become rich and famous after failure

8/7/2019 become rich and famous after failure

1/10

Mon, Apr 04, 2011 | Updated 09.05AM IST

Henry Ford , Bill Gates , Walt Disney , Soichiro Honda, Akio Morita...they have all been there, done that. No, we are n

successes. Rather, this feature is about what hit them before they became rich and famous, the sledgehammer called failu

and Ford stumbled into bankruptcy, Honda failed a job interview at Toyota and Sony founder Morita's first product, an elec

That said, the timew

stone to success is n

willing to learn from misadventures from

effective than blasts

Past achievement is

in future. One entre

Sabeer Bhatia, co-fo

Bhatia, who sold th

$400 million in 19

ventures subsequen

in popularity and suc

Previous victories m

path. The value of le

other hand, lies in

ways of making thin

ahead being littered

to another time-test

succeed.

Says Deccan Aviation founder Captain GR Gopinath: "You are not a failure as long as you keep trying." Indeed, succ

dollops of wealth and cheers from the gallery. As corporate head honcho-turned-ad man Sandeep Goyal puts it: "Succ

together a winning joint venture with Dentsu after leaving broadcaster Zee TV and spending many months in the corporate

Not all who fail become case studies of grit and triumph in management books. For every entrepreneur who bounces ba

out or faded away. Failure cannot always be romanticised and transformed into heroic tales of turnarounds. But it does se

up artistes that botch-ups are par for the course; and that one must learn to deal with them to move ahead.

It is therefore vital to chronicle the tales of those who embraced risk wholeheartedly and, in the process, flopped

companion on the path to success. And whilst you may eventually succeed in leaving that friend behind, make sure you d

The entrepreneurs, politicians and one sportsperson we have profiled have not. Read on.

Captain GR Gopinath, Founder, Deccan 360

3 APR, 2011, 06.32AM IST,ET BUREAU

How Phaneesh Murthey, Nitish Kumar, Priyanka Chopra, Souravrich & famous after failing

Hong Kong Group Deals:

www.GROUPON.hk/Hongkong : Sign Up With Your FriendsTo Get Group Deals On Hong Kong's Best!

Ads by Google

Page 1 oPage 1 of 10

04/04/2
http://www.pdfcomplete.com/cms/hppl/tabid/108/Default.aspx?r=q8b3uige22http://www.pdfcomplete.com/cms/hppl/tabid/108/Default.aspx?r=q8b3uige22http://www.pdfcomplete.com/cms/hppl/tabid/108/Default.aspx?r=q8b3uige22


2/10

"You are not a failure as long as

When I failed:

It was 2008. Air Deccan had bec

3,500 employees and a market

Deccan big and stable, I began in

door-to-door multimodal air and g

bring in a strategic investor an

bankers lined up. I was on cloud n

Two of my earlier investors gave m

money, partly out of arrogance, pa

thought they were not recognising my contribution and being unfair to me. Then global markets crashed. The radiant cl

realised I had no parachute. Investors, credit lines dried up. With 150 staff and advance payments made for aircraft, cash

kept chasing more private equity players.

What I learnt:

When you are successful you become arrogant and complacency sets in. When you are knocked down you realise that

you are not a failure until you quit. I learnt to be optimistic through difficult times. You have to push yourself to act and nobut indecision is worse. You need to listen to people and hear their views but there is a time when you go with your intuitio

How it helped me succeed:

I realised if I did not act with speed, we would come to grief. I took drastic decisions. I re-jigged the entire business plan

franchise model and cut pay. Things started falling into place. The economy started looking up. Doors started opening b

credit. The response from franchisees was overwhelming, 2,800 joined up. What would have taken us 20 years with

months. We launched in November 2009 from Nagpur.

(As told to Malini Goyal)

Next is:Phaneesh Murthy, President and CEO iGate, and former director, Infosys

Phaneesh Murthy, President an

Infosys

"Glory is in rising every time we

When I failed:

It [a lawsuit filed against him and

and sexual harassment of a fem

setback, nothing short of being t

judging you before knowing, pro

happen to you? For about two m

slipped into a deep whining synd

should retire. One moment that shook me out of this state was the visit of a close friend who told me: "Phaneesh, what a

there and prove it to the world."

What I learnt:

His words taught me: It's only when we fall that we come to know who we really are and if we are strong enough to rise

recover and rise. I wouldn't have been able to pull this through but for my wife's support. In her, my anchor was always th


04/04/2
http://www.pdfcomplete.com/cms/hppl/tabid/108/Default.aspx?r=q8b3uige22


3/10

was no wavering in her support.


I had done no wrong. I was confident of setting up a business and found immediate support for it. People had seen me bu

capabilities, but the fund-raising got stuck on one point, my reluctance for an out-of-court settlement. People willing to fu

at the earliest. I understood their demand. When you are starting something, even 100% attention does not guarante

thought I wouldn't be able to give my 100% attention. So I accepted their advice. After the incident, every year I do one e

confidence level is higher now. What you go through changes your conduct. For instance, my HR department is very prot

my cabin and all our office cabins are made of see-through glass.

Next is:Ramesh Chauhan, Founder and chairman, Bisleri International

Ramesh Chauhan, Founder and

"More than qualification, it's atti

When I failed:

After selling my brands such as Th

-Cola in 1993, I made the mistakpart of the company. I ought to hav

employees who were associated

should have recruited another set

had launched Bisleri bottled water.

These employees were used to dealing with the earlier fast-moving brands and were clueless on how to move Bisleri. Th

lost a lot of money during that time because I had employees who did not know how to market Bisleri. During those day

based on a board member's suggestion. Apparently he had the cup noodles when he travelled abroad and sold us the pla

product ahead of its time for India, the distribution system required for noodles was completely different from what we w

just no domain knowledge of the product made it a complete disaster.

What I learnt:

I learnt that it is very difficult to change people's mindsets. Our earlier set of employees were habituated to listening to t

said as the gospel truth. There was no attempt to listen to the consumer. And all attempts to get them to be open to new i

also learnt, with the Bisca fiasco, that one should not meddle with plans in areas where one has no core competence or un


Since then every time we launched a new idea or product we made sure that the people handling the product had the rig

Bisleri experience also helped me while hiring new recruits: more than qualifications it is the attitude and mindset that mak

(As told to Kala Vijayraghavan)

Next is:Sandeep Goyal, Founder chairman, Dentsu India, and former CEO, Zee

Sandeep Goyal, Founder chairman, Dentsu India, and former CEO, Zee

"Success never comes, you have to seek it"

When I failed:

At 35, I became president of Rediffusion DY&R , one of India's largest advertising agencies. At 38, I was Group


04/04/2
http://www.pdfcomplete.com/cms/hppl/tabid/108/Default.aspx?r=q8b3uige22http://www.pdfcomplete.com/cms/hppl/tabid/108/Default.aspx?r=q8b3uige22http://www.pdfcomplete.com/cms/hppl/tabid/108/Default.aspx?r=q8b3uige22http://www.pdfcomplete.com/cms/hppl/tabid/108/Default.aspx?r=q8b3uige22http://www.pdfcomplete.com/cms/hppl/tabid/108/Default.aspx?r=q8b3uige22http://www.pdfcomplete.com/cms/hppl/tabid/108/Default.aspx?r=q8b3uige22


4/10

broadcaster. A few weeks before

day, I was one of India's highest-p

day, it was all gone, my Merc,

Belvedere, Bombay Gym and Willi

on and myriad 'friends'. Reality too

ringing. 'Friends' started avoiding

hurting. More importantly, I was

support. It took her a while to coa

reality check. Think ahead, rather

wallowed in self-pity. I got angry a

being in the limelight. I hated myse

What I learnt:

It took me three months to piece myself together again. Looking back, my Zee debacle was the best thing to happen to m

learnt self-restraint. I became discerning about 'friends'. I learnt to keep my head down and my mind focused. Success is n

itself. I understood that success never comes to you: you have to seek it.


The first thing I told myself: the less a life depends on another, the better it is. At the peak of my high-flying career, I csecretaries and assistants did it. So I quickly taught myself the basics. The hiatus had shown me who my real friends

showered favours indiscriminately. Going forward, I shed a lot of 'friends'. One morning, I walked into the hallowed port

advertising agency to seek a joint venture (JV) with them. I did not have a company of my own: no office, employees, cl

had self-belief. No one gave me half-a-chance. Except, God and Tanya. Nine months after I left Zee, I saw success aga

coup. A month ago, after seven years of building Dentsu India into a Rs 1,200-crore entity, I exited the JV. I exited on top.

(As told to Chaitali Chakravarty)

Next is:Nitish Kumar , Chief minister, Bihar

Nitish Kumar, Chief minister, Bih

"Be close to ground realities"

When I failed:

One of my biggest failures was m

people of Bihar correctly when we

under the impression that the

Democratic Alliance would bring u

was different.

What I learnt:

Be close to ground realities; ground-level issues and social issues are far more important. For the next one year I worked a


The results were there to see in the Bihar assembly elections in 2005. I worked with the people of Bihar and attacked La

votes by misery mongering. I worked with only one goal of development and nothing has distracted me from that goal in t

where we managed to beat Lalu's strategy, shows how I have used my learnings.

(As told to PR Ramesh)


04/04/2


5/10

Next is:Priyanka Chopra , Bollywood actor

Priyanka Chopra, Bollywood act

"Failure makes place for someth

When I failed:

I was a 17-year-old girl, put out o

Miss India pageant. Unlike all

experience. I did not even know

single of the six or seven sub-eve

really good at and which all the re

me.

I cried that whole night and felt stupid that I was even there. That's when my mom sat me down and told me not to take th

so that there were no regrets later. I did that and had a great time. I was also very focused but all through I knew it was

failed, or I would never have been Miss India or an actress today...

What I learnt:

That nothing is a do or die situation. In whatever you do, be it beauty pageants or films. That nothing is worth compromis

balance as well as a very important thing, failure is not an option or God is making place to give you something better. W

task from tying shoelaces to acting, everything should be done with perfection. There must be a pride to do it better than a

then I have no regrets because I have given my best to whatever task is on hand, small or big.


By giving me this drive. In fact, it's always happened with me that failures have made place for something better or take

having the right attitude, to start looking at the failure as positives, for example, I never dissect a film. I stand by all my film

in it. So if there are mistakes they are fine and I always have the courage of conviction of what I do and move on. In fact, have the courage of conviction.

(As told to Nandini Raghavendra)

Next is:Deep Kalra , Founder & CEO, MakeMyTrip

Deep Kalra, Founder & CEO, Ma

"I learnt to read the market right

When I failed:

Academically, opting out of engine

mistake. Computer science wo

MakeMyTrip. Career-wise, I think I

or two, at AMF Bowling in the h

should have read the writing on th

period, development of malls and

big way. That was a limiting factor

These failures were courtesy of an inherent trait of stubbornness to prove to myself and to others, that a business/venture

then there's a fine line between stubbornness and perseverance.


04/04/2
http://www.pdfcomplete.com/cms/hppl/tabid/108/Default.aspx?r=q8b3uige22http://www.pdfcomplete.com/cms/hppl/tabid/108/Default.aspx?r=q8b3uige22http://www.pdfcomplete.com/cms/hppl/tabid/108/Default.aspx?r=q8b3uige22http://www.pdfcomplete.com/cms/hppl/tabid/108/Default.aspx?r=q8b3uige22http://www.pdfcomplete.com/cms/hppl/tabid/108/Default.aspx?r=q8b3uige22


6/10

What I learnt:

The failure at AMF Bowling helped me a great deal at MakeMyTrip in reading the market right in 2000. The Indian mark

which is why we focused on the market for non-resident Indians. This, frankly, kept MakeMyTrip alive at a time when othe

the domestic market perished.


Whenever confronted with a new market scenario, it's become first nature to deep-dive into the market potential and cu

me a great deal when getting into new business lines, ventures and markets as well as when evaluating new businesses.


Next is: Glenn Saldanha , MD & CEO, Glenmark Pharmaceuticals

Glenn Saldanha, MD & CEO, Gle

"Plan for the bad when the going

When I failed:

Between 2000 and 2008, our rev

million. We also concluded seve

molecules. But 2008 was differen

anticipate. The recession impact

globe.

Alongside, our out-licensed mole

point in human trials. Moreover, our fixed costs remained high because we had invested in infrastructure across countr

roadblock.

What I learnt:

Uncertainty is a given. So one needs to factor it in while charting growth plans. It is important to prioritise keeping in mind

the recession, we had to conserve cash and manage debt. So we put fresh capital expenditure and acquisitions on

discovery. This was contrary to the worldwide trend of slashing R&D spends. The decision paid off. Not only did more m

also concluded one more outlicensing deal in 2010. In these tough years, we also got a sense of the commitment of our em


When I took over as the CEO, we had only witnessed phenomenal growth year after year. At the age of 38, for the

magnitude. It was a learning of a lifetime. Glenmark is definitely a stronger organisation than before. I realised that for

come a bad year. So plan for that year when the going is good. The bad years are the ones that mould an organisation an

(As told to Gauri Kamath)

Next is:Sourav Ganguly , Former captain, Indian cricket team

Sourav Ganguly, Former captain, Indian cricket team

"I used a setback as a stepping stone"

When I failed:


04/04/2
http://www.pdfcomplete.com/cms/hppl/tabid/108/Default.aspx?r=q8b3uige22http://www.pdfcomplete.com/cms/hppl/tabid/108/Default.aspx?r=q8b3uige22http://www.pdfcomplete.com/cms/hppl/tabid/108/Default.aspx?r=q8b3uige22http://www.pdfcomplete.com/cms/hppl/tabid/108/Default.aspx?r=q8b3uige22http://www.pdfcomplete.com/cms/hppl/tabid/108/Default.aspx?r=q8b3uige22http://www.pdfcomplete.com/cms/hppl/tabid/108/Default.aspx?r=q8b3uige22http://www.pdfcomplete.com/cms/hppl/tabid/108/Default.aspx?r=q8b3uige22


7/10

"The most glaring failure would b

was dropped from the Indian team

been playing for 11 years and had

For me that period of six months w

most challenging.

What I learnt:

Failure or an apparent setback is

how we handle the situation. I trie

improve.


I did come back into the team and into the game after six months but it was not something I did to prove to the world. I h

anything. I have never played the game that way. Each time I scored, I only knew I was good enough to play the sport

seen the game and that's how I saw it then. In hindsight, I think I used that phase as a stepping stone to come back into th

(As told to Rakhi Mazumdar)

Next is:Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, Chairperson & managing director, Biocon Ltd

Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, Chairpe

Ltd

"I was told I was taking too many

When I failed:

I have faced many failures but I ha

in India as a young graduate from

found that there was no job for a windustry. I was perceived as a fai

family garage to make industrial en

Bankers were reluctant to lend and asked me to drop ambitious plans to build in-house technology. Nobody would lend

promoted India's first venture capital company, invested in it. In 2003, bankers were sceptical about my plans to develop n

out their stake to AIG. I was told I was taking too many risks. Why couldn't I be like other pharma companies?

What I learnt:

There is no slam-dunk in business; in developing oral insulin we might have failed in the initial clinical trials but we will ta

trials... Investors look for commoditisation; they don't appreciate measured risk taking. It is always about managing risk.


I have never betted the bank on anything. I take positions that mitigate risk; that is my strength. I convert my failures into

went after development of insulin molecule. Investors want to see deal flows and regular returns while I wanted to alway

could do.

(As told to Archana Rai)

Next is:Jaithirth 'Jerry' Rao, Chairman, Value and Budget Housing Corporation


04/04/2


8/10

Jaithirth 'Jerry' Rao, Chairm

Corporation

"Invest in advanced systems an

When I failed:

It was 2003. Our company [Mphas

seemed to have all our engines f

was doing well another was failin

bad news when it was too late

directors, Jose de la Torre, told

growth companies. We were so

invested in our internal systems. Our systems were always good enough for the previous year. They invariably lagged our

What I learnt:

If we have plans to scale up, we have to invest in advance in our internal capabilities, not try piecemeal investments after

we grow, we can somehow "wing it" is a fallacy.


In my new venture, I have made it a point to invest in systems and processes upfront even when our business levels may

good enterprise resource planning (ERP) application and are making changes to it to ensure that it is a world-class suppo

though we are a small one. We have chosen to appoint a senior person as our HR head rather than managing this

systems across all aspects of our company on the assumption that we will have 50 times as many customers as we d

terms of customer delight, early detection of problems and company-wide optimisation.

Next is:Manish Sabharwal, Chairman, TeamLease

Manish Sabharwal, Chairman, Te

"Everything takes more time and

When I failed:

It happened in 1998 when I took

venture, India Life, which was a pie

meter down and that kind of mo

happened because there was a m

opportunity needed and how much

What I learnt:

I now understand the investing business and that funds have finite lives and fiduciary responsibilities. This does not mak

for some ventures; or at particular stages of some ventures. I learnt that you have to take your venture as far as you can

whose money has an expiry date. Everything takes more time and money than you think and your investors need to under

them. Good judgement comes from experience and experience comes from bad judgement.


We did not raise any external equity in TeamLease for the first five years. TeamLease has been able to scale faster and

aggressively than we could have if we had taken external money from Day 1.


04/04/2


9/10


Next is:Arun Shourie, Former minister and journalist

Arun Shourie, Former minister a

"Put your difficulties to work"

When I failed:

I am the only editor to be dismiss

Express. The first time, Mrs Gandh

owner] Ramnath Goenka that ev

gesture out of me.

But he did call me back and I was

a series of strokes. Those who

thought that S Gurumurthy and I would be the obstacles. And therefore, they first removed me, and then Gurumurthy.

What I learnt:

My first learning is never look back. Or else you will suffer the fate of Lot's wife [in the Book of Genesis, Lot's wife ignore

back when fleeing the city of Sodom, and turns into a pillar of salt]. My second learning: put your difficulties to work. There

put to work. This is easier if our goal is inner growth. Third: always have three careers going at the same time. And carry e


I have never looked back in my life. On the personal front, I have had to face several challenges: my 35-year-old son ha

had Parkinson's for the last 22 years. I have worked towards putting these things to work. I have followed at least three c

books, I have written columns and I have been a minister. I have carried each one of them lightly so that if I am thrown

prime minister] Vajpayeeji asked me a few years back: "Where are you living these days?" I said: "In my parents' house

me why I had not taken government accommodation. I said: "[If I do not take it] there is one less thing to give up."

(As told to Soma Banerjee)

Get a Quote

TypeCompanyNameBrowse Companies

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z | 1 2

Home | News | Markets | Personal Finance | Mutual Funds | Infotech | Jobs | Opinion | Features | Videos | My Portf

Other Times Group news sitesTimes of India | | Mumbai Mirror

Times Now | Indiatimes |

Living and entertainmentTimescity | iDiva | Bollywood | Zoom

Networkingitimes | Dating & Chat | Email

Hot on the WebHotklix | ICICI Bank Stock PriceMiss India 2011 | Nissan CarsIPL Schedule 2011Assembly Elections 2011

ServicesBook print ads | Online shoppingBusiness email | Free SMS | FreCheap air tickets | Matrimonial |

Bikes in India


04/04/2
http://www.pdfcomplete.com/cms/hppl/tabid/108/Default.aspx?r=q8b3uige22http://www.pdfcomplete.com/cms/hppl/tabid/108/Default.aspx?r=q8b3uige22http://www.pdfcomplete.com/cms/hppl/tabid/108/Default.aspx?r=q8b3uige22http://www.pdfcomplete.com/cms/hppl/tabid/108/Default.aspx?r=q8b3uige22http://www.pdfcomplete.com/cms/hppl/tabid/108/Default.aspx?r=q8b3uige22http://www.pdfcomplete.com/cms/hppl/tabid/108/Default.aspx?r=q8b3uige22


10/10

About us /Advertise with us /Careers @ TIL /Terms of use /Privacy Policy /Feedback /Sitemap /Code of Ethics Copyr

http://www.pdfcomplete.com/cms/hppl/tabid/108/Default.aspx?r=q8b3uige22http://www.pdfcomplete.com/cms/hppl/tabid/108/Default.aspx?r=q8b3uige22http://www.pdfcomplete.com/cms/hppl/tabid/108/Default.aspx?r=q8b3uige22http://www.pdfcomplete.com/cms/hppl/tabid/108/Default.aspx?r=q8b3uige22http://www.pdfcomplete.com/cms/hppl/tabid/108/Default.aspx?r=q8b3uige22http://www.pdfcomplete.com/cms/hppl/tabid/108/Default.aspx?r=q8b3uige22http://www.pdfcomplete.com/cms/hppl/tabid/108/Default.aspx?r=q8b3uige22http://www.pdfcomplete.com/cms/hppl/tabid/108/Default.aspx?r=q8b3uige22http://www.pdfcomplete.com/cms/hppl/tabid/108/Default.aspx?r=q8b3uige22http://www.pdfcomplete.com/cms/hppl/tabid/108/Default.aspx?r=q8b3uige22

become rich and famous after failure

Documents