A biography on Asia’s richest man, Gautam Adani, could barely gather a crowd of 20-odd people in the heart of the national capital at India International Centre on Tuesday evening. Opening remarks by Dilip Cherian—one of the two speakers including the author—at the discussion on Gautam Adani: Reimagining India and The World, summed up the mood of the event: “It’s a real delight to be here…because it’s almost like we could have done away with the venue and had a drawing room for ourselves and had a fine interactive conversation.”
Adding a tinge of humour to the talk, Cherian said that “Under normal circumstances, I would have thought that the hall will be full. But for mysterious reasons, I suspect that people are being stopped somewhere.” The laughter that followed could only measure a giggle—blame the almost empty hall.
One of the few guests present at the book discussion, investigative journalist Paranjoy Guha Thakurta, too pointed out the low turnout. “This hall can accommodate more than 200-odd people but as you can see, there are barely 20 present,” he told ThePrint after the event. Thakurta, who said he was facing defamation suits filed by the Adani Group, appeared reluctant to comment on the book or the industrialist himself. “I am facing six cases filed by the Adani Group—both civil and criminal. There is a gag on two of these, so I can’t say much.”
The session between author R.N. Bhaskar and host cum corporate advisor and image guru Dilip Cherian, originally scheduled to start at 6pm, couldn’t begin before 7pm and was over in just 40 minutes.
“We really have to credit Bhaskar for having spent close to 20 years doggedly listening to him (Gautam Adani) and his family members. Not getting permission for an official biography and yet sustaining his efforts to make sure that he comes through with the book,” said Cherian while appreciating Bhaskar’s work.
The 254-page book focuses on the business strategies that Adani and his company adopted to step onto the high-growth ladder. Bhaskar credits a mix of Adani’s family members and professionals who lie at the core of the Adani empire for his exponential rise. “Without such a mix, it is doubtful if Gautambhai could have created such a large empire,” says the book.
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Adani and the Modi government
The first-generation entrepreneur’s conglomerate has grown fastest in terms of valuation in the last few years, leaving behind Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries.
In a brief interaction with audiences that came at the end of the talk, one of the guests asked the author if the trajectory of Adani and his businesses would have been the same had Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) not come to power in 2014. “When land for Mundra was purchased, Congress was in power. When the first power plants came up, Congress was in power. Once you build the first port, making the second one becomes easier because you have the template now,” said Bhaskar in response to the question.
In his book, Bhaskar writes that aligning of the Adani Group’s interest with national interest worked for the industrialist. When ThePrint asked to explain this synergy, Bhaskar—in a brief interview before the session—gave the example of Wipro’s founder chairman Azim Premji.
“Premji’s father was an oil trader. When Azim came in, he knew that he could not grow an empire unless he could professionalise the trading end and delegate responsibility. So he created the structure to facilitate oil trading. The industry was against him, the government wasn’t encouraging oil trading. Premji went from oil to computers. By that time, the government itself had moved towards IT. So there, Premji accidentally synergised his efforts with that of the government. Economies are shaped by government policies and entrepreneurs but the former is crucial,” he said.
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Overleveraging and wealth creation
The ports-to-power behemoth has seen massive growth and expansion, especially in the last decade. But the company has also been found to be “deeply over-leveraged”. Explaining the business rationale behind the group’s “debt dependency”, Bhaskar said that “to grow a business, you need money. From a businessman’s point of view, it does not matter if it’s your money or borrowed as long as it generates a rate of return which is higher than the bank rate. If I am making more money, then it is worth it, even if it is on borrowed money. The trick is to make it sustainable.”
When ThePrint asked to comment on the proportionality of Adani group’s rapid growth and wealth creation for India, the author, whose first book was also on Adani, said that “One, without a port you can’t export, you can’t import. You may export but not without a port. So, Adani has changed the way commerce works in India. Look at the growth in volumes of trade. Not just exports and imports. Has it changed India? Yes. You could not have done it without the string of ports that Adani has taken control of—13 ports now and there are two more in the offing.”
Two, Bhaskar said, the Adani Group has brought reliable electricity to Gujarat. “The state became power surplus only after Tatas and Adanis both set up the power units. He (Adani) is the largest gas distributor. Is that wealth? Where a woman does not use a chullah and has gas—its clean energy, its ripple effects on the family income are incredible. Green energy? Is that benefit to the country? Or any energy? You need people to run the plants. Look at his employee strength. That’s wealth.”
The session concluded by touching upon the dilemma a rapidly liberalising economy such as India faces—ethics vs business practices of top industry leaders like Adani and Ambani compared to Tatas and Birlas of the yesteryears.
“Ethical standards change from time to time. Tatas made their money from opium at a time when it wasn’t illegal. But it was immoral. The Birlas were involved in a lot of jute smuggling. Like The Godfather says, behind every great wealth, there is a small crime.”
A quote by Paranjoy Guha Thakurta has been updated from the earlier version.
(Edited by Zoya Bhatti)