Jehangir Ratanji Dadabhoy Tata (29 July 1904 – 29 November 1993) was a French- Indian aviator, industrialist, entrepreneur and chairman of

Tata Group The Tata Group () is an Indian multinational conglomerate headquartered in Mumbai. Established in 1868, it is India's largest conglomerate, with products and services in over 150 countries, and operations in 100 countries across six continents ...

. Born into the

Tata family The Tata family is an Indian business family, based in Mumbai, India. The parent company is Tata Sons, which is the main holding company of the Tata Group. About 65% of the stock in these companies is owned by various Tata family charitable trus ...

of India, he was the son of noted businessman Ratanji Dadabhoy Tata and his wife Suzanne Brière. His mother was the first woman in India to drive a car and, in 1929, he became the first licensed pilot in India. He is also best known for being the founder of several industries under the Tata Group, including

Tata Consultancy Services Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) is an Indian multinational information technology (IT) services and consulting company with its headquarters in Mumbai. It is a part of the Tata Group and operates in 150 locations across 46 countries. In July ...

Tata Motors Tata Motors Limited is an Indian multinational automotive manufacturing company, headquartered in Mumbai, India, which is part of the Tata Group. The company produces passenger cars, trucks, vans, coaches, buses. Formerly known as Tata Eng ...

Titan Industries Titan Company Limited is an Indian company that mainly manufactures fashion accessories such as jewellery, watches and eyewear. Part of the Tata Group and started as a joint venture with the TIDCO, the company has its corporate headquarters in ...

, Tata Salt,

Voltas Voltas Limited is an Indian multinational home appliances and consumer electronics company headquartered in Mumbai. It designs, develops, manufactures and sells products including air conditioners, air coolers, refrigerators, washing mac ...

and

Air India Air India is the flag carrier airline of India, headquartered at New Delhi. It is owned by Talace Private Limited, a Special-Purpose Vehicle (SPV) of Tata Sons, after Air India Limited's former owner, the Government of India, completed the ...

. In 1983, he was awarded the French

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon ...

and in 1955 and 1992, he received two of India's highest civilian awards the

Padma Vibhushan The Padma Vibhushan ("Lotus Decoration") is the second-highest civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is given for "exceptional and distinguished service". All persons without ...

and the

Bharat Ratna The Bharat Ratna (; ''Jewel of India'') is the highest civilian award of the Republic of India. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is conferred in recognition of "exceptional service/performance of the highest order", without distinctio ...

. These honours were bestowed on him for his contributions to Indian industry.

Early life

J. R. D. Tata was born as Jehangir on 29 July 1904 to an Indian

Parsi Parsis () or Parsees are an ethnoreligious group of the Indian subcontinent adhering to Zoroastrianism. They are descended from Persians who migrated to Medieval India during and after the Arab conquest of Iran (part of the early Muslim conq ...

family in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

, France. He was the second child of businessman Ratanji Dadabhoy Tata and his French wife, Suzanne "Sooni" Brière. His father was the first cousin of

Jamsetji Tata Jamsetji (Jamshedji) Nusserwanji Tata (3 March 1839 – 19 May 1904) was an Indian pioneer industrialist who founded the Tata Group, India's biggest conglomerate company. Named the greatest philanthropist of the last century by several pol ...

, a pioneer industrialist in India. He had one elder sister Sylla, a younger sister Rodabeh and two younger brothers Darab and Jamshed (called Jimmy) Tata. His sister, Sylla, was married to

Dinshaw Maneckji Petit Sir Dinshaw Maneckji Petit, 1st Baronet (30 June 18235 May 1901) was an Indian entrepreneur and founder of the first textile mills in India, as well as a great philanthropist. He was part of the Petit family and became the first Petit baronet ...

, the third baronet of Petits. His sister's sister-in-law,

Rattanbai Petit Rattanbai Jinnah (''née'' Petit; 20 February 1900 – 20 February 1929), also known as Ruttie Jinnah, was the wife of Muhammad Ali Jinnah, an important figure in the creation of Pakistan and the country's founder. Additionally, Rattanbai Petit ...

, was the wife of Muhammad Ali Jinnah, who later became the founder of

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-lar ...

in August 1947. Jinnah and Rattanbai's daughter Dina Jinnah, was married to

Bombay Dyeing Bombay Dyeing & Manufacturing Company Limited is the flagship company of the Wadia Group, engaged primarily in the business of Textiles. Bombay Dyeing is one of India's largest producers of textiles. Its current chairman is Nusli Wadia. In M ...

chairman

Neville Wadia Neville Ness Wadia (22 August 1911 – 31 July 1996) was a British businessman, philanthropist and a member of the Wadia family, an old Parsi family which, by the 1840s, was one of the leading forces in the Indian shipbuilding industry. W ...

who was the son of Sir Ness Wadia and Lady Eveylne Clara Powell Wadia. Neville and Dina had two children, Nusli Wadia and Diana N Wadia. Nusli is the current chairman of the

Wadia Group Wadia Group is an Indian multinational conglomerate, headquartered in Mumbai. It was founded by Lovji Nusserwanjee Wadia in 1736 and is the oldest company in India, with its subsidiary The Bombay Burmah Trading Corporation Limited, establis ...

. Nusli married Maureen Waida and they have two children,

Jehangir Wadia Jehangir Nusli Wadia (born 6 July 1973), also known as Jeh Wadia, is an Indian businessman, who was the Managing Director of Go First, Bombay Dyeing and Bombay Realty. He was also a Director on the Boards of Britannia Industries, The Bombay Bu ...

and Ness Wadia. As his mother was French, he spent much of his childhood in France and as a result, French was his first language. He attended the Janson De Sailly School in Paris. One of the teachers at that school used to call him ''L'Egyptien''. He attended the

Cathedral and John Connon School The Cathedral & John Connon School is a co-educational private school founded in 1860 and located in Fort, Mumbai, Maharashtra.Mumbai, Bombay. Tata was educated in London, Japan, France and India. When his father joined the Tata company he moved the whole family to

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

. During this time, J. R. D.'s mother died at the age of 43 while his father was in India and his family was in France. After his mother's death, Ratanji Dadabhoy Tata decided to move his family to India and sent J. R. D. to England for higher studies in October 1923. He was enrolled in a

grammar school A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and other English-speaking countries, originally a school teaching Latin, but more recently an academically oriented secondary school ...

, and was interested in studying engineering at

Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209 and granted a royal charter by Henry III of England, Henry III in 1231, Cambridge is the world' ...

. However, as a citizen of France J. R. D. had to enlist in the army for at least a year. In between grammar school and his time in the army, he spent a brief spell at home in Bombay. After joining the French Army he was posted into a regiment of

spahis Spahis () were light-cavalry regiments of the French army recruited primarily from the indigenous populations of Algeria, Tunisia and Morocco. The modern French Army retains one regiment of Spahis as an armoured unit, with personnel now r ...

. Upon discovering Tata could not only read and write French and English, but could type as well, a colonel had him assigned as a secretary in his office. After his time in the French Army, his father decided to bring him back to India and he joined the Tata Company. In 1929, Tata renounced his French citizenship and became an Indian citizen. In 1930 Tata married Thelma Vicaji, the niece of Jack Vicaji, a colourful lawyer whom he hired to defend him on a charge of driving his Bugatti too fast along Bombay's main promenade, Marine Drive. Previously he had been engaged to Dinbai Mehta, the future mother of ''

The Economist ''The Economist'' is a British weekly newspaper printed in demitab format and published digitally. It focuses on current affairs, international business, politics, technology, and culture. Based in London, the newspaper is owned by The Eco ...

'' editor Shapur Kharegat. While he was born to a Parsi father, and his French mother converted to

Zoroastrianism Zoroastrianism is an Iranian religion and one of the world's oldest organized faiths, based on the teachings of the Iranian-speaking prophet Zoroaster. It has a dualistic cosmology of good and evil within the framework of a monotheisti ...

, J. R. D. was agnostic. He found some Parsi religious customs like their funeral rites and their exclusiveness irksome. He adhered to the three basic tenets of Zoroastrianism, which were good thoughts, good words, and good deeds, but he did not profess belief or disbelief in God.

Career

When Tata was in tour, he was inspired by his friend's father, aviation pioneer Louis Blériot, the first man to fly across the English Channel, and took to flying. On 10 February 1929, Tata obtained the first license issued in India. He later came to be known as the "Father of Indian

civil aviation Civil aviation is one of two major categories of flying, representing all non-military and non-state aviation, both private and commercial. Most of the countries in the world are members of the International Civil Aviation Organization and work ...

". He founded India's first commercial airline, Tata Airlines in 1932, which became

in 1946, now India's national airline. He and

Nevill Vintcent Nevill Vintcent OBE DFC (1902 – 29 January 1942) was a South African aviator and airline founder. He was the son of Charles Vintcent, a South African cricketer. Early life Nevill Vintcent, a South African, born in 1902, entered Osborne i ...

worked together in building

Tata Airlines Air India is the flag carrier airline of India, headquartered at New Delhi. It is owned by Talace Private Limited, a Special-Purpose Vehicle (SPV) of Tata Sons, after Air India Limited's former owner, the Government of India, completed the sa ...

. They were also good friends. In 1929, J. R. D. became one of the first Indians to be granted a commercial's license. In 1932 Tata Aviation Service, the forerunner to Tata Airline and Air India, took to the skies. That same year he flew the first commercial mail flight to

Juhu Juhu (Pronunciation: ͡ʒuɦuː is a posh and upmarket neighbourhood of Mumbai. It is known for the sprawling Juhu Beach. It is surrounded by the Arabian Sea to the west, Versova to the north, Vile Parle to the east and Santacruz to the south ...

, in a de Havilland Puss Moth. The first flight in the History of Indian aviation lifted off from Drigh in

Karachi Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former c ...

to Madras with J. R. D. at the controls of a Puss on 15 October 1932. J. R. D. nourished and nurtured his airline baby through to 1953, when the government of

Jawaharlal Nehru Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru (; ; ; 14 November 1889 – 27 May 1964) was an Indian anti-colonial nationalist, secular humanist, social democrat— * * * * and author who was a central figure in India during the middle of the 20t ...

nationalised Air India. It was a decision J. R. D. had fought against tooth and nail. He joined Tata Sons as an unpaid apprentice in 1925. In 1938, at the age of 34, Tata was elected Chairman of Tata Sons making him the head of the largest industrial group in India. He took over as Chairman of Tata Sons from his second cousin Nowroji Saklatwala. For decades, he directed the huge Tata Group of companies, with major interests in steel, engineering, power, chemicals and hospitality. He was famous for succeeding in business while maintaining high

ethical standards Ethics or moral philosophy is a branch of philosophy that "involves systematizing, defending, and recommending concepts of right and wrong behavior".''Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy'' The field of ethics, along with aesthetics, concerns ma ...

– refusing to bribe politicians or use the black market. Under his chairmanship, the assets of the Tata Group grew from US$100 million to over US$5 billion. He started with 14 enterprises under his leadership and half a century later on 26 July 1988, when he left, Tata Sons was a conglomerate of 95 enterprises which they either started or in which they had controlling interest. He was the trustee of the Sir Dorabji Tata Trust from its inception in 1932 for over half a century. Under his guidance, this Trust established Asia's first cancer facility, the Tata Memorial Centre for Cancer, Research and Treatment, Bombay in 1941. He also founded the Tata Institute of Social Sciences ( TISS, 1936), the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research ( TIFR, 1945), and the National Center for Performing Arts. In 1945, he founded

. In 1948, Tata launched Air India International as India's first international airline. In 1953, the Indian Government appointed Tata as Chairman of

and a director on the Board of

Indian Airlines Indian Airlines was a division of Air India Limited. It was based in Delhi and focused primarily on domestic routes, along with several international services to neighbouring countries in Asia. It was a division of Air India Limited after m ...

– a position he retained for 25 years. For his crowning achievements in aviation, he was bestowed with the title of Honorary Air Commodore of India. Tata cared greatly for his workers. In 1956, he initiated a programme of closer 'employee association with management' to give workers a stronger voice in the affairs of the company. He firmly believed in employee welfare and espoused the principles of an eight-hour working day, free medical aid, workers' provident scheme, and workmen's accident compensation schemes, which were later, adopted as statutory requirements in India. He was also a founding member of the first Governing Body of NCAER, the National Council of Applied Economic Research in New Delhi, India's first independent economic policy institute established in 1956. In 1968, he founded

as Tata Computer Centre. In 1979, Tata Steel instituted a new practice: a worker being deemed to be "at work" from the moment he leaves home for work until he returns home from work. This made the company financially liable to the worker for any mishap on the way to and from work. In 1987, he founded

. Jamshedpur was also selected as a UN Global Compact City because of the quality of life, conditions of sanitation, roads and welfare that were offered by Tata Steel.

Support of emergency powers in 1975

Tata was also controversially supportive of the declaration of

emergency powers A state of emergency is a situation in which a government is empowered to be able to put through policies that it would normally not be permitted to do, for the safety and protection of its citizens. A government can declare such a state du ...

by Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi, in 1975. He is quoted to have told a reporter of the

Times Time is the continued sequence of existence and events, and a fundamental quantity of measuring systems. Time or times may also refer to: Temporal measurement * Time in physics, defined by its measurement * Time standard, civil time speci ...

, "things had gone too far. You can't imagine what we've been through here—strikes, boycotts, demonstrations. Why, there were days I couldn't walk out of my house into the streets. The parliamentary system is not suited to our needs."

Awards and honours

Tata received a number of awards. He was conferred the honorary rank of group captain by the Indian Air Force in 1948, was promoted to the Air Commodore rank (equivalent to

Brigadier Brigadier is a military rank, the seniority of which depends on the country. In some countries, it is a senior rank above colonel, equivalent to a brigadier general or commodore, typically commanding a brigade of several thousand soldiers. I ...

in the army) on 4 October 1966, and was further promoted on 1 April 1974 to the Air Vice Marshal rank. Several international awards for aviation were given to him – the

Tony Jannus Award The Tony Jannus Award recognizes outstanding individual achievement in scheduled commercial aviation by airline executives, inventors and manufacturers, and government leaders. The award is conferred annually by the Tony Jannus Distinguished Avia ...

in March 1979, the Gold Air Medal of the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale in 1985, the Edward Warner Award of the International Civil Aviation Organisation, Canada in 1986 and the Daniel Guggenheim Medal in 1988. He received the

in 1955. The French

was bestowed on him in 1983. In 1992, because of his selfless humanitarian endeavours, Tata was awarded India's highest civilian honour, the

. In the same year, Tata was also bestowed with the United Nations Population Award for his crusading endeavours towards initiating and successfully implementing the family planning movement in India, much before it became an official government policy. In his memory, the Government of Maharashtra named its first double-decker bridge the ''Bharatratna JRD Tata Overbridge'' at Nasik Phata,

Pimpri Chinchwad Pimpri Chinchwad, Pune is the northwestern city limits of Pune, India. Geographically, it is located at an altitude above sea level, at a distance of about northwest of its historic centre. The neighbourhood is home to extensive industry and ...

Death and legacy

Tata died in

Geneva , neighboring_municipalities= Carouge, Chêne-Bougeries, Cologny, Lancy, Grand-Saconnex, Pregny-Chambésy, Vernier, Veyrier , website = https://www.geneve.ch/ Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevr ...

, Switzerland on 29 November 1993 at the age of 89 of a kidney infection. He said a few days before his passing: ''"Comme c'est doux de mourir"'' ("How gentle it is to die"). Upon his death, the Indian Parliament was adjourned in his memory – an honour not usually given to persons who are not members of parliament. He was buried at the

Père Lachaise Cemetery Père Lachaise Cemetery (french: Cimetière du Père-Lachaise ; formerly , "East Cemetery") is the largest cemetery in Paris, France (). With more than 3.5 million visitors annually, it is the most visited necropolis in the world. Notable figure ...

in Paris. In 2012, Tata was ranked the sixth " The Greatest Indian" in an '' Outlook magazine'' poll, "conducted in conjunction with CNN-IBN and History18 Channels with BBC."

References

Bibliography

External links

Tata Family Tree

Brief Lifestory of JRD Tata
* *

Biography at tata.com
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Tata, Jehangir Ratanji Dadabhoy 1904 births 1993 deaths Aviation history of India Aviation pioneers Indian people of French descent Indian aviators Indian chief executives Parsi people from Mumbai Businesspeople from Mumbai Indian agnostics Recipients of the Bharat Ratna Recipients of the Padma Vibhushan in trade & industry Soldiers of the French Foreign Legion Jehangir Ratanji Dadabhoy Businesspeople in steel Businesspeople in information technology Businesspeople in coffee Chief executives in the automobile industry Indian founders of automobile manufacturers Bessemer Gold Medal Tata Group people Burials at Père Lachaise Cemetery Businesspeople from Paris Cathedral and John Connon School alumni Indian Freemasons