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2012
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In recent months, the papers have been buzzing with the news
that Gharda Chemicals, the second-largest agro-chemical company
in India (Rs. 950-crore turnover), is likely to be sold. Dr.
Keki Gharda, Chairman and MD, a veteran chemical scientist, and
his wife, Abaan, have planned a public trust to use sale
proceeds for philanthropy and to promote industrial research.
Here, Dr. Keki Gharda affords a profoundly personal glimpse into
his life, times, mission and vision. in his own words.
An
attitude Towards Life
Humility and Parsimony in
prospeity
A unique interview with a unique
individual that would inspire
many!
I was born on September 25,
1929, of Kadmi Zoroastrian
parents. My parents (father
Hormusji Dinshawji Gharda and
mother Ratanbai Gharda nee
Madon) were both from Athornan
families. I never became a
navar, as I thought it a waste
of important years of my life.
I'm somewhat of an agnostic, but
an honest man. Of course, one
does not preclude the other!
My father was an MA in English -
in fact, he was one of the early
few to do their MA from the
Bombay University back in 1901.
My mother studied until the
fourth standard. There was a
prejudice in those days that
menstruating girls had to be
taken out of school. But she
nursed a passion for learning
and I found as a child that she
was very well read. However, she
was self-trained and the English
classics were her favourites.
Her father was a medical doctor
and a very interesting man. He,
too, was very well read and I
remember borrowing books from
him. He had a wonderful memory,
even in his 90s. He would engage
me in arguments over
Shakespeare's plays, which I
borrowed from him to read. If
you mentioned a quote, he knew
the Act and Scene it was from!
He was also a humanist and a
philanthropist. Not only would
he not charge poor patients, but
he'd give them money to buy
better food. As I grew up, this
stayed at the back of my mind.
From my father's side, my
paternal grandfather was a
practicing senior priest in one
of the Atash Behrams - I cannot
recall which one. We stayed in a
joint family. Both my
grandfathers lived long lives
(paternal beyond 85 and maternal
beyond 95) so I have longevity
in my genes! My father was one
of four sons and several
daughters, and he never
practised as a priest but as an
interpreter at the Bombay High
Court. I was barely five when my
paternal grandpa died and our
joint family broke up. Two of my
uncles were a bit crooked and
persuaded my grandfather to give
them his property. This soured
my father a great deal and he
continued fretting about it. We
had an acrimonious household and
I felt this was a stupid way of
living. I was a conventional
religious person until that
point. I still wear my 'sudreh'
and 'kusti', even though I'm
agnostic. I saw that despite
being religious, my father was
attached to money and made
himself unnecessarily unhappy.
We lived in a rented place in
Bandra on Hill Road , and I
would tell him that it was
alright as we were comfortable
in most ways. I schooled at St.
Stanislaus, where they did not
teach any vernacular language so
I have poor familiarity with
Gujarati. I used to go to the
Petit Library to borrow books,
and my mother and I would read
them. My mother often told me to
study and not read so many
books. I told her: I come first
in class, I am doing my job; now
you do yours and leave me alone!
I was extraordinarily talented -
there's no point beating about
the bush. I went to the
Elphinstone College , which drew
bright students from all over,
but I did well there too. My
mother had, by then, started
telling me often: It's your duty
to make as much money as you can
honestly throughout your life,
but you should die poor. She
told me her father did the same
thing - giving away a lot in
charity.
I had two
sisters and was slightly
pampered as the youngest male
child.
However, my parents only
admitted me to primary school -
thereafter I made it on my own
merit. By the age of 15 I was
functioning as the head of our
household. My elder sisters were
quarrelsome and had their own
mind. I used to control them
because my father could not!
Gharda Chemicals was thrust on
me.
I believe you are what you are
because of your genes (85
percent) and the remaining is
shaped by your environment,
which also you cannot always
choose. I think we're creatures
of chance floating around the
cosmos and have no reason to be
conceited. I am gifted with good
brains and believe I have
unusual talents to be used for
the benefit of others. Most
people search for happiness
through the accumulation of
material wealth. I also
accumulate wealth - but for
others. That gives me happiness
and continues to motivate me.
I'm a Parsi Zoroastrian, and in
the Parsi culture there is a
large emphasis on work ethic.
That is why Parsis have been
largely successful.
When I look back on how I
started Gharda Chemicals, I must
concede it was virtually thrust
upon me. I had finished my PhD
in the US with three
scholarships from three leading
chemical companies -
incidentally I am now competing
with them and making them
uncomfortable! I did well,
studying and later teaching
(Chemical Engineering for a
while at the University of
Oklahoma ). I came back to India
after six years to see my
parents and found that my father
was hospitalised. During my
visit, he died. My mother was
left all alone, and she didn't
know much about money. She told
me to stay back. I had a
permanent job in the US and they
said they could hold it for a
year. I told them it was
unlikely I would return. I
worked as a Consultant for some
time. I felt I was being
underpaid. So I saved some
money, and my sisters and mother
all put together some and I
started Gharda Chemicals with
Rs. 2 lakh in 1964. We began
operating in 1966. Gharda's
first product was a dye called
German Blue. This used to be
made by a big multinational and
I started out copying them. But
in two to three years I improved
it and made it a superior
product at a lower price. From
the start of my career I was
making multinationals 'run'! My
business was run on both
idealism and pragmatism. My
idealism was that if I could
make something cheaper, it was
wrong to sell it at a much
higher price. My pragmatism was
that this drove away
competition!
When you start a business, for
the first five years there is
generally no profit and you
don't pay the staff any bonus.
But we started doing so almost
immediately and over the years
have had very little labor
problems. We've had one or two
strikes and I'd tell the workers
I don't care for money, but you
will lose your livelihood. They
would come back to work, saying
their wives sent them back!
We have grown with internal
resources. We stared with Rs. 2
lakh and today have over Rs. 500
crore (capital plus reserves).
And this is after paying all our
taxed honestly. Our current
valuation is between Rs.
1,000-1,200 crore. We sell our
goods all over the world, with
the exception of Japan . We
started with just nine people. I
used to work 16-hours-a-day,
coming home after midnight.
The neighbours asked my wife,
Abaan, if I had a mistress. She
would say yes - Chemical
Technology! I remember telling
my wife one day - I have two
loves, my work and you; but work
will always come first.
Today, we have 1800 people
across four factories. Our
factories are world-class and we
have met all the ISO standards
for chemical manufacture and
continue to have a strong
emphasis on R&D.
No pressure to live fancily.
My wife, Aban is a graduate from
St. Xavier's College and she did
her PhD from the University of
Mumbai . We live a simple life,
and since both of us are PhD's I
used to joke that she had the
most educated driver and I had
the most educated cook anybody
could have! For years we kept no
servants - a year ago we started
employing a part-timer. Abaan
still cooks. I used to wash my
own clothes, not out of spirit
of masochism but because I am
not fortune's hostage. My wife,
I must say, has never asked me
for anything - not even
jewellery. We run the house on
about Rs.10,000 per month, and
we have never been under any
pressure to live a fancy
lifestyle. If she sometimes
falls short of cash, she adds a
little out of her own savings!
I am now in the process of
creating the Abaan and Keki
Gharda Foundation, on the lines
of the Belinda and Bill Gates
Foundation (with a contribution
of Rs. 600-700 crore). The new
Foundation will comprise: 1.The
Gharda Foundation, which is a
social work organisation running
two small hospitals in Dombivili
and Lote (on the Mumbai-Goa
road); 2. A research foundation,
which will undertake research
(my passion) and also generate
funds through research for the
Foundation.
Over the years, we have
instituted various welfare
projects. We have a mobile
clinic that goes into the
villages near our factories to
offer health care advice. We
have mobile libraries attached
to each factory and they go from
village to village. We have two
hospitals, which I mentioned
earlier, run to high standards.
We have also started an
Engineering College in the
Konkan region, near Chiplun,
called the Gharda Institute of
Technology (GIT), and it offers
Chemical/Electrical/Mechanical
Engineering and Computer
Science. I have already spent
Rs. 40 crore on it and will
spend another 10. We have 60
students, all selected through
the Common Entrance Test. If any
Parsi students show an
inclination for engineering and
get through the Common Entrance
Test, then I could help them
with admissions through my
management quota. But for me to
reserve seats for Parsis may not
be possible. Within the next
five years I see the institute
getting the top accreditations
in the country. We are also
exploring the option of students
getting an MBA in the fifth year
of their engineering degree, in
association with the Wellingkar
Institute.
As Parsis, we have a legacy of
hard work and social service.
There have been so many
institutes built with Parsi
money in our country. (In my
case, Parsi money and parsimony
could be an apt pun!). As Parsis
we are barely 50,000 in India 's
one billion population. Yet in
all the professions, in whatever
field, there is always at least
one Parsi right at the top! In
my own field, several accolades
have come my way, but the one I
cherish is the American
Institute of Chemists Award -
this is generally an award given
to chemists (not chemical
engineers) and three out of ten
winners of this award go on to
win the Nobel Prize. I was the
first Asian to get it. Now, I am
in the process of selling my
company and focusing on my two
passions: social work and
research. I have some innovative
ideas for research and, who
knows, I may end up with the
Nobel Prize!
Dr. Keki Gharda received the
FICCI Award from former
President, Dr. A.P.J. Kalam
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