ENTREPRENEURSHIP

DHIRA1LAL (DHIRUBHAI) AMBANI

PROJECT STUDY SUBMITTED TO: Ms.PURVA GAIKWAD
SUBMITTED BY: TYBMS B]
SONAL BURAD 96
SHEETAL
MOHAN SHIRSAT
EKTA
DEVENDRA
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
The completion oI this project provides a welcome
opportunity to acknowledge in writing to our ProI. Purva Gaikwad Ior
giving us this opportunity to learn Irom the lives oI biggest
entrepreneurs our country has seen. We are highly enlightened by the
story oI Sri. Dhirubhai Ambani.
We would like to thank the author oI DHIRUBHAI: THE
MAN I KNEW, Kokilaben Ambani Ior giving us insightIul excerpts.















INDEX

SR.NO. TOPIC
1 INTRODUCTION
2 LIFE BEFORE BECOMING AN ENTREPRENEUR
3 ~RAGS O RICHES
4 DHIRUBHAI- THE ENTREPRENEUR
5 SUCCESS
6 DEMISE
7 CONCLUSION
8 QUOTES







INTRODUCTION
~A MAN WITH THE UNCOMMON CAPACITY OF SEEING BEYOND,
INTO THE FUTURE
Founder Chairman, Reliance Industries Limited, India
December 28, 1932 - July 6, 2002
Major Group Companies: Reliance Industries Limited, India's largest private
sector company
Birthplace: Chorwad, village in Saurashtra (Gujarat), India
Father's Name: Hirachand Govardhandas Ambani
Mother's Name: Jamunaben Hirachand Ambani
Career: At the age oI 17 went to Aden (now part oI Yemen) and worked Ior A.
Besse & Co. Ltd., the sole selling distributor oI Shell products.
In the year 1958 returned to Mumbai and started his Iirst company, Reliance
Commercial Corporation, a commodity trading and export house.
In the year 1966, as a Iirst step in Reliance's highly successIul strategy oI
backward integration, he started the textile mill in Naroda, Ahmedabad.
In the year 1975, a technical team Irom the World Bank certiIied that the
Reliance textile plant was "excellent by developed country standards."
In the year 1977, the company went public.
Today, the Reliance Group has one oI the largest Iamily oI shareholders in the
world. With an investment oI over Rs 36,000 crore (US$ 9 billion) in petroleum
reIining, petrochemicals, power generation, telecommunication services and a
port terminal in a three-year time Irame, has steered the Reliance Group to its
current status as India's leading textiles-petroleum-petrochemicals-power-
telecom player.
Family: WiIe: Kokilaben.
Four children: Two sons Mukesh and Anil, and two daughters, Dipti Salgaocar
who lives in Goa and Nina Kothari who resides in Chennai.

LIFE BEFORE BECOMING AN ENTREPRENEUR
CHILDHOOD DAYS:
Dhirubhai was born at Chorwad, in the district oI Junagarh in the
western Indian state oI Gujarat. Overall, Hirachandbhai and Jamanaben
(PARENTS) lived a liIe oI impoverished dignity with their two daughters and
three sons--Trilochanaben, Ramnikbhai, Jasuben, Dhirubhai and Natubhai.
Formal education was not his Iorte, he realized very early in liIe. He was
essentially an outdoors boy. When asked to choose a task at home, at school or
at the boys' hostel, he always chose the most strenuous task that called Ior
immense physical energy and stamina. Not that he was poor in doing his school
lessons but just that he did not enjoy all the mugging up and learning by rote
which school education required those days. Just to show that that was not an
empty boast, he once procured a tin oI groundnut oil on credit Irom a local
whole seller and sold the oil in retail sitting on the roadside, earning a proIit oI a
Iew rupees that he gave to his mother. Next, he began setting up bhajia or onion
and potato Iries stalls at village Iairs during weekends when his school was
closed.











ADEN:
Just aIter Dhirubhai was through his annual matriculation examination
and even beIore the result was out, Hirachandbhai called him home to Chorwad.
Hirachandbhai had been unwell Ior quite some time and had grown extremely
weak and Irail. "Dhiru, do you know why I have called you here?"
Hirachandbhai asked his son the very night he reached home. "Well, I'll tell
you. You know I have been unwell Ior past several months. I cannot work any
more. I know you want to study Iurther but I can't aIIord that any more. I need
you to earn Ior the Iamily. I need your money. The Iamily needs it. You must
work now. Ramnikbhai has arranged a job Ior you in Aden. You go there."
The very next morning he leIt Ior Rajkot to get his passport. In a Iew days he
was in Bombay to board the ship to Aden. It was on board the ship that
Dhirubhai learnt Irom Gujarati newspaper that he had passed his matriculation
examination in second division.
On reaching Aden, Dhrubhai joined oIIice on the very day oI his
arrival. It was a clerk's job with the A. Besse & Co., named aIter its French
Iounder Antonin Besse. A. Besse & Co. was the largest transcontinental trading
Iirm east oI Suez. It was engaged in almost every branch oI trading business-
cargo booking, handling, shipping, Iorwarding, and wholesale merchandising.
Besse acted as trading agents Ior a large number oI European, American,
AIrican and Asian companies and dealt with all sorts oI goods ranging Irom
sugar, spices, Iood grains and textiles to oIIice stationary, tools, machinery and
petroleum products. Dhirubhai was Iirst sent to the commodities trading section
oI the Iirm. Later, he was transIerred to the section that handled petroleum
products Ior the oil giant Shell.
Dhirubhai Ielt tempted to speculate but had no money Ior that and was
still raw Ior such trading. To learn the tricks oI the trade he oIIered to work Iree
Ior a Gujarati trading Iirm. There he learnt accounting, book keeping, preparing
shipping papers and documents, and dealing with banks and insurance
companies, skills that would come handy when he launched himselI into trading
about a decade aIterwards in Bombay. At the Besse oIIice during the day he
polished his skills in typing and Pitman shorthand, draIting commercial letters,
and composing legal documents.
At the boarding house where he lived with another twenty-Iive or so
young Gujarati clerks and oIIice boys, he devoted long hours oI the night
mastering English grammar, essay writing, current aIIairs and a host oI subjects
that took his Iancy Irom week to week. He was the Iirst to snatch the English,
Gujarati and Hindi daily papers and weeklies as soon as they arrived by the ship
ever day. The Times oI India, Blitz, Janmabhoomi and Navajeevan Iormed his
Iavourite reading material. He also devoured all sorts oI books, magazines and
journals the passengers arriving Irom various European and Indian ports leIt in
the ships and at the oIIices oI various shipping agents.
"OI all the books I read so avidly those days one I remember most
Iondly are (Jawaharlal Nehru's) the "Glimpses oI World History" and the
"Discovery oI India," he would recall long aIter his Aden days. "They were Iat,
big books but written in simple English and to me they opened a whole new
world oI adventure, oI human wisdom and human Iolly. I began reading them
not to learn oI world history but to practice my English but once I opened their
pages their breadth oI vision had me in a thrall. I used to keep a dictionary by
my side when reading these books and note down every new word I came
across to increase my vocabulary. Later when I used to draIt letters to ministers
and senior oIIicials during my early Bombay days, I used whole lot oI
quotations, phrases and impressive words Irom these two books."
He also gorged on dozens oI books and magazine articles on
psychology that became his Iavourite subject Ior a long time. "I learnt much
Irom this class oI my reading," he sometimes said, "I learnt how we humans and
animals love to be loved more than anything else, how we are driven by desire
to earn the love, aIIection and honour oI those around us, what it is to be a
leader, how to motivate those whom we want to attain great heights, how
ideologies and interests clash and reconcile or cancel each other.
"More than anything else I learnt that nothing big can ever be achieved
without money, inIluence and power and I also learnt that money, inIluence and
power alone cannot achieve anything in liIe, big or small, without a certain soIt,
delicate, sensitive, understanding human touch in all one's deeds and words."
AIter he thought he had learnt the basics oI commodities trading, Dhirubhai
began speculating in high seas purchase and sales oI all sorts oI goods. He did
not have enough money oI his own Ior such speculative trading. So he borrowed
as much as he could Irom Iriends and small Aden shopkeepers on terms nobody
had ever oIIered them. "ProIit we share and all loss will be mine" became his
motto. During lunch break and aIter oIIice hours he was always in the local
bazaar, trading in one thing or the other.
Soon, those around him Iound that he had an uncanny knack Ior such
speculative trading. He seldom lost money in any deal. "I think I had an animal
instinct about such trading but there was a lot oI reading and understanding oI
market trends behind that animal instinct oI mine. I read every bit oI paper I
could lay my hands on about what was happening around the world, I listened
careIully to every word uttered in the market, picked every bit oI gossip in the
shipping circles and pondered long through the night in the bed about the pros
and cons oI every deal I wanted to make."
Meantime, the Shell oil reIinery and the Iirst oil harbour came up in
Aden in 1954, the year Dhirubhai returned home to Gujarat to marry Kokilaben.
As expected, A. Besse & Co. became the agents Ior distribution oI Shell
reIinery products. Dhirubhai had done well at the oIIice during his Iirst Iive
years. Now he was sent on promotion to the oil Iilling station at the newly built
harbour.
He liked the new job, though it was a lot more demanding than the
desk job in the commodities section. Here he had to service the ships bunkering
Ior diesel and lubricants. He enjoyed visiting the ships, making Iriends with
sailors and the engine staII I heard Irom them Iirst hand accounts oI their
voyages in diIIerent parts oI the world oI which he had until then read about
only in books and magazines. And, here it was that he Iirst began dreaming oI
one day building a reIinery oI his own.
"It was a crazy idea Ior a petrol pump attendant to want to build a
reIinery oI his own, but that is the sort oI crazy ideas I have been playing with
all my liIe," Dhirubhai recalled at the time Reliance's 25-million ton oil
reIinery, the largest grassroots reIinery in the world, went on stream in
Jamnagar in 1999. "I have been able to build this reIinery because I decided
long years ago not to settle Ior anything else," he said, "I had heard a Yemeni
proverb in Aden "la budd min Sana'a wa lau taal al-saIr" (Sana'a is a 'must',
however long the journey may take). I never Iorgot that saying."
Dhirubhai weighed his options.. By now he had saved some money and
was thinking oI setting up some business oI his own. Although Dhirubhai's
Iather had died in 1952, he had in the meantime been blessed with his Iirst son,
Mukesh D. Ambani, in April, 1957. Kokilaben and Mukesh were back home in
India.The choice oI opening a shop somewhere in London was tempting but he
Ielt India was calling him home.









BACK TO INDIA:
So, sometime towards the end oI 1958 Dhirubhai landed at Bombay
with little money in his pocket and absolutely no connections except a letter oI
introduction Irom a Gujarati shopkeeper in Aden to his son living in a Bombay
chawl to let him share his room. Soon aIter arriving in Bombay, Dhirubhai
began exploring openings Ior some business within limits oI his meagre
savings. He went to various places like Ahmedabad, Baroda, Junagarh, Rajkot
and Jamnagar in Gujarat looking Ior opportunities. But he Ielt that with the
small capital he had all that he could do in these places was to set up a grocery,
cloth or a motor parts shop. A shop could give him a steady income but that was
not what he was looking Ior. He was looking Ior quick growth, Ior constant
excitement oI trading, and Ior the hustle and bustle oI a busy bazaar, as in Aden.
He came back to Bombay, settled himselI, his wiIe and son in a two-room
chawl and launched himselI as a trader in spice setting up oIIice under the name
oI Reliance Commercial Corporation. All that his oIIice had was a table, two
chairs, a writing pad, a pen, an inkpot, a pitcher Ior storing drinking water and a
Iew glasses. The oIIice had no phone but he could make and receive calls on the
phone oI a next-door doctor paying him a small amount Ior every such call.
From the very Iirst day Dhirubhai began making rounds oI Bombay`s wholesale
spice market and collecting quotations oI various items Ior bulk purchase on
immediate down payment terms..
A jobless young boy known to him appeared soon aIter as his odd job
man. An aged Muslim mehtafi was brought in as a part time clerk-cum-letter
writer-cum-accountant-cum-receptionist. From the very Iirst day he began
sending letters in Arabic to Dhirubhai`s old contacts in Aden and trading centers
oI the GulI Emirates. The letters carried rates at which Dhirubhai oIIered to
supply various commodities like spices, sugar, jaggery, betel nuts and such and
similar other things.
Orders began trickling in aIter a Iew weeks, and were promptly
IulIilled. OIten goods were shipped even beIore payments arrived. Dhirubhai
kept his margins low, volumes large and quality high. Those days most Bombay
traders paid little attention to the quality oI their commodities. There was a lot
oI adulteration and mixing oI substandard material in bulk shipments. Foreign
exporters oIten complained that goods shipped Irom India were all so oIten a
much lower quality than promised. Dhirubhai oIIered to Iorego payments due
him in case his supplies were Iound below standard. That built a great
reputation Ior him among overseas exporters. Orders began growing.









MANURE AT THE GULF:
Dhirubhai began enlarging his basket oI commodities on oIIer. He
oIIered to supply anything and everything required Irom India. Once an inquiry
came Irom a GulI trader Ior manure mixed topsoil Ior a sheik's lawn and rose
garden. It was a large order and the price oIIered was high. But nobody beIore
that had ever received or IulIilled such an order.
Dhirubhai's Iriends told him there was no way anybody could gather
so much oI manure mixed topsoil in Bombay and that too in such a short time as
required. But that was the sort oI challenge that always spurred Dhirubhai's
nerves. Against advice oI all Iriends, he oIIered to meet the order but asked the
GulI party Ior a bonus on top oI the oIIered price which was conceded.
Dhirubhai gathered all jobless young men Irom his neighbouring
chawls and asked them to Ian out all around Bombay and buy all rotten dung
heaps they Iound. A graduate in agriculture science was hired to oversee
preparation oI the topsoil, which was packed, transported to Bombay and
shipped to the GulI within the given time. "We made big money Irom that order,
real big money," Dhirubhai said.






NYLON FLUSH:
Another big Ilush came Irom a government scheme in the mid-sixties
Ior import oI nylon yarn, then much in demand, against export oI rayon Iabrics.
Rayon, commercially developed by Sears in 1930 in America, had been made in
India since 1954 and was used mainly Ior saris. Rayon was used Ior making
other Iabrics too. Excise duty on rayon was low and, with low Indian labour
costs, rayon Iabrics could be sold at competitive prices in the overseas market.
He took to export oI rayon Iabrics in right earnest. Once again his Aden
contacts came in handy. A lot oI textile exports Irom India as also yarn imports
were routed through Aden. Dhirubhai made the best use oI his Aden
connections. As in spices, so in rayon Iabrics too he was quick in delivering
orders. He also began seeding new markets in Eastern Europe that would prove
to be oI immense potential when he would launch himselI into textiles a Iew
years later.






~RAGS TO RICHES
BEGINNING OF RELIANCE COMMERCIAL CORPORATION:
The nylon craze was Iast spreading Irom big cities to small towns and
villages thanks to Mumbai Iilms. So, he began playing with the idea oI
establishing his own independent manuIacturing unit. He had built enough
capital during trading in yarn to be able to launch him into the new orbit oI
manuIacturing. That was his Iirst major step towards what would later come to
be hailed as his Iarsighted strategy oI "backward integration."
Dhirubhai ran his team more like the head oI a joint Hindu Iamily than
as a chieI executive. He was Iriendly, Ilexible and Iorgiving in his conduct with
his staII, showed understanding oI human weaknesses and shortcomings, even
in case oI a major error oI judgment, and oIten went out oI his way to help them
in their hour oI need. In return, he got immense loyalty Irom his people.
They had Iull authority Irom Dhirubhai to act as they thought best when the
need arose. "ProIit shall be ours, loss mine; credit yours, discredit mine," he
would tell them. "Use my name, even misuse it iI necessary, but get the work
done," he exhorted them, "Blame it on me iI things go wrong, but act and act
quick!"
In the meantime, Dhirubhai's Iamily had also grown bigger. Mukesh
D. Ambani was now in his ninth year and going to school. So was the second
son, Anil D. Ambani, born in 1959. Two daughters, Dipti and Nina, had arrived
in 1961 and 1962, respectively. He had by now moved into a better and bigger
apartment at 7, Altamount Road in South Bombay.
He decided to set a brand new mill oI his own. Not just a new one, but
an absolutely brand new one, the best and the latest Irom the Irontiers oI the
then available technology. "That was the Iirst time I decided that whatever I
ever build, I would always have the best and the most advanced in technology,
come what may and whatever be the cost," he later said,
Naroda had then just been chosen Ior developing an industrial estate.
There was only a semi-tarred road leading to the site Irom Ahmedabad. All
around was hard, dry, barren, brush land. Even the industrial plots had not yet
been marked out with chunam (lime), as was the practice those days. Power
lines were still being erected and water pipes being laid and only two Iactories
(Coca Cola and Ingersoll Rand) had come up in the estate. Reliance moved in
on plot numbers 102, 103, 104 and 105, altogether measuring 5,000 square
yards. Today Reliance Iacilities at Naroda are spread over 125 acres there.
"Naroda was not a venture but an adventure, a raw adventure," recalled
Dhirubhai when a journalist asked him how he had Ielt when setting up his Iirst
Iactory. "I had utterly no experience, nor had any oI my brothers or my
colleagues. Actually, today no one will believe that Naroda was set up by a
bunch oI totally raw, uneducated, inexperienced young men whose only asset
was their indomitable will to do something in life.
The Naroda project started with just six people, three oI them in their
thirties and two still in their twenties. Dhirubhai was the troubleshooter oI the
team, its conceptualiser, visualiser, leader, planner, project manager, operations
coordinator, cheer person, gadIly, pincushion, and hunter master, all in one. He
Ilew in and back Irom Ahmedabad to Mumbai every weekend, checking the
progress oI the project and Iixing the more troublesome nitty-gritty.
Construction at Naroda started in May. Now arose the problem oI
locating trained and experienced textile mill workers. Naroda was too Iar oII in
a jungle to be attractive to workers Irom the textile centres oI big cities. With
great diIIiculty a disparate team oI 35 machine men, knitting masters, boiler
operators and dyeing masters was organized Irom Mumbai, Calcutta and Indore.
As Dhirubhai had wished and planned, production started on the Iour knitting
machines on the morning oI the target date oI 1 September 1966. It took another
two months Ior production to stabilise.

MARKETING:
By January, 1967, Naroda Iactory began producing Iine quality Iabric,
about 5,000 meters a day. Then it hit a roadblock. The Iabric was Iine and the
prices oIIered were attractive. Yet nobody in the wholesale markets oI
Ahmedabad and Mumbai was ready to touch Reliance cloth. The wholesalers
stonewalled Reliance at the instance oI established big mill owners who hated to
see an upstart trying to enter their exclusive club. They had many more knitting
machines than Reliance. No wholesaler could aIIord to anger or annoy them. So
they shunned all Reliance material. For Iour months bales oI newly rolled out
Iabric kept piling up in the Reliance warehouse.
The big players in the market thought seeing no way he could beat
them at the game, Dhirubhai would succumb, pack up and leave them in peace.
However, Dhirubhai was not one to give up a Iight once started. "We can't beat
them but we can bypass them," he told his people, "Let us go directly to
retailers. There is no way they can stop us Irom selling directly to the retailers."
In the next Iew days Dhirubhai's staII Ianned out all over the big cities, piling
bales oI Reliance Iabric at the retailers' counters without asking Ior any receipt
or advance payment, no, not even seeking a promise oI payment in Iuture.
On reaching a retailer's shop, Dhirubhai would place his visiting card
on the counter and introduce himselI thus, "My name is Dhirubhai Ambani. I
am a sadakchhap (a man Irom the streets) but I want to be big one day. I want
you to grow with me, though at the moment I have nothing big to oIIer you. My
brothers, some Iriends and I have just set up a Iactory at Naroda. We make this
knitted Iabric there. The wholesalers are boycotting our material Ior Iear oI the
big mill owners. I oIIer this material to you. I don't want any money. You sell it.
II you make money by selling our material, give me whatever and whenever
you want to. Now, will you not oIIer me a cup oI tea beIore I go?" In the
meantime the Iamily had named the Reliance Iabric "Vimal" meaning "pure".

IPO (INITIAL PUBLIC OFFERING):
Though Reliance was a proIitable enough concern, Ambani quickly
calculated that Iurther expansion especially into related sectors would
depend on access to a cheap source oI capital. Rather than turning to the
banking system, he decided to tap Bombay`s Iledgling stock exchange,
pioneering an equity cult that was to transIorm the corporate Iinancing system
in India. Reliance Industries, which went public in 1977 with one oI the largest
public oIIerings oI its time, has the largest number oI shareholders at over 3.5
million. Ambani is credited with shaping India's equity culture, attracting retail
investors in a market dominated by state-run Iinancial institutions.
And today, Dhirubhai is easily the most popular businessman in India. The
group, which began liIe as a tiny trading outIit in the narrow by-lanes oI
Mumbai's textile market, is now India's second-largest company, with sales oI
Rs 58,000 crore and annual net proIit oI Rs 4,110 crore.
Reliance`s initial public oIIering in 1977 saw 58,000 investors buying
shares; eventually, the number oI Reliance shareholders was to climb to some
three million. To Indian middle-class salary-earners, Ambani held out the
promise oI instant enrichment through the stock market. But he was no Ily-by-
night operator: Reliance shares oIIered genuine value, and those Iortunate
enough to have had Iaith in the company in the early years eventually
became millionaires. Annual general meetings were held in sports stadiums
where Ambani would be treated by shareholders with adulation and even
reverence.
In 1982 Ambani began the process oI backward integration, setting up
a plant to manuIacture polyester Iilament yarn. He subsequently diversiIied into
chemicals, gas, petrochemicals, plastics, power and telecom services.



CONTROVERSIAL ENTREPRENEUR:
Despite his almost Midas Touch, Ambani has been known to have
Ilexible values and an unethical streak running through him. His biographer
himselI has cited some instances oI his unethical behavior when he was just an
ordinary employee at a petrol pump in Dubai. He has been accused oI having
manipulated government policies to suit his own needs, and has been
known to be a king-maker in government elections. Although most media
sources tend to speak out about business-politics nexus, the Ambani house has
always enjoyed more protection and shelter Irom the media storms that sweep
across the country.
By the late 1980s the Reliance group was one oI India`s most inIluential
and proIitable concerns. However, the phenomenal growth oI Reliance owed as
much to Ambani`s acumen as to the ease with which he was able to get oIIicial
rules and regulations including import tariIIs introduced, amended or
scrapped in order to undercut his rivals and push his own business interests. His
methods earned him many bitter enemies in India`s corporate world. Ambani
nevertheless Iorged ahead, cultivating Iriends in virtually every Indian political
party and managing the media in such a way that critical stories about
Reliance`s unconventional business methods seldom made it into the
newspapers.
Ambani also saw the Indian Government`s privatisation programme as a
means oI Iurther growth. Two months beIore his death, Reliance successIully
bid Ior the giant public sector Indian Petro-Chemicals. His two American-
educated sons have been in day-to-day control oI the company since him
suIIered a stroke in 1986. He suIIered a Iurther stroke 12 days ago Irom which
he never recovered.



TUSSLE WITH NUSLI WADIA:
Nusli Wadia oI Bombay Dyeing was, at one point in time, the biggest
competitor oI Dhirubhai and Reliance Industries. Both Nusli Wadia and
Dhirubhai were known Ior their inIluence in the political circles and their ability
to get the most diIIicult licenses approved during the times oI preliberalized
economy. During the Janata Party rule between 1977 - 1979, Nusli Wadia
obtained the permission to build a 60,000 tonnes per annum Dimethyl
terephthalate (DMT) plant. BeIore the letter oI intent was converted into a
licence, many hurdles came in the way. Finally, in 1981, Nusli Wadia was
granted the license Ior the plant. This incident acted as a catalyst between the
two parties and the competition took an ugly turn.
The Indian Express Articles: At one point in time, Ramnath Goenka was a
Iriend oI Dhirubhai Ambani. Ramnath Goenka was also considered to be close
to Nusli Wadia. On many occasions, Ramnath Goenka tried to intervene
between the two warring Iactions and bring an end to the enmity. To this day,
there is no satisIactory explanation as to why Goenka and Ambani became
rivals. Later on, Ramnath Goenka chose to support Nusli Wadia. At one point oI
time, Ramnath Goenka is believed to have said "Nusli is an Englishman. He
cannot handle Ambani. I am a bania. I know how to Iinish him".
As days passed by, The Indian Express, a broadsheet daily published
by him, carried a series oI articles against Reliance Industries and Dhirubhai in
which they claimed that Dhirubhai was using unIair trade practices to maximise
the proIits. Ramnath Goenka did not use his staII at the Indian Express to
investigate the case but assigned his close conIident, advisor and chartered
accountant S. Gurumurthy Ior this task. Apart Irom S. Gurumurthy, another
journalist Maneck Davar who was not on the rolls oI Indian Express started
contributing stories. Jamnadas Moorjani, a businessman opposed to the
Ambanis was also a part oI this campaign.
Both Ambani and Goenka were equally criticized and admired by
sections oI the society. People criticized Goenka that he was using a national
newspaper Ior the cause oI a personal enmity. Critics believed that there were
many other businessman in the country who were using more unIair and
unethical practices but Goenka chose to target only Ambani and not the others.
When Ramnath Goenka was asked as to why he chose to Iight against
Dhirubhai only, he is believed to have said "Everybody rapes the system but this
man wants to make it his mistress".
Critics also admired Goenka Ior his ability to run these articles
without any help Irom his regular staII. Dhirubhai Ambani was also getting
more recognition and admiration, in the meantime. A section oI the public
started to appreciate Dhirubhai's business sense and his ability to tame the
system according to his wishes. The end to this tussle came only aIter Dhirubhai
Ambani suIIered a stroke. While Dhirubhai Ambani was recovering in San
Diego, his sons Mukesh Ambani and Anil Ambani managed the aIIairs. The
Indian Express had turned the guns against Reliance and was directly blaming
the government Ior not doing enough to penalize Reliance Industries.



RAMNATH GOENKA















'SPEECHES BY THE LEGEND
HIMSELF










LAST 1OURNEY
Dhirubhai Ambani was admitted to the Breach Candy Hospital in
Mumbai on June 24, 2002 aIter he suIIered a major "brain stroke". This was his
second stroke, the Iirst one had occurred in February 1986 and had kept his
right hand paralyzed. He was in a state oI coma Ior more than a week. A battery
oI doctors were unable to save his liIe. He breathed his last on July 6, 2002, at
around 11:50 P.M. (Indian Standard Time). His Iuneral procession was not only
attended by business people, politicians and celebrities but also by thousands oI
ordinary people. His elder son, Mukesh Ambani, perIormed the last rites as
per Hindu traditions. He was cremated at the Chandanwadi Crematorium in
Mumbai at around 4:30 PM (Indian Standard Time) on July 7, 2002.
He is survived by Kokilaben Ambani, his wiIe, two sons, Mukesh Ambani and
Anil Ambani, and two daughters, Nina Kothari and Deepti Salgaocar.
Dhirubhai Ambani started his long journey in Bombay Irom the Mulji-Jetha
Textile Market, where he started as a small-trader. As a mark oI respect to this
great businessman, The Mumbai Textile Merchants' decided to keep the market
closed on July 8, 2002. At the time oI Dhirubhai's death, Reliance Group had a
gross turnover oI Rs. 75,000 Crore or USD $ 15 Billion. In 1976-77, the
Reliance group had an annual turnover oI Rs 70 crore and Dhirubhai had started
the business with Rs.15,000.


'The country has lost iconic prooI oI what an ordinary Indian Iired by the spirit
oI enterprise and driven by determination can achieve in his own liIetime.
Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Former Prime Minister oI India

'The nation had lost one oI the doyens oI the modern Indian corporate
community, a philanthropist and above all a great human being endowed with
great compassion and concern Ior the underprivileged sections oI the society.
This new star, which rose on the horizon oI the Indian industry three decades
ago, remained on the top till the end by virtue oI his ability to dream big and
translate it into reality through the strength oI his tenacity and perseverance
I join the people oI Maharashtra in paying my tribute to the memory oI Ambani
and convey my heartIelt condolences to the bereaved Iamily.
P C Alexander, Governer oI Maharastra
















RELIANCE AFTER DHIRUBHAI
In November 2004, Mukesh Ambani in an interview, admitted to
having diIIerences with his brother Anil over 'ownership issues.' He also said
that the diIIerences "are in the private domain." He was oI the opinion that this
will not have any bearing on the Iunctioning oI the company saying Reliance is
one oI the strongest proIessionally-managed companies. Considering the
importance oI Reliance Industries to the Indian Economy, this issue got an
extensive coverage in the media.
Kundapur Vaman Kamath, the Managing Director oI ICICI Bank was
seen in media, a close Iriend oI the Ambani Iamily who helped to settle the
issue. The brothers had entrusted their mother, Kokilaben Ambani, to resolve
the issue. On June 18, 2005, Kokilaben Ambani announced the settlement
through a press release.
'With the blessings oI Srinathji, I have today amicably resolved the
issues between my two sons, Mukesh and Anil, keeping in mind the proud
legacy oI my husband, Dhirubhai Ambani. I am conIident that both Mukesh and
Anil, will resolutely uphold the values oI their Iather and work towards
protecting and enhancing value Ior over three million shareholders oI the
Reliance Group, which has been the Ioundational principle on which my
husband built India's largest private sector enterprise.
Mukesh will have the responsibility Ior Reliance Industries and IPCL
while Anil will have responsibility Ior Reliance InIocomm, Reliance Energy
and Reliance Capital. My husband's Ioresight and vision and the values he stood
Ior combined with my blessings will guide them to scale new heights.
The Reliance empire was split between the Ambani brothers, Mukesh Ambani
getting RIL and IPCL & his younger sibling Anil Ambani heading Reliance
Capital, Reliance Energy and Reliance InIocomm. The entity headed by
Mukesh Ambani is reIerred to as the Reliance Industries Limited whereas Anil's
Group has been renamed Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (ADAG).
CONCLUSION

Shri Dhirubhai Ambani was an exceptional human being and an
outstanding leader. A man Iar ahead oI his times, he epitomised the dauntless
entrepreneurial spirit. He dared to dream on a scale unimaginable beIore in
Indian industry. His liIe and achievements prove that backed by conIidence,
courage and conviction, man can achieve the impossible.
From a humble beginning, he went on to create an enviable business
empire within a span oI just 25 years. The Rs.60,000 crore Reliance Group is a
living testimony to his indomitable will, single-minded dedication and an
unrelenting commitment to his goals.
Under Shri Dhirubhai Ambani's visionary leadership, the Reliance
Group emerged as the largest business conglomerate in India, and carved out a
distinct place Ior itselI in the global pantheon oI corporate giants. The Group's
track record oI consistent growth is unparalleled in Indian industry and perhaps
internationally too. Today, the Group's turnover represents nearly 3 percent oI
India'sGDP.
Shri Dhirubhai Ambani was not just Iirmly rooted in traditional Indian
values, but was also the quintessentially modern man, the man oI the new
millennium. This was clearly reIlected in his passion Ior mega-sized projects,
the most advanced technology and the highest level oI productivity. The
corporate philosophy he Iollowed was short, simple and succinct - "Think big.
Think diIIerently. Think Iast. Think ahead. Aim Ior the best".He inspired the
Reliance team to do better than the best - not only in India but in the world.
Prestigious awards and titles were conIerred on him by national and
international organisations. He was acclaimed as the top businessman oI the
twentieth century and lauded Ior his dynamic, pioneering and innovative genius.
His success story Iired the imagination oI the younger generation oI Indian
entrepreneurs, business leaders and progressive companies.
The number oI revolutionary precedents set by Shri Dhirubhai Ambani
are legion. His unique vision redeIined the potential oI the Indian corporate
sector as he challenged conventional wisdom in several areas.
He was probably the Iirst Indian businessman to recognise the strategic
signiIicance oI investors and discover the vast untapped potential oI the capital
markets and channelise it Ior the growth and development oI industry. He was
supremely conIident that Iinance would never be a constraint in executing his
projects because, as he said proudly, Indian investors would provide him with
the necessary resources.
And the investors never let him down. Shri Dhirubhai Ambani
succeeded in creating an investor base oI historic proportions Ior the Reliance
Group. An unbreakable bond oI implicit trust existed between him and the
shareholders. They placed their savings in his care and he worked with
unIlinching sincerity to get them the best returns. He brought happiness and
prosperity into the homes oI millions oI investors
For him, his people were his most important asset. He scouted around
Ior the best and most talented proIessionals, nurtured them and continuously
propelled them to aim Ior still higher goals. These highly motivated people
comprise the core oI what he named: "The Reliance Family".
Shri Dhirubhai Ambani visualised the growth oI Reliance as an integral
part oI his grand vision Ior India. He was convinced that India could become an
economic superpower within a short period oI time and wanted Reliance to play
an important role in realising this goal.
The hagavad Gita states, "The actions oI a great man are an inspiration Ior
others. Whatever he does, becomes a standard Ior others to Iollow." This
certainly applies to Shri Dhirubhai Ambani.
We are Iortunate to have had a man oI Shri Dhirubhai Ambani's stature in our
midst. His sterling leadership qualities, remarkable Ioresight, uncompromising
pursuit oI excellence, humility, prodigious capacity to motivate and trust people
will continue to guide and inspire Iuture generations at Reliance. We are proud
and privileged to inherit this invaluable legacy.
Truly, men like Shri Dhirubhai Ambani are rare. They come giIted
with the power and the vision to change the destiny oI nations, to alter the
course oI corporate history. They are the empire builders, the stuII that legends
are made oI. The legend called Shri Dhirubhai Ambani will never die.
His spirit will live on forever.

















FAMOUS QUOTES BY DHIRUBHAI AMBANI

From beginning Dhirubhai was seen in high-regard. His success in the
petro-chemical business and his story oI rags to riches made him a cult Iigure in
the minds oI Indian people. As a quality oI business leader he was also a
motivator. He gave Iew public speeches but the words he spoke are still
remembered Ior their value.
"Growth has no limit at Reliance. I keep revising my vision. Only when you
dream it you can do it."
"Think big, think Iast, think ahead. Ideas are no one's monopoly"
"Our dreams have to be bigger. Our ambitions higher. Our commitment
deeper. And our eIIorts greater. This is my dream Ior Reliance and Ior India."
"You do not require an invitation to make proIits."
"II you work with determination and with perIection, success will Iollow."
"Pursue your goals even in the Iace oI diIIiculties, and convert adversities into
opportunities."
"Give the youth a proper environment. Motivate them. Extend them the
support they need. Each one oI them has inIinite source oI energy. They will
deliver."
"Between my past, the present and the Iuture, there is one common Iactor:
Relationship and Trust. This is the Ioundation oI our growth"
"We bet on people."
"Meeting the deadlines is not good enough, beating the deadlines is my
expectation."
"Don't give up, courage is my conviction