Ratan Tata
Credit: DH Photo
Mumbai: Dr Ishwar Gilada, acclaimed HIV expert, had known Ratan Tata for close to three decades and met him thrice.
Dr Gilada, Secretary General of Peoples Health Organisation-India and Organised Medicine Academic Guild, shared about Tata’s elephantine memory in his tributes to Ratan Tata, Chairman-Emeritus, Tata Sons and Chairman, Tata Trusts, who passed away on Wednesday night, aged 86.
“My first meeting with him was at the Young Presidents’ Organization (US-based global leadership community of extraordinary chief executives) meeting held at Taj President, Mumbai, I think around 1997. I was invited as a speaker and Mr Tata was the chief guest. Both of us arrived at the venue a bit earlier, so I got an opportunity to interact with Tata one-on-one for about 10 minute,” he said, adding that he was in touch with his office through e-mail. “He was meticulous in responding through his personal secretary,” he added.
“My second interaction with him was at the Indian Merchants Chamber (IMC) around 2010 and there too, I was lucky to have got a chance to interact with him for about 15 minutes on the issue of HIV," he said.
Dr Gilada then shares about his third meeting, which was interesting and shows how humble he was.
“I was with my family at Thai Pavilion, Taj President in Mumbai, and we were surprised to see Tata sitting a couple of tables away with his friend, who was later told by the restaurant manager that Khareghat was his childhood friend and they came here some time. What surprised us the most, was he paid the bill using his credit card, though the Taj Hotels are owned by the Tata Group under his stewardship. No security, no protocol, no show-sha! Just his attendant who was standing by the pillar outside the restaurant with his bag,” he said.
Dr Gilada added that when he came out to board the car, he had a chance to greet and meet him at the hotel entrance. “This was on 23rd June 2023, and he did recognise me and asked, how was my work in the HIV field going on? The other closeness was the date of birth, his 28th December being in between my wife’s – 27th December and mine on 29th December,” he said.
During the Covid Pandemic, Tatas offered free food to the entire healthcare community during the entire lockdown. “As several doctors and healthcare staff could not go home they were accommodated at all the Taj hotels in Mumbai with all meals,” he added.