Page 11 - Seniorstoday November 2023 Issue

their core talents of money management, the Lodhas being the lone notable Marwari.
understanding of commodity markets and
efficient cost controlling methodologies,
Marwaris instinctively gravitated only
to those industries and businesses which
gave them natural leverage and comfort.
Their education was also largely to support
and enhance this expertise, with most of
their youngsters choosing commerce or
chartered accountancy for higher studies.
This single-mindedness, while certainly
helping them retain their hold on their
businesses, did not allow them to expand
their vision to other newer sectors,
especially technology. As a Marwari friend
analysed, ‘We were more comfortable with
fixed assets and more tangible businesses
than those involving R&D, marketing, or
tech and innovation. Sadly, on hindsight,
we did not even favour education in
engineering or chemical sciences.’
FMCG was among the fastest growing
sectors, with token Marwari presence of
the Emami Group and Varun Beverages.
Pharma, one of India’s most value creating
sectors for decades, had Lupin as the sole
Marwari representative in an otherwise
large field populated by the likes of Sun,
Serum Institute, Torrent, Cipla, etc.
Telecom, India’s sunrise industry of the
2000s, has seen only Airtel and Reliance
emerging in virtually a two-horse race.
The auto sector has Bajaj as the sole
Marwari representative. Real estate has
SENIORS TODAY | ISSUE #52 | OCTOBER 2023
The chemicals sector does have a decent
presence of Marwaris in the Singhals
(PI Group), Birlas, Taparias (Supreme
Industries) and Bhartias (Jubilant).
Scanning the core manufacturing or
financial services sectors, the picture is
markedly different. In metals, Jindals,
Birlas and Anil Agarwal’s Vedanta have
near total dominance. Then there are the
Ruias (Essar) across steel, oil, shipping,
construction, telecommunications and
power. In cement, where Birlas, Bangurs,
Dalmias, Singhanias are the most
prominent players. In the stock markets,
Radhakishan Damani looms large, along
with the late Rakesh Jhunjhunwala.
A large number of Marwaris moved out
of the country, some becoming immensely
successful like LN Mittal and S P Lohia.
But once again, they found success in
the traditional industries of steel and
chemicals, respectively.
Marwaris were not very adept at
managing government and bureaucracy,
in nudging the policy framework. Which
is why they are relatively less visible in
infrastructure.
Then there may have been complacency.
There’s that adage -- the first generation
creates the wealth, the second generation
consolidates it, while the third generation
squanders it. Marwaris were early movers
in the creation scene. By the turn of the
2lst century, they were well ensconced
and rich, and had lost the drive for toil and
innovation, preferring pursuits of leisure,
art and wolf -- not to mention this writer
being miltv as charmed for his penchant
for food. Several had become capital
consumers, rather than wealth creators.
Uniquely, the Marwari mindset was
discouraging of their women participating
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