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Inside the
Boardroom.

Every Saturday, one story of an Indian business leader: the hard call they made, what it cost, and the lesson for anyone running a business. Part of Boardroom Moves.

19Stories published
SatNew story every week
Puneet Chhatwal: He Grew the Taj by Owning Less of It September 2026

Puneet Chhatwal: He Grew the Taj by Owning Less of It

Taj Hotels had lost money for seven straight years when Puneet Chhatwal took over. He raised ₹4,000 crore mid-pandemic and took IHCL's profit past ₹2,000 crore.

 Gopal Vittal: He Let 40 Million Customers Leave Airtel on Purpose September 2026

Gopal Vittal: He Let 40 Million Customers Leave Airtel on Purpose

When free mobile data crashed Airtel's profit 76.5% in a year, Gopal Vittal refused to chase every subscriber. He let 40 million low-spenders go and built the network for those who would pay more instead.

 M P Ahammed: How a Coconut Trader Built India's Largest Jeweller September 2026

M P Ahammed: How a Coconut Trader Built India's Largest Jeweller

M P Ahammed traded coconut and spices for 12 years, opened one jewellery shop in Kozhikode in 1993, then sold debentures in the Gulf to grow it to 445 stores.

 Anish Shah: The Outsider Who Fixed Mahindra's ₹5,200 Crore Problem September 2026

Anish Shah: The Outsider Who Fixed Mahindra's ₹5,200 Crore Problem

Mahindra's profit fell 98% in the year to March 2020. The first non-family group CEO in 75 years hit the group's five-year RoE target in eighteen months, and took second place in Indian cars from Hyundai.

 Noel Tata: The Job He Didn't Get, and the One He Built Instead September 2026

Noel Tata: The Job He Didn't Get, and the One He Built Instead

In 2011, Noel Tata was passed over for chairman of Tata Sons. He built Zudio into 963 of Trent's 1,286 stores and in 2024 became chairman of Tata Trusts.

 Costs Were Rising Everywhere. Sameer Khetarpal Cut Domino's Prices Anyway. September 2026

Costs Were Rising Everywhere. Sameer Khetarpal Cut Domino's Prices Anyway.

In 2022 Domino's India was losing pull as costs rose. Sameer Khetarpal held prices flat, backed Domino's own delivery fleet, and profit jumped 190% by the September 2025 quarter, helped by a one-time gain.

 He Ran India's Biggest Luggage Company. Then He Bought the Rival One-Tenth Its Size. September 2026

He Ran India's Biggest Luggage Company. Then He Bought the Rival One-Tenth Its Size.

Sudhir Jatia resigned from VIP Industries in 2010 and in 2011 bought 56.55% of Safari Industries for ₹29 crore. Sales have since grown from ₹70 crore to over ₹2,047 crore, and market share from 2% to 23%.

 Venu Nair Took the Job Nobody Wanted at Shoppers Stop. He Turned It Around in About a Year. September 2026

Venu Nair Took the Job Nobody Wanted at Shoppers Stop. He Turned It Around in About a Year.

In November 2020, malls were half empty and Shoppers Stop was heading for a 44% fall in revenue. Venu Nair took the top job anyway, kept a ₹450 crore cost-savings drive on track, and turned the company net-cash within a year.

 Bharat Puri Heard About the Cadbury Worms From TV News. He Fixed It in Three Months. August 2026

Bharat Puri Heard About the Cadbury Worms From TV News. He Fixed It in Three Months.

In October 2003, worms found in Dairy Milk bars put Cadbury India on the TV news weeks before Diwali, and festival-season sales fell 30 percent. Managing Director Bharat Puri chose to rebuild trust rather than only defend the factories, and sales recovered within six months.

 Verghese Kurien Packed His Bags to Leave Anand. He Stayed Fifty Years and Built Amul. August 2026

Verghese Kurien Packed His Bags to Leave Anand. He Stayed Fifty Years and Built Amul.

In 1949, a 27-year-old engineer got off a train at Anand counting the days until his government bond ended. A farmer asked him to stay. Verghese Kurien spent the next fifty years building Amul into a co-operative now owned by 3.6 million farmers, crossing ₹1 lakh crore in turnover in 2025-26.

 Everyone Said Royal Enfield Was Finished. Siddhartha Lal Asked for Two Years. August 2026

Everyone Said Royal Enfield Was Finished. Siddhartha Lal Asked for Two Years.

In 2000, a 26-year-old took charge of a motorcycle business his own family was preparing to shut down. He fixed the machine before touching the market, then made the company smaller on purpose. Royal Enfield sold over 10 lakh motorcycles in FY25.

 C K Venkataraman: How Tanishq Fixed Years of Being Wrong About India August 2026

C K Venkataraman: How Tanishq Fixed Years of Being Wrong About India

Tanishq spent its early years guessing wrong about the Indian gold buyer. C K Venkataraman, who ran the jewellery division from 2005 to 2019 and later became Titan's managing director, helped turn that lesson into India's leading organised jewellery business: over ₹46,000 crore in FY25.

 Ramesh Chauhan Sold Thums Up to Build Bisleri From Scratch August 2026

Ramesh Chauhan Sold Thums Up to Build Bisleri From Scratch

In 1993, Ramesh Chauhan sold India's No. 1 cola brand to Coca-Cola, then rebuilt his fortune on bottled water nobody wanted to pay for. The boardroom lesson in category creation.

 Sunil D'Souza Turned Down Tata's FMCG Job, Then Built It From Tea and Salt August 2026

Sunil D'Souza Turned Down Tata's FMCG Job, Then Built It From Tea and Salt

Sunil D'Souza said no to leading Tata's consumer business because it lacked direction. That was exactly why Chandrasekaran wanted him. The boardroom lesson in taking the unclear brief.

 Suresh Narayanan: The MD Who Walked Into the Maggi Ban July 2026

Suresh Narayanan: The MD Who Walked Into the Maggi Ban

38,000 tonnes of Maggi were destroyed. Suresh Narayanan took the MD job that same year and rebuilt Nestle India to ₹20,000 crore. How he ran the crisis.

 Shailesh Jejurikar: P&G's First Indian-Origin CEO in 187 Years July 2026

Shailesh Jejurikar: P&G's First Indian-Origin CEO in 187 Years

Shailesh Jejurikar joined P&G in 1989 straight out of IIM Lucknow and never left. On January 1, 2026 he became the first Indian-origin CEO in the company's 187-year history.

 Sudhir Sitapati: Why He Left HUL's Safest Seat for Godrej July 2026

Sudhir Sitapati: Why He Left HUL's Safest Seat for Godrej

Sudhir Sitapati led HUL's Horlicks merger, then left its management committee to run Godrej Consumer. What nearly five years at a smaller, messier company reveal about real leadership.

 Sanjiv Mehta: The HUL Leader Who Never Forgot Bhopal July 2026

Sanjiv Mehta: The HUL Leader Who Never Forgot Bhopal

Sanjiv Mehta grew HUL's value more than 4x, closed the GSK merger, and doubled women in leadership. What Bhopal taught him about running a boardroom.

 Refused to Blink: The Boardroom Lesson Behind Marico's War With Hindustan Lever July 2026

Refused to Blink: The Boardroom Lesson Behind Marico's War With Hindustan Lever

In 1999, Hindustan Lever tried to kill Parachute outright. Marico's founder said no to a buyout and fought on four fronts instead. What the boardroom decision to fight, not sell, actually took.
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