JRD Tata

J. R. D. Tata was born on 29 July 1904 in Paris, France, the second child of Ratanji Dadabhoy Tata and his French wife, Suzanne "Sooni" Brière.[2] His father was a first cousin of Jamsetji Tata, a pioneer industrialist in India. He had one elder sister Sylla, a younger sister Rodabeh and two younger brothers Darab and Jimmy Tata. As his mother was French, he spent much of his childhood in France and as a result, French was his first language. As a citizen of France J.R.D had to enlist in the army for at least 1 year. In between the Grammar school and his time in the army, he spent a brief spell at home in Bombay. After joining the French Army he was posted into the regiment called Spahis (The Sepoys).He joined Tata & Sons as an unpaid apprentice in 1925. In 1938, at the age of 34, JRD was elected Chairman of Tata & Sons making him the head of the largest industrial group in India. He took over as Chairman of Tata Sons from his second cousin Nowroji Saklatwala. For decades, he directed the huge Tata Group of companies, with major interests in steel, engineering, power, chemicals and hospitality. He was famous for succeeding in business while maintaining high ethical standards – refusing to bribe politicians or use the black market. JRD Tata died in Geneva, Switzerland on 29 November 1993 at the age of 89 of a kidney infection.