Suits & Sayings

ET’s weekly roundup of the wackiest whispers and murmurs in corporate corridors & policy parlours

Side Switch
Here’s a scoop. We hear a young banker from a topnotch US investment bank is getting ready to switch sides and join Tata Sons. He will probably be among the first recruits of new boss N Chandrasekaran. Though the exact role is still being worked out, we hear he has his mentor, also a former banker, to thank

Palace Wedding
Last week we told you about the grand Dubai bash of PVR’s Ajay Bijli. Well, now comes the glitzy wedding party at the Emirates Palace hotel in Abu Dhabi. Last weekend was the wedding party of Anushka Rajan, daughter of Karuna and Abhijit Rajan, with Abhishek Doshii that saw top business and showbiz folk in attendance. From Tina Ambani to Bijal and Hital Meswani, Anil Agarwal, Sajjan Jindal, Ashok Hinduja, Anand Jain and Sanjay Reddy with family enjoyed a musical session with Rahat Fateh Ali Khan. The guest of honour was Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, who heads the UAE’s ministry of culture, youth and social development. As befitting the occasion, the bride arrived in a horsedrawn carriage accompanied by Abhishek Bachchan.

Silver Streaks
Has Virat Kohli inspired Cyrus Mistry or have the hipsters of Brooklyn managed to sway the reclusive billionaire to opt for a makeover? Considering he is being helped by a top image guru, we won’t really know. If you’re wondering what are we talking about, it’s the new look. Mistry’s well-groomed beard with streaks of silver has given him a touch of gravitas. Question is, will it impress the bench?

Study in Contrast
A steel baron who’s insulated from the debt crisis afflicting the sector recently gifted his three-storey bungalow in Mumbai to his daughter. The Marwadi steel maker is a darling of his lenders and has been shuttling the globe in his private jet, even engaging in a spot of international diplomacy, according to people in high places. In contrast, his brother is said to be at the mercy of lenders who’re not too pleased about debt repayments.

Fresh Opportunities
Russian conglomerate Sistema JSFC’s Group CFO Vsevolod Rozanov hosted a hush-hush dinner last week in Delhi to which owners of about 25 startups were invited. His mission was to explore fresh funding opportunities in India for the Sistema Asia Fund (SAF), which recently opened an office in Singapore. SAF has so far invested in startups such as Seclore, Wooplr and Qwiksilver, and more deals appear to be in the offing.

Uber Ride
Another of the Mistry Men has moved to Uber — Madhu Kannan is joining the company to oversee business development. Much before that, Mistry’s executive assistant Arjun Nohwar had moved as APAC head. Interestingly, Tata Capital has an investment in the company’s local operations.

Calling Card
A meeting with Cyrus Mistry has its interesting aspects. For instance, when a business card is proffered, which is the normal practice at such meetings. In response, Mistry is wont to say, “I don’t have a visiting card yet,” hinting that his brother is running the family-owned Shapoorji Pallonji group, leaving him free to engage in battle with the Tata group.

Putting It Off
Earlier this week, Nasscom delayed its growth forecast for the first time in its 25 years of existence. While that led to whispers about the apparent declining health of the industry, ET learns the grouping had thought of deferring or not announcing a target for about two weeks before that. The final decision to hold back the growth target was made by the Nasscom executive council, which includes heads and senior officials of multinational technology companies, BPOs, Indian IT services companies and internet companies. The decision was not an easy one and was debated for a long time before it decided to hold on.

Head Hunting
The talks between Vodafone India and Idea Cellular about a possible union have generated massive interest in who would head a merged entity. Besides speculation on whether the existing CEOs of either have a shot, names of former top bosses of both and others who have been at the helm of larger telecom companies have already started doing the rounds. The return of Martin Pieters to India to oversee merger talks has only added fuel to the debate.

Keeping the Pace
Since Tata Sons announced N Chandrasekaran would be taking over as chairman, the marathon runner has been busy. His first public meeting was at the World Economic Forum summit in Davos where Indian and foreign businessmen network and get a sense of the global economy to help shape strategies back home. Chandra took the opportunity to have a meeting with British Prime Minister Theresa May and sought her help to resolve the problems at Tata Steel Europe. The decision to shut down Tata Steel Europe was seen as one of the prime reasons for Mistry’s removal.

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