Dr Singhania... a pioneer of Indian industry and aviator extraordinaire. |
"Give that to me, let me set it right for you," he said, taking my mangled micro cassette that decided to get all 'wound up' during the meeting. With studied patience and precision, he poised the loop on a pencil and flattened its creases, extricating the tape from extinction.
It wasn't certainly the first time that Dr Vijaypat Singhania, chairman emeritus, Raymond, set right a twist or saved someone's day.
He has been doing that all along, in his professional capacity as the former chairman and managing director of Raymond, a position that he held from 1980 until 1999, and later as the executive chairman of the company from 1999 until 2000, when he decided to hand over the reins of the Raymond empire to his son, Gautam Singhania, while he preferred to nestle in a non-executive position.
Incorporated in 1925, the Raymond Group is a conglomerate comprising businesses in textiles, readymade garments, engineering files and tools, aviation and toiletries.
Raymond Textiles is India's leading producer of worsted suiting fabric with over 60 per cent market share, and the country's largest exporter of worsted fabrics and readymade garments to over 58 countries including Australia, Canada, USA, the European Union and Japan. With a capacity of 25 million metres of wool and wool-blended fabrics, Raymond Textiles is the world's third largest integrated manufacturer.
The Group's Files & Tools division ranks as the world's largest producer of steel files with a 90 per cent market share in India and nearly 30 per cent market share in the world. The designer wear division, Be:, is an exclusive prêt-a-porter range that houses designs by some of the finest Indian designers, while its Aviation division, Million Air, provides air charter service with a fleet of three helicopters and one executive jet.
Six years later, in 1994, the Guinness Book sought him yet again when he won the first International Round the World Air Race. Starting and ending in Montreal, Canada, he covered 34,000 kilometres in the 24-day odyssey, contesting against 35 participants from 27 countries, and went on to win the FAI (Federation Aeronautique Internationale) Gold Medal, the most coveted award in aviation sports.
A committed philanthropist, keen photographer and a zealous teacher, Dr Vijaypat Singhania shares his views on fashion, flying, food, and filmmaking...
Some are born great... others have greatness thrust upon them. And you?
I am neither. Yes, I was born in an affluent family, but a lot of people born in rich families have reached nowhere in life. I have always believed and preached that success comes merely by hard work... the silver spoon could probably serve as an opportunity. However, hard work is no longer what it used to mean 50 years ago. Today, hard work means competence, intelligent hard work, dedicated hard work and goal-oriented hard work.
How are you as a stranger?
People who I have met casually say I come across as a very simple, and straightforward guy. Whether I'm one of those or not, I cannot say.
How would you describe yourself?
I think I am what I am. I strongly believe in the BMI - the Body, Mind and Intellect concept that comprises three stages. A person in Stage 1 will impress you with his body and muscles, he will beat you up, shout, abuse and hit you. When he leaves that stage and moves on to the next one, he will impress you with his emotions, with feelings of love, and hate.
In the third stage, his intellect dictates his behaviour. Usually, when an individual moves from one stage to the other, he leaves the previous stage behind. But, there are others who claim to be in a higher stage than they are actually in, and tend to preach philosophy even while showing off their diamonds and the size of their gold watch. Personally, I'd prefer to impress people with my intellect rather than my assets.
A thought that has always stayed with you?
There is a saying I like, "Small minds discuss people, average minds discuss events, and great minds discuss ideas." I had a guru, Dr. K. S. Basu, who used to say, "If you have one rupee and your friend has another rupee and you exchange your money, then both of you are still left with one rupee each. But if you have an idea, and he has an idea, and you exchange that, then both of you are left with two ideas each, ideas only multiply."
It's one of the most profound pieces of philosophy I have heard in my life. Taking a cue from him, I have always loved to share my knowledge, lessons that I have learnt from experience, and imbibed through reading. I love to tell people things that they might take a long time to find out, or may never be able to find out.
The best compliment you've received so far?
A friend of mine, Nana Chudasama, the ex-sheriff of Mumbai, has a nickname for me - 'storehouse of useless information'! When there is a debate or discussion amongst friends, and someone says, "Let's ask VPS for information or clarification," I feel good.
According to Oscar Wilde, "Fashion is a form of ugliness so intolerable that we have to alter it every six months." How would you define fashion?
I would presume it to mean 'keeping up with the times, keeping up with the Joneses, or being ahead of everybody else'. But that to me is not fashion, it's just a facade. Fashion to me is a state of mind more than a state of the body.
Raymond, your brand, symbolises fashion, and Raymond is all about clothing.
Personally, I have never been part of the 'fashionable' set. I have always dressed simply, I wear this $50 watch, run-of-the-mill shoes, drive an ordinary car, and I don't wear jewellery except for a diamond pendant - not to portray fashion but as part of my personality.
I don't believe that I depict fashion in any definable form in today's terms. Am I in fashion? I don't know.
If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives. Comment.
There is nothing ethically wrong in being selfish. Every person should have the intelligence to govern or protect his own self-interest. Those who say that they are willing to sacrifice their self-interest to pro
