Normally here are only 3 types of articles on the Ambanis: Awestruck journalists gushing about the Ambani fortune, trenchant criticism from people who seem to have the belief that all money is evil and that great wealth is singularly evil and society mags featuring the newest Ambani Toys and other tittle-tattle.Just because this article is so very different from the normal ones I have kept it so far.Thought I would share it here even though it dates from 2007. The highlighted bits are stuff I found interesting.I got a couple of good money making ideas out of reading this piece.I hope you do too.
“
But very little is publicly known of his beliefs, vision and motivation. In his most expansive interview ever to MoneyLIFE, a personal finance magazine, Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani tells
MoneyLIFE editors Sucheta Dalal and Debashis Basu, what drives him and his business decisions
A lot of details about your life are already known. But we don’t know things from your end. Your life has changed dramatically in just about three decades; will you take us through that process?
From my point of view, very little has changed (Laughs). In terms of attitude to life, little has changed. There are important lessons I have learnt during my upbringing. It is important to share these, though these are tough to practise as a parent (smiles).
We were like a joint family and I was the first child of the family of that generation. There were advantages in being the first child those days. My father navigated through life from Aden in Yemen to Bhuleshwar (a congested commercial precinct in Mumbai , to Usha Kiran (Mumbai’s earliest skyscraper) at Altamount Road to Sea Wind (an exclusive tower which is the Ambani residence).
My first memories are of the early ’60s at Altamount Road which was then an emerging area. We were a close-knit family and the four of us — Dipti, Nina, Anil and I — were left to do what we wanted. There were boundaries, of course, but within those, we were not micro-managed. Things have changed so much now. When my kids, Isha and Akash, were in the third standard, we behaved as though it was our exam.
Our own childhood was totally different. I guess when you are left on your own, you find your true potential. I remember my father never came to our school even once. Nevertheless, he was hugely interested in our all-round development for which he did some amazing things. Read more of this post
wealthymatters 