PADMA BHUSHAN R.THYAGARAJAN

R.Thyagarajan, fondly known as RT, is Padma Bhushan today. Those close to Mr.Thyagarajan know the enormous persuasion they had to exert on him to accept this exceptional honour. Not that he disagrees with such symbolic affirmatives, but because his life is too simple that lime light does not fit in to the scheme of his beautifully simple narrative of life. And finally when he conceded to accept this honour it was only for the reason that this moment of national recognition could further catalyze the Shriram Group which he founded and guides till today to raise its own bar in reaching out to the community. For Mr.Thyagarajan the ultimate end of business and enterprise building has always remained empowering of the community through economic freedom, sustained education, scientific advancement and cultural development. In a globalized and highly competitive corporate world whose greed, opulence and pomposity have come to cloud the liberating splendor of wealth making, R.Thyagarajan represents the audacity of an ancient civilization with unalterable coding of simplicity, dedication, detachment, integrity and common good.

Here is a man blessed with a sharp intellect, business acumen and an awe inspiring ability for structured reasoning who built the Shriram Group from a small non banking financial entity to one of India’s leading business conglomerates. But what stands out as striking is the shining simplicity of the person who remains completely untouched by the spectacular business success. A man whose material needs are bare minimal and wants literally nothing. Almost all his wealth has been given away to the community. Never one to project or profile himself, he did all the giving quietly, befitting the spiritual dictum of true giving - let the left hand not know what the right hand is giving. The list of the good causes and public initiatives he has supported are too many to make a legion.

Endowed with sterling human qualities, Thyagarajan is always a man of edifying composure. Never one to get carried away by subjective human emotions, his inner self is simply wired to be a living template of calmness, dignity, grace and fairness. He has consistently maintained a high degree of fairness and righteous magnanimity in dealing with people. His understanding of human nature is so fine and profound that people who go to him come back unburdened, reconciled and in peace.

In any country, innovators and entrepreneurs with idealism and aspirations play a critical role in shaping the future of not only the industry but the society at large. To that extent, the greatest contribution of RT to nation building is his generous and committed support as well as trusting mentorship to venturing entrepreneurs with ideas. He is one corporate leader who gives to the budding entrepreneurs freedom to fail as well. Without this fundamental commitment of trust in entrepreneurship, Shriram Group wouldn’t be what it is today.

With Padma Bhushan, RT joins the exceptional league of extraordinary citizens. But the truth is he would remain the same as ever, utterly unaffected by this rare honour. However it is our responsibility to institutionalize the life of this amazing personality as an enduring source of inspiration for generations to come.