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Hindustan Times
26-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Hindustan Times
Billionaire's post on 'spirit of Mumbai' after heavy rain batters city, damages roads and disrupts local trains
As heavy rains inundated Mumbai and brought train services to a standstill on Monday, Indian billionaire with a net worth of $4 billion, Harsh Goenka took to the social media platform X to share a video, sarcastically captioning it 'spirit of Mumbai.' Also read: Kemps Corner road disintegrates after heavy rainfall in Mumbai, traffic disrupted The clip showed a blue off-road vehicle battling its way through a deeply rutted and muddy dirt road, seemingly overwhelmed by the harsh terrain. As the Chairman of RPG Enterprises, the parent company of tyre manufacturer CEAT, Goenka shared the video with a tongue-in-cheek caption: 'I hope you have the perfect tyres to go to work to uphold the 'spirit of Mumbai' #MumbaiRains.' However, the video isn't recent. It had originally been posted in 2024 by Anand Mahindra, Chairman of the Mahindra Group, who had reshared the clip from video creator Josh Koelbel. The footage features a modified Mahindra Jeep being skilfully driven across a challenging off-road trail. Mahindra's caption had read: 'You'll get to your destination… No matter how tough the road…' The phrase 'spirit of Mumbai' in the RPG Group chairman's recent caption echoes an earlier post that sparked backlash. In that widely circulated video, he had shared footage of women hurriedly scrambling to board an overcrowded Mumbai local train. Also read: Businessman worth $4 billion trolled for Mumbai local video. His cryptic clarification 'Daily life in Mumbai… what we call the 'spirit of Mumbai'!' he had captioned that post. Though many in Mumbai refer to their collective resilience as the 'spirit of Mumbai,' Goenka's romantic take, especially coming from a billionaire, did not sit well with many. 'It's survival... not spirit. Expecting even basic dignity in public transport is a struggle in this country,' one user had written. Another asked: 'Are you mocking them? Why don't you travel just a week like them! People like you who have means to make some meaningful change, yet indulge in 'poverty porn', are the real parasites of this society.' Goenka responded with a cryptic clarification to one critical comment of an X user named Samir Shah. 'No, Mr. Harsh. This is not Spirit of Mumbai, this is Majboori of Mumbaikar,' wrote Shah. Goenka replied, hinting that his post was meant to be sarcastic: 'Understand sarcasm,' he wrote.
Mint
25-05-2025
- Business
- Mint
‘A billion dreams, one unstoppable journey': Harsh Goenka hails India's rise to 4th largest economy
As India reached a historic milestone of becoming the fourth largest economy in the world, RPG Enterprises chairman Harsh Goenka hailed the huge feat, expressing his happiness at the country's achievement. In a post on X, Goenka expressed how India went from being 'zero' to the fourth largest economy in the world. 'From the land of zero to the 4th largest economy in the world! India surpasses Japan with a GDP of $4.187 trillion,' Harsh Goenka said. 'A billion dreams, one unstoppable journey. Jai Hind,' he added. Harsh Goenka further shared a picture, which showed the top 10 economies in the world. NITI Aayog CEO BVR Subrahmanyam on Sunday said India has become the fourth largest economy in the world, surpassing Japan. The NITI Aayog CEO cited IMF data as he made the announcement. He said India is now a $4 trillion economy. 'We are the fourth largest economy as I speak. We are a $4 trillion economy as I speak, and this is not my data. This is IMF data. India today is larger than Japan,' he said. Addressing a press conference of the 10th NITI Aayog Governing Council Meeting on 'Viksit Rajya for Viksit Bharat 2047', NITI Aayog CEO BVR Subrahmanyam said the overall geopolitical and economic environment is favourable to India. 'It is only the US, China and Germany which are larger than India, and if we stick to what is being planned and what is being thought through, in 2.5-3 years, we will be the third largest economy,' he added. The International Monetary Fund (IMF), in its World Economic Outlook (WEO) report released in April had said that India is expected to be the fourth largest economy in the world with a GDP of $4.19 trillion in 2025, ahead of Japan. India's nominal GDP for 2025 (FY26) is expected to be USD 4.187 billion marginally more than the likely GDP of Japan which is estimated at USD 4.187 billion, the IMF had said. According to IMF data, India's per capita income has doubled from $1,438 in 2013-14 to $2,880 in 2025. India was the fifth largest economy in the world till 2024.
Mint
22-05-2025
- Business
- Mint
Harsh Goenka calls Pakistan a ‘total mismatch' against India: ‘It's like Kohli vs gully cricketer'
RPG Enterprises chairperson Harsh Goenka has called out Pakistan again, comparing the economic might of the Adani Group with that of the country as a whole. In a post on X on Wednesday, Goenka said that just one Indian company is bigger than entire Pakistan. 'Just one Indian company. Bigger than an entire nation. And they dare to fight with us,' he said in the post. He further proved his point by drawing up comparisons of mismatched people, companies etc., like 'Virat Kohli vs a gully cricketer', 'CEAT vs a cycle tyre shop' and more. 'It's like: Kohli vs a gully cricketer, ISRO vs a kite, Shahrukh Khan vs a YouTube actor, Naatu Naatu vs a school dance, CEAT vs a cycle tyre shop,' he said. 'A TOTAL MISMATCH,' Goenka said, in all caps. The RPG Enterprises chairman also attached an image, where it showed that the 'market capitalisation' of the Adani Group is $161 billion, while that of Pakistan is $50 billion. The chart also showed that the Adani Group was far ahead of Pakistan in terms of renewable energy infrastructure, green hydrogen and port operations. Harsh Goenka's post found support among netizens, who agreed with his point of view. 'Sir, we have often seen dogs bark at people going in luxury cars but that doesn't mean the owner of that car shakes up to all this and starts comparing himself with that dog. My pov is loud and clear,' one person said. 'Last one is very personal,' another user joked. 'This comparison is a proper T20 thrashing. Love the CEAT shade too,' a third user agreed. In response to the Pahalgam attack, Indian Armed Forces launched Operation Sindoor in the early hours of May 7, targeting nine terror sites in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK), leading to the death of over 100 terrorists affiliated with terror outfits like the Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Hizbul Mujahideen (HM). Following the attack, Pakistan retaliated with cross-border shelling across the Line of Control and Jammu and Kashmir as well as attempted drone attacks along the border regions. India responded by launching a coordinated attack and damaged radar infrastructure, communication centres and airfields across airbases in Pakistan. India and Pakistan came to an understanding on May 10 to stop the firings across the borders. New Delhi has maintained that Pakistan pleaded to stop the military actions after India hit eight military installations in Pakistan.
Mint
17-05-2025
- Business
- Mint
Harsh Goenka shares Apple co-founder Steve Jobs video on ‘power of asking', netizens say ‘very important life lesson'
RPG Enterprises chairman Harsh Goenka hailed the American technology mastermind and Apple co-founder Steve Jobs for his 'power of asking' strategy, according to the social media post on platform X. In the post on X, Goenka highlighted Steve Jobs' strategy of asking for things in life, rather than waiting for them. 'The power of asking- Steve Jobs,' he said, sharing an old video of the Apple co-founder. In the video, Steve Jobs was telling people how the power of asking can change your life, and he ended up narrating an incident from his own life when he called up Bill Hewlett of Hewlett-Packard. The young Steve Jobs' life story highlighted an important lesson for people, who will get rewarded in life if they are willing to ask for it. 'I've never found anybody that didn't want to help me if I asked them for help. I always call them up. I called up.. this will date me, but I called up Bill Hewlett when I was 12 years old and he lived in Palo Alto. His number was still in the phonebook, and he answered the phone himself,' said Jobs in the video shared by Harsh Goenka. Jobs introduced himself as a 12-year-old in high school who wanted to make frequency counters. Even though Bill Hewlett laughed at the incident, he helped young Steve Jobs with all the spare parts he needed to build this frequency counter. 'Hi, I'm Steve Jobs. I'm 12 years old. I'm a student in high school, and I want to build a frequency counter. And I was wondering if you had any spare parts I could have. And he laughed, and he gave me the spare parts to build this frequency counter,' said the innovator in the video. Hewlett also offered him a summer job at the company's assembly line, 'putting nuts and bolts together on frequency counters.' Jobs felt that he was in 'heaven' and since then he never found that people unwill to help him, he just had to ask. 'He got me a job at the place to go, and I was in heaven. And I've never found anyone who said no or hung up the phone when I called. I just asked, and when people ask me, I try to be as responsive to pay that debt of gratitude back,' said Steve Jobs. In the video, Steve Jobs also revealed his concerns about people not willing to pick up the phone and call just to ask. This is one of the biggest reasons which separates people from those who are doing things. Sharing advice for individuals like his young self, he advised the employees to be willing to accept failure in life. 'Most people never pick up the phone and call. Most people never ask. And that's what separates sometimes the people who do things from the people that just dream about them,' said Jobs. 'You gotta act, and you gotta be willing to fail. You got to be willing to crash and burn,' he said. People on social media appreciated how Harsh Goenka highlighted an important lesson through sharing Steve Jobs' video on his social media platform. 'Very important life lesson. Thank for sharing Harsh ji,' said Siddharth R Mayur responding to Goenka's post. 'Asking is a great form of learning,' said another social media user named Anjali Modakia.
Mint
17-05-2025
- Business
- Mint
The takeover titan: Rama Prasad Goenka's empire-building saga
In an era when corporate raiders were still cutting their teeth, Rama Prasad Goenka was rewriting the rules of Indian business with a flair for takeovers that earned him the title of India's 'takeover king.' Through a whirlwind of mergers and acquisitions in the 1970s and '80s, he forged a billion-dollar conglomerate, RPG Enterprises, almost entirely through audacious inorganic growth, leaving an indelible mark on India's industrial landscape. He was born into a lineage of business royalty. His father, Keshav Prasad Goenka, expanded the family business through shrewd acquisitions like those of Duncan Brothers and Octavius Steel, two British trading houses and was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 1969, for his contributions to Indian industry. His grandfather was Badridas Goenka, the first Indian to be appointed chairman of the Imperial Bank of India (now the State Bank of India). Also Read: How CR Bhansali exploited India's NBFC blind spots in the 1990s Originally from Rajasthan, the Goenka family settled in Kolkata long enough to consider themselves honourable Bengalis. Young Rama Prasad secured his MA degree in economics from the prestigious Presidency College and claimed the city as his own. Beginning his career in 1951 as an assistant in Duncan Brothers, he would get a chance to lay down his personal market after his father Keshav Prasad Goenka divided the family business among his three sons in 1979. Rama, the eldest, inherited Philips Carbon Black, Asian Cables, Agarpara Jute, and Murphy India—businesses with a combined turnover of ₹75 crore. From this springboard, he launched a takeover spree that was as relentless as it was strategic. Takeover king's empire In 1981, he acquired Ceat Tyres of India (later renamed as Ceat Ltd), a subsidiary of Italy's Ceat. In the next few years, he bought power engineering firm KEC International, Searle India (now RPG Life Sciences) and tyre-maker Dunlop in partnership with Manu Chhabria. His appetite still not satiated, he picked up a minority stake in Bayer which was later sold off. At this time, he also co-promoted Haldia Petrochemicals with the West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation. Gramophone Company of India Ltd, (now Saregama India), Fujitsu ICIM, now Zensar Technologies, followed before the 1989 acquisition of CESC, along with Harrisons Malayalam and Spencer & Co in 1992, cemented his growing empire and fortune. By then, RPG Enterprise was a billion-dollar conglomerate. If the scale of his achievements was staggering, it was the skill with which he went about the business that commanded respect. Not for him the barbarians at the gate approach. Indeed, it's the one that got away which brings out the personality of the man even if it caused him some subsequent heartbreaks. That elusive prize was the textile giant, Bombay Dyeing which, in a twist of fate was practically served to him on a silver platter. In 1971, Neville Wadia, yearning for a tranquil life in Switzerland, decided to liquidate his Indian business empire. The crown jewel, Bombay Dyeing, despite some financial turbulence, was suddenly up for grabs. Goenka, still early in his deal-making career, smelt opportunity and was the first to leap. A sale agreement was swiftly signed – Bombay Dyeing was, for a fleeting moment, his. But then came the twist in the plot. Neville's 26-year-old son Nusli Wadia, who refused to live as a "second-class citizen in some European country", wasn't about to let his father sell off their legacy. Faced with his son's unyielding resolve, Neville Wadia had no choice but to backtrack. He approached Goenka to undo the sale. Any tough negotiator would have refused or at least extracted a heavy price. Not Goenka who was something of a romantic. As Gita Piramal recounts in a piece for Open magazine, he told Neville 'If you offer me a drink, I'm prepared to cancel the deal." The relieved Wadia rushed off to get the finest bottle of Royal Salute. Goenka did say later that he had been an 'idiot" since there was 'no room for emotions in business." Just like that, with the clinking of glasses, a multi-million-rupee deal evaporated and Bombay Dyeing remained with the Wadias. Goenka was forever left with the regret of what might have been. But Rama Babu, as he was always called, had other fish to fry than dwell on this one setback. Also read: Jayanti Dharma Teja: The enigmatic genius whose shipping empire was built on deception More than a businessman Beyond the boardroom, he was a Kolkata icon. Dressed usually in crisp silk kurtas and pleated bengali dhotis, he was a warm host who delighted in sharing his chef's creations and was an enthusiastic patron of the city's Durga Puja festivities. His annual yagna at his Alipore home reflected his deep Hindu faith, while his eclectic reading betrayed a restless, curious mind. Honours piled up: a Rajya Sabha nomination, Trusteeships with the Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund, Indira Gandhi Memorial Trust, and Rajiv Gandhi Foundation, and leadership roles chairing Ficci and IIT Kharagpur. A lifelong Congress loyalist, he was as comfortable with Nehru's ideals as he was with balance sheets. Rama Prasad Goenka's legacy isn't just in the companies he acquired but in the audacity and grace with which he played the game. This was a titan who conquered with a smile and a handshake, forever chasing the next deal. Also Read: Alagappa Chettiar's legacy of fortune and philanthropy
