching outlays with outcome remains unfulfilled. Every generation has had its own unique challenges
"The core values and ideals my grandfather and father practised have stood us in good stead at all times—both good and bad" The multitude of overlapping roles individuals play within a family business make it a unique challenge to manage.In defence of business families
The social mores in India are geared towards protecting the family business.
Future net
The web's new coding paradigm, HTML5, is going to drastically reshape the Internet, or so we are told. But will it? The ETF advantage
A buoyant stock market makes exchange traded funds an attractive investment option that combines the relative safety of MFs and the freedom and flexibility of investing directly in stocks. My leadership style
Here are excerpts of a small Q&A with D. Shivakumar, Managing Director, Nokia India. In the green
The 15-year-old BT-Honda Pro-Am Championship ushers in a new decade as it tees off in the financial capital. A break from the past
A clutch of enterprising NextGen scions is spreading its wings outside the traditional businesses of the family. Pre-liberalisation they constituted the top tier of Indian business, only to flounder in a more competitive marketplace. Now their NextGen is attempting to come back by riding on new-found opportunities. As three instances show, there is no one-size-fits-all formula for succession. Here is how Indian business families are going about it. This year, the TVS Group completes 100 years. BT looks at what has kept this family business strong and growing. How Suzuki got Maruti
Pursuing global auto giants to pick one as the partner, developing a modern supplier base, keeping politicians and lobbyists at bay... Maruti's founding management team braced all this and much more to create the iconic car. Surviving Satyam
With funds from the Rajus of Satyam Computer Services not flowing in anymore, a foundation set up by them for rural transformation has reinvented itself to survive. 
