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Russi Mody: The Man Who
Also Made Steel
The values that he has always admired and tried to imbibe and propagate among his co-workers are candour, humility, compassion, consistent hard work, determination, sincerity and punctuality. Born to Sir Homy Modi and Lady Jerby with a silver spoon in his mouth on January 17, 1918, Russi’s full name was Rustomji Hormusji. Fondly addressed as Russi by his doting parents, an astrologer once predicted that the child would live life king-size and his fortunes would roll. Lady Jerby, herself born amidst affluence, had inherited the legacy of certain values that she assiduously tried to instill in her three sons. A strong-willed woman, she moulded Russi’s character so significantly that he still (at the age of 90) reveres every word that she uttered. His father Sir Homy was, of course, a softie but he too was deeply rooted in his values of brutal honesty and transparent sincerity. After a few years’ schooling in India, his parents decided to send him to England. There he studied first at Harrow like Nehru and Churchill, and later at Christ Church College, Oxford. During his study of history, he became so fond of Napoleon Bonaparte that the French dictator became his ultimate role model. On his return to India, his father decided to send him to meet Sir Dalal, the Director-in-Charge of Tata Steel, Jamshedpur. Sir Dalal offered Russi a job of an office assistant. His father’s plan for his son joining TISCO (Tata Iron & Steel Company Limited) meant bringing the young man under the direct aegis of JRD Tata and getting him ignited by this highly successful man known to be among the most powerful and influential decision-makers of his time. And thus was launched Russi’s career that continued to flourish and soar as expected by his father. After 53 long years of service, when he retired from TISCO in March 1993 (of course in dubious and unedifying circumstances) he had served the company as its Chairman and Executive Director for almost a decade. When Russi joined TISCO in 1939, the company was in its infancy. Today, Tata Steel is a Rs 17000-crore colossus which indeed is remarkable. Soon because of a number of reasons, including of course the clash of egos, Russi fell foul of the powers that be at Tata Steel. In November 1991, he issued a circular promoting two of his six executive directors, Aditya Kashyap and Ishaat Husein as joint managing director and deputy managing director, respectively. The promotees were the youngest of the six TISCO executive directors. The dissenting voices of the four superseded officers found an echo in executives at various levels in Jamshedpur, who seemed to be pining for a showdown. This ill-advised step of Russi turned the tide against him, and resentment grew apace. In January 1992 Russi ultimately buried the controversy by owning that he might have erred and reverted his decision to ensure amity all around. But that was not to be. The rift between him and the Tatas continued to grow with time. The Tatas appreared to have decided to show him the door. The desirability of compulsory retirement at the age of 75 became the plausible excuse. Ratan Tata had sent out letters to all the Tata companies informing them about the resolution on the retirement age, and suggesting that they should follow suit. Instead of gracefully accepting this resolution and thus deflating their balloon of animosity, Russi unwisely called it a "Black Resolution framed with Machiavellian intent for this would be used to get him out, as he turned 75 in January 1993." Thereafter, there was a constant clash between Russi and the TISCO Board of Directors. In exasperation, Russi decided to call it a day and quit TISCO in the first week of March 1993. Sometime after his retirement from TISCO, the then Prime Minister Narasimha Rao handed over to Modi the command of the two sick carriers—Indian Airlines and Air-India—in the hope that this brilliant man, known for his expertise in management, would be able to breathe a new life into the two carriers. But aggressive trade unionism among the employees, bureaucratic bottlenecks and the ego of the politicians frustrated all his attempts to resurrect the two airlines, forcing him to quit in desolation. There was yet another disappointment and failure awaiting this ambitious and enterprising man, when he filed his nomination as an Independent candidate from a constituency in South Bihar—the city of Jamshedpur and its suburbs form a large chunk of this parliamentary constituency. Since he had served the people of this constituency, particularly of the city of Jamshedpur, for more than three decades who also adored him as a benevolent patriarch, he was sure to win. His old detractors such as Dr Irani worked over time to spread false rumours against him and did everything to get him defeated. As expected, he lost the election by a narrow margin. Affluence, power and status are not enough to make a man happy. Born in plenty, educated in prestigious institutions, holding a position where he ruled over the destinies of millions, he was a lonely man towards the end of his life.
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Padma