SP Hinduja: The man with an uncanny business instinct
His commitment to social causes was genuine. Hinduja National Hospital stands as testimony to his concern for the needy and the poor. He never hesitated to invest in the best equipment, even if it did not make any commercial sense.
Srichand Hinduja was a person who had the uncanny ability to read people and situations correctly.
I recall the conversation I had with him some months before the financial meltdown of 2008. When the market appeared to be euphoric, he was deeply anxious about the potential adverse impact of derivatives-driven banking expansion. It is evidence of his foresight that he moved the group’s investments to a safe haven and managed to come out unscathed from the global financial crisis.
There were many occasions when he let go of seemingly attractive business deals because he felt uncomfortable with the transacting party, only to be proved eventually right. He was a consummate negotiator, perhaps because of his trading background in Iran. I learnt a great deal watching him negotiate unbelievable deals. SP was a visionary. Once, I took a deal to him to buy out a private bank. I thought it was a great deal. After several days of negotiations with the seller, during which he extracted all relevant information on the prospects for banking in India, he declined the deal. “We should promote a greenfield banking venture,” he declared. I had the privilege of working closely with him when he conceptualized the framework for IndusInd Bank. The bank commenced operations in record time. I had many occasions to recall his predictions during the later years of the bank. He once called me from the office of N.D. Tiwary, then chief minister of Uttarakhand, urging me to commit to a large investment in the state. He said that the chief minister was offering the land free. I declined, citing that Ashok Leyland did not need another factory in the conceivable future. Some years later, we took a decision to put up a plant in Pantnagar. He was magnanimous enough not to say, “I told you earlier!”
I have never seen him being disrespectful towards any professional who worked in the group. In fact, I had often argued with him that he was being too tolerant, even in the face of rank incompetence. ‘If there is an errant member in the family, would you want him to leave ?’ he would respond. SP was a patriotic Indian, regardless of which passport he carried. He had a deep respect for Indian civilizational values. I know of many occasions when SP’s intervention was sought by the government as a back channel to smoothen the way for resolving knotty issues in international relations. When he threw himself to the task, his motivation was always the fact that it was good for India.
His commitment to social causes was genuine. Hinduja National Hospital stands as testimony to his concern for the needy and the poor. He never hesitated to invest in the best equipment, even if it did not make any commercial sense.
SP was a highly respected elder brother to me, as he was to many other colleagues in the Hinduja Group; parivar, as he insisted on calling. His loss is irreparable to me and all others of the parivar.
The author is executive vice chairman of the Hinduja Group.
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First Published:17 May 2023, 11:42 PM IST
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