In the last years of his life, Indian billionaire, Ratan Tata spent most of his time with a youngster named Shantanu Naidu. Here's everything you need to know about him and their friendship.
Ratan Tata posted on Instagram on October 7, 2024, refuting rumours that he was being admitted to the ICU at Mumbai's Breach Candy Hospital. The news brought a smile to a billion faces. Unfortunately, on October 9, 2024, Ratan Tata passed away, leaving an entire nation at a standstill. While some people couldn't sleep all night after hearing about his demise, most people woke up to this heartbreaking news.
Tata Sons released an official statement in which they told the world about the passing of their leader, who was instrumental in Tata Group's growth for more than six decades. In 1961, Ratan Tata joined the Tata Group and went on a journey that saw him contributing to different sectors in India. Despite being the leader of such a reputed brand, he never prioritised profit. Otherwise, he would've quickly become India's richest man in his entrepreneurial journey. From the beginning, Ratan Tata focused on building India and erasing its significant problems like poverty, hunger, education, infrastructure, and more.
Everyone knows that Ratan Tata never got married, but he had strong support from his family members and relatives. However, one young guy used to accompany Ratan Tata on his every public outing. The duo's friendship turned heads when Ratan Tata celebrated his 84th birthday with Shantanu. A video of Ratan Tata was posted online in which the billionaire could be seen blowing some candles on a cupcake. After which Shantanu gave a bite of the cupcake to Ratan Tata, who looked super-happy in the video.
Click here to watch the video
The video went viral on different social media platforms, and some netizens and meme pages started speculating that the boy in the video was Ratan Tata's adopted son. Some pages even further speculated that Ratan Tata followed his father, Naval H. Tata's footsteps, who adopted a boy named Jimmy Naval Tata. However, as the rumours started getting out of hand, reputed media portals came forward to bust the myths. They confirmed that Ratan Tata and Shantanu are just good friends, and the latter is the youngest GM of Tata Trust and the billionaire's assistant.
Shantanu Naidu hails from Pune and attained a degree in engineering from the prestigious Savitribai Phule Pune University. After completing his graduation, Shantanu took admission to Cornell Johnson Graduate School of Management, where he completed a master's degree in business administration. Once Shantanu finished his professional education, he got a job at Tata Elxsi. While at Tata Elxsi, one day, when he was on his way home, he saw multiple speeding cars running over a dog carcass.
It was when Shantanu Naidu decided to devise an idea to save dogs from being hit by speeding vehicles at night. The youngster made reflective collars and invested his money to start the initiative. A video of dogs wearing reflective collars in Pune went viral on the internet. When Ratan Tata, who is also a dog lover, came across this initiative through a video, he immediately arranged a meeting with Shantanu.
Courtesy of their shared love for dogs, Ratan Tata and Shantanu worked on the latter's initiative, Motopaws, which now operates in more than 19 cities across India. The duo also launched a program named Goodfellows, which is designed to help elderly people, and it also became a huge success. Shantanu was soon appointed as Ratan Tata's assistant and the youngest General Manager in the history of Tata Trusts.
Shantanu Naidu took to his LinkedIn account and posted a beautiful picture with his mentor, Ratan Tata. Along with the picture, Shantanu penned a short note in which he referred to Ratan Tata as his 'lighthouse' and admitted that he would spend the rest of his life trying to fill the void created after his demise. His note can be read:
"The hole that this friendship has now left with me, I will spend the rest of my life trying to fill. Grief is the price to pay for love. Goodbye, my dear lighthouse."
Shantanu Naidu worked as Ratan Tata's personal assistant and general manager of the Tata Trusts. However, now that the billionaire is gone, it will be interesting to see whether things will change for Shantanu at Tata Trusts or if he will be allowed to take Ratan Tata's legacy forward. For the uninitiated, Shantanu has also penned a book titled, I Came Upon a Lighthouse, based on his conversations with Ratan Tata and how the latter was his 'Millenial Dumbledore'.
We hope Shantanu Naidu carries forward his idol and friend, Ratan Tata's values and vision.
Also Read: Meet Noel Tata? Ratan Tata's Half-Brother, Who Is Likely To Lead Tata Group After His Demise