Ratan Naval Tata, India’s iconic industrialist, was born on this day, December 28, 1937. His journey as the head of Tata Group has been far from his well-known characteristics of simplicity and humility. Apart from being a business tycoon, today he is also known for his great philanthropic endeavors. 


The journey so far


Ratan Tata was born to Soonoo and Naval Tata in Mumbai. In 1959, he went to Cornell University, New York to study architecture and structural engineering. After briefly working for Jones and Emmons in Los Angeles, Ratan Tata joined the Tata group as an assistant at Tata Industries in 1962. He was trained at the Jamshedpur plant of Tata Engineering and Locomotive Company, now known as Tata Motors. He later moved to Tata Iron and Steel Company (Tisco) at its Jamshedpur facility for a training program. In 1969 he was appointed as the Tata group’s resident representative in Australia.


In 1970, he returned to India to join Tata Consultancy Services for a short stint. Three years later he joined the board of Tata Sons as a director. In 1975 he completed the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School. He later went on to sever in Tata industries in various capacities including as Chairman of Air India (1986-89). 


Ratan Tata took over as chairman of Tata Group in March 1991. JRD Tata, who had led the group for over half a century, appointed Ratan Naval Tata to be his successor. The same year he begin restructuring the Tata group, at a time when the liberalisation of the Indian economy was underway. In early 2000,  Tata group’s growth took pace under his leadership and high-profile Tata acquisitions were done, among them Tetley, Corus, Jaguar Land Rover, Brunner Mond, General Chemical Industrial Products, and Daewoo. He went on to acquire about 36 companies in just 9 years.


Ratan Tata stepped down as Chairman of Tata Sons after 50 years in 2012. He is appointed chairman Emeritus of Tata Sons. In 2008, he was awarded the Padma Vibhushan, the country’s second-highest civilian honor, by the Government of India.


Ratan Tata’s fortune 


The majority of Ratan Tata's Rs 3800 crore net worth comes from Tata Sons. According to IIFL Wealth Hurun India Rich List, he was the 421st richest Indian in 2022. He was ranked at number 433 and had a net worth of Rs 3,500 crore in 2021. The reason being his large-scale philanthropic work. 


Philanthropic ventures 


Ratanji Tata has contributed to several charity works done by the Tata Group. In his will, Ratan tata has put a large part of his property for charitable purposes. Established in 1919 the Sir Ratan Tata Trust is one of India’s oldest charity foundations. 66 percent of equity shares of Tata Sons are held by this trust. It supports health, education, art and culture, and other charities under Ratan Tata’s leadership. 


“He owns less than 1 per cent of the group that bears his family name. But he is a titan nonetheless: the most powerful businessman in India and one of the most influential in the world,” stated The Economist in a 2011 profile of Ratan Tata.