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The Inheritors: Stories of Enduring Success and Innovation
Why did Harsh Mariwala leave his family business? What made the entire Dabur management to quit one day? How did Dhingra brothers turn a suffering business in to India s second largest paints company? This is a fascinating behind the scenes look into what goes behind brands like Marico, Dabar, Keventers, Berger Paints, Select Group, Max Group and many others. The book focuses on the culture, family politics, business rivalries between and within families, ego battles and a lot more. Plus there are the inheritors themselves who sometimes take the business to great heights and during others, lead to its doom.
304 pages, Paperback
Published October 15, 2017
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 47 reviews
February 9, 2018
I am a big fan of entrepreneur stories. I have read most of the books of Rashmi Bansal. So the moment I saw "inheritors" by Sonu Bhasin I jumped for it.
Inheritors is the compilation of success stories about the brands/companies we hear in day-to-day life. Dabur, Berger, Motilal Oswal and 6 more big brands were covered in the book. Each of the stories started with how each of the inheritor's forefathers has established the empire. Being part of such big empire how these individuals have spent childhood or youth. What are the reasons they wanted to do something different from their established business? How they have handled the rollercoaster life of the business.
Being an MBA and a Gujarati myself I like to reach such stories as they give inspiration of thinking differently, motivation to work hard/smart and understanding of different businesses. I personally adored this book. Thanks, Writersmelon for arranging review copy.
Detailed Book Review Link - http://chevusread.blogspot.in/2018/02...
Inheritors is the compilation of success stories about the brands/companies we hear in day-to-day life. Dabur, Berger, Motilal Oswal and 6 more big brands were covered in the book. Each of the stories started with how each of the inheritor's forefathers has established the empire. Being part of such big empire how these individuals have spent childhood or youth. What are the reasons they wanted to do something different from their established business? How they have handled the rollercoaster life of the business.
Being an MBA and a Gujarati myself I like to reach such stories as they give inspiration of thinking differently, motivation to work hard/smart and understanding of different businesses. I personally adored this book. Thanks, Writersmelon for arranging review copy.
Detailed Book Review Link - http://chevusread.blogspot.in/2018/02...
January 27, 2018
Sonu Bhasin through her book, 'The Inheritors', brings before the readers a fascinating behind the scenes look into what goes behind prominent Indian brands like Marico, Dabur, Keventers, Berger Paints, Select Group, Max Group and many others. The book is an extremely interesting read and is informative as well. It mainly focuses on the nature and culture of family businesses in India.
The book is divided into nine chapters and each chapter tells the story of a family-owned, well-known business. The author has covered the stories of Amit Burman of Dabur Group and Lite Bite Foods, Harsh Mariwala of Marico, Kuldip Singh Dhingra and Gurbachan Singh Dhingra behind Berger Paints, the founders of Motilal Oswal Group - Motilal Oswal and Raamdeo Aggarwal, young entrepreneur Agastya Dalmiya - who resurrected the Keventers, Tara Singh Vachani of Max Group, the lawyer couple Rishabh and Saloni Shroff of the law firm Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas, Pooja Jain of the prominent writing instrument manufacturing brand Luxor, and Arjun Sharma of Select Group.
The stories of these inheritors who have worked hard and paved their path to success are really inspiring. The author has beautifully narrated and depicted the true accounts of entrepreneurship and success. The book perfectly describes the challenges faced by the entrepreneurs, how they tactfully overcame the problems and expanded their businesses.
The book belongs to the 'business' genre, and what makes it stand apart is the fact that this is not a very popular genre in India (compared to the other genres), and thus this genre remains not much explored. The author has done a commendable job by writing an interesting book about the Indian business scenario.
I personally liked the book and found each of the success stories to be equally interesting and inspiring. Sonu Bhasin has excellently portrayed the true nature of family businesses in India. The book besides having a professional tone has a personal feel to it.
To every aspiring entrepreneur, this book is perfect for you.
My rating : 3.5 of 5 stars.
The book is divided into nine chapters and each chapter tells the story of a family-owned, well-known business. The author has covered the stories of Amit Burman of Dabur Group and Lite Bite Foods, Harsh Mariwala of Marico, Kuldip Singh Dhingra and Gurbachan Singh Dhingra behind Berger Paints, the founders of Motilal Oswal Group - Motilal Oswal and Raamdeo Aggarwal, young entrepreneur Agastya Dalmiya - who resurrected the Keventers, Tara Singh Vachani of Max Group, the lawyer couple Rishabh and Saloni Shroff of the law firm Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas, Pooja Jain of the prominent writing instrument manufacturing brand Luxor, and Arjun Sharma of Select Group.
The stories of these inheritors who have worked hard and paved their path to success are really inspiring. The author has beautifully narrated and depicted the true accounts of entrepreneurship and success. The book perfectly describes the challenges faced by the entrepreneurs, how they tactfully overcame the problems and expanded their businesses.
The book belongs to the 'business' genre, and what makes it stand apart is the fact that this is not a very popular genre in India (compared to the other genres), and thus this genre remains not much explored. The author has done a commendable job by writing an interesting book about the Indian business scenario.
I personally liked the book and found each of the success stories to be equally interesting and inspiring. Sonu Bhasin has excellently portrayed the true nature of family businesses in India. The book besides having a professional tone has a personal feel to it.
To every aspiring entrepreneur, this book is perfect for you.
My rating : 3.5 of 5 stars.
January 27, 2018
One thing you need to know about this book is that this is not a guide to helo starting your own business. Rather, all it is about is the back stories of what has happened and is happening at some of the leading family businesses in India. Not being a step-by-step guide does not mean that there is nothing to gain by reading this book. On the contrary, these stories contain values like honesty, culture and many more, which shape a person, and eventually the business. Sometimes, many tactics do not work, but sticking to your values makes all the difference. So, this book was a great read for me personally.
The book contains stories behind big brands like Dabur, Marico, cyril amarchand mangaldas, luxor, which are actually family owned businesses. The title 'The inheritors' suggests that the book must be about the 2nd, 3rd or further generations of the owners simply getting the ownership of their family-owned businesses. But this is not the case. Rather, what is shown in this book is that even the inheritors had to pave their way at the top. In many cases, the 'inheritors' actually had to begin from scratch.
The story moves forward in a simple and equivocal manner. The facts and the knowledge provided in this book is very insightful, too. Even though no specific formula of business is taught in the book, there are many values and other small matters written which eventually lead to making huge differences.
What I learned fron this book is that honesty and ethics play a very important role in businesses too. One must have a clear vision of what one wants to create and where to reach. Hardwork and dedication will be required at every stage. And, thin times may come, but it is important to go with your vision even at those times rather than losing hope. Accept your failure at the earliest so that you can grasp what you've learned from it and move on to making bigger things and not repeating those mistakes.
I'd definitely recommend it to anyone who wants to know more about entrepreneurship, but wants to look at the bigger picture, rather than the theoretical concepts which vary from business to business.
The book contains stories behind big brands like Dabur, Marico, cyril amarchand mangaldas, luxor, which are actually family owned businesses. The title 'The inheritors' suggests that the book must be about the 2nd, 3rd or further generations of the owners simply getting the ownership of their family-owned businesses. But this is not the case. Rather, what is shown in this book is that even the inheritors had to pave their way at the top. In many cases, the 'inheritors' actually had to begin from scratch.
The story moves forward in a simple and equivocal manner. The facts and the knowledge provided in this book is very insightful, too. Even though no specific formula of business is taught in the book, there are many values and other small matters written which eventually lead to making huge differences.
What I learned fron this book is that honesty and ethics play a very important role in businesses too. One must have a clear vision of what one wants to create and where to reach. Hardwork and dedication will be required at every stage. And, thin times may come, but it is important to go with your vision even at those times rather than losing hope. Accept your failure at the earliest so that you can grasp what you've learned from it and move on to making bigger things and not repeating those mistakes.
I'd definitely recommend it to anyone who wants to know more about entrepreneurship, but wants to look at the bigger picture, rather than the theoretical concepts which vary from business to business.
February 6, 2018
About The Book
The Inheritors, as the name suggests, talks about the inheritors of prominent family businesses in India; about the struggles that went behind each success, the familial bonds as well as feuds, politics and business rivalries and much more. Through nine prominent businesses that have a legacy to talk about- namely Dabur, Marico, Berger Paints, Motilal Oswal Group, Keventers, Max Group, Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas, Luxor and Select Group, the author offers us a behind-the-scenes look.
Through a much candid chat, the author unveils many a lesser known facts about some of the prominent Indian entrepreneurs; young and old alike. How a particular brand was born, how a now well-established brand was almost written off at its starting phase, how "inheriting" a business often doesn't mean special considerations, how professionalism is often much more important than family are some of the points a reader takes away from this book.
What I liked/ didn't like
Being someone who has always stuck to books of fiction, I was highly sceptical about picking up a non-fiction read, that too related to business. What tempted me to pick up The Inheritors was the promise of a behind-the-scenes look at what goes on at businesses like Marico, Dabur, Keventers and the likes. I was prepared to sleep through the book, I had in fact planned to simultaneously read a book of fiction to tone down the boredom. But, oh my God, The Inheritors is as unputdownable as it can be.
I was truly fascinated by the story of the birth of the brands like Real, Luxor etc, which are brands that I have come to love from the time I was a kid. The best part of the book is that it is not a formal mumble jumble. Sonu Bhasin has put forth the book in the form of a candid conversation, along with her inputs, which made it very engaging and reader-friendly. Right from the setting in which she is talking to the entrepreneur; her anecdotes about the office space to a detailed conclusion to each entrepreneur's story, the author has made the book quite perfect.
Conclusion
The Inheritors by Sonu Bhasin is an inspirational book on what went into the success of nine prominent family-owned businesses in India. It is not a how-to-become-an-entrepreneur-101 kind of book. Rather, it inspires you in a way only stories about real life people can. It teaches you about how you don't need all the luxury in the world to succeed in life. It teaches you how being a millionaire doesn't grand you success. It teaches about the importance of family, perseverance, hard work and most importantly the power of believing in oneself, and following one's guts. I highly recommend this to everyone, especially to those who have an interest in entrepreneurship.
The Inheritors, as the name suggests, talks about the inheritors of prominent family businesses in India; about the struggles that went behind each success, the familial bonds as well as feuds, politics and business rivalries and much more. Through nine prominent businesses that have a legacy to talk about- namely Dabur, Marico, Berger Paints, Motilal Oswal Group, Keventers, Max Group, Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas, Luxor and Select Group, the author offers us a behind-the-scenes look.
Through a much candid chat, the author unveils many a lesser known facts about some of the prominent Indian entrepreneurs; young and old alike. How a particular brand was born, how a now well-established brand was almost written off at its starting phase, how "inheriting" a business often doesn't mean special considerations, how professionalism is often much more important than family are some of the points a reader takes away from this book.
What I liked/ didn't like
Being someone who has always stuck to books of fiction, I was highly sceptical about picking up a non-fiction read, that too related to business. What tempted me to pick up The Inheritors was the promise of a behind-the-scenes look at what goes on at businesses like Marico, Dabur, Keventers and the likes. I was prepared to sleep through the book, I had in fact planned to simultaneously read a book of fiction to tone down the boredom. But, oh my God, The Inheritors is as unputdownable as it can be.
I was truly fascinated by the story of the birth of the brands like Real, Luxor etc, which are brands that I have come to love from the time I was a kid. The best part of the book is that it is not a formal mumble jumble. Sonu Bhasin has put forth the book in the form of a candid conversation, along with her inputs, which made it very engaging and reader-friendly. Right from the setting in which she is talking to the entrepreneur; her anecdotes about the office space to a detailed conclusion to each entrepreneur's story, the author has made the book quite perfect.
Conclusion
The Inheritors by Sonu Bhasin is an inspirational book on what went into the success of nine prominent family-owned businesses in India. It is not a how-to-become-an-entrepreneur-101 kind of book. Rather, it inspires you in a way only stories about real life people can. It teaches you about how you don't need all the luxury in the world to succeed in life. It teaches you how being a millionaire doesn't grand you success. It teaches about the importance of family, perseverance, hard work and most importantly the power of believing in oneself, and following one's guts. I highly recommend this to everyone, especially to those who have an interest in entrepreneurship.
February 4, 2018
In India, 15 of the top 20 business groups are family owned; which makes it, the third highest in the World.
More than half of the Indian family companies that Credit Suisse surveyed generate revenues in excess of $500 million, with the majority of these businesses located across the sectors of IT, financials and industrials.
With the above statistics and data, here comes possibly the most insightful and behind the scenes book by Sonu Bhasin who has used her vast experience as a senior professional in the Corporate and compiled it in “The Inheritors”.
Foreword, by Anand Mahindra: “I am sure that The Inheritors will provide insight and inspiration not only to members of family businesses but also to anyone who aspires tone an entrepreneur. Learning from someone else’s story is a very powerful incentive to fashion your own.”
The book is based on some of the most successful entrepreneurs of top brands like Dabour, Max Group, Luxor, Marico, Berger Paints etc.
It starts with these mighty empires and their internal workings. It touches upon the leadership and digs deep into how initially every other family business inculcated patriarchy and nepotism.
"In a family business, a clear line of leadership is an asset. Many fine businesses have failed due to the lack of an accepted patriarchy."
The book focuses on the culture, family politics, business rivalries and ego wars. Struggles, pitching ideas, funding, distribution and managing the diverse market remains the spotlight of this book.
‘Nothing comes easy, not even the legacy for the Inheritors.’
While, being handed over the legacy has its fair share of advantages, but carrying it forward and growing it further could well be stressful due to higher expectations and greater stakes. This book throws light on this subject and touches upon various such views.
It felt a little discomforting to find very few stories of women entrepreneurs in this Book but you later realise the current scenario of the business houses is such that ratio of stories in the book is equivalent to what market in actuality is. This conscious decision of the Author hits reader in the right places as it shows the reality of industry rather than giving an all rosy picture.
Still, in recent times, others have shown the spirit and opened doors for whoever wants to enter in- irrespective of gender. The book also shows how the firm Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas gloriously follows the approach of women being involved in day to day functioning of the business.
Overall, the effective storytelling of the Author makes it an interesting and very insightful read. The nuances and niche approach of giving a deeper understanding into the family business of India; makes this book a must read.
More than half of the Indian family companies that Credit Suisse surveyed generate revenues in excess of $500 million, with the majority of these businesses located across the sectors of IT, financials and industrials.
With the above statistics and data, here comes possibly the most insightful and behind the scenes book by Sonu Bhasin who has used her vast experience as a senior professional in the Corporate and compiled it in “The Inheritors”.
Foreword, by Anand Mahindra: “I am sure that The Inheritors will provide insight and inspiration not only to members of family businesses but also to anyone who aspires tone an entrepreneur. Learning from someone else’s story is a very powerful incentive to fashion your own.”
The book is based on some of the most successful entrepreneurs of top brands like Dabour, Max Group, Luxor, Marico, Berger Paints etc.
It starts with these mighty empires and their internal workings. It touches upon the leadership and digs deep into how initially every other family business inculcated patriarchy and nepotism.
"In a family business, a clear line of leadership is an asset. Many fine businesses have failed due to the lack of an accepted patriarchy."
The book focuses on the culture, family politics, business rivalries and ego wars. Struggles, pitching ideas, funding, distribution and managing the diverse market remains the spotlight of this book.
‘Nothing comes easy, not even the legacy for the Inheritors.’
While, being handed over the legacy has its fair share of advantages, but carrying it forward and growing it further could well be stressful due to higher expectations and greater stakes. This book throws light on this subject and touches upon various such views.
It felt a little discomforting to find very few stories of women entrepreneurs in this Book but you later realise the current scenario of the business houses is such that ratio of stories in the book is equivalent to what market in actuality is. This conscious decision of the Author hits reader in the right places as it shows the reality of industry rather than giving an all rosy picture.
Still, in recent times, others have shown the spirit and opened doors for whoever wants to enter in- irrespective of gender. The book also shows how the firm Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas gloriously follows the approach of women being involved in day to day functioning of the business.
Overall, the effective storytelling of the Author makes it an interesting and very insightful read. The nuances and niche approach of giving a deeper understanding into the family business of India; makes this book a must read.
February 3, 2018
Read other reviews like this on my blog :
https://dsr21.wordpress.com
The Inheritors is a collection of 9 stories of entrepreneurship and success. The fact I loved about this book is, all entrepreneurs are Indians. It was my first time reading stories of Indian Bussiness Tycoons. So I was taken aback to see the struggle.
The author took several interviews before writing this book. Honestly, I was expecting monotonous business stories out of those bunch of conversations but her writing is remarkably good. I enjoyed the flow of stories; All ups and downs in their real-life stories were presented well with the brilliant support of humour, sarcasm and truth.
Each of one these stories has a timeline, from the time they started and how they are performing at the present time. So, it has some significant historical moments affecting some of these businessmen and their families. For example the partition of India and Pakistan, Globalization and Presence of MNCs. The reason all of these stories are so lively is that they include family and their values. Also for the same reason, this book feels like true India to me.
My learning from this book would be, to not be afraid of changes and competition. Also, one must keep their work and family affair separated. The biggest secret behind their success stories must be the right balance between the family and professionals’ involvement.
I could re-read this book any day to boost my confidence. Author’s writing style of a story could energize anyone. I really recommend this book to all but especially to business students(MBA, M. Com or B. Com).
Buy your copy from here: Amazon
Rating: 4/5
Disclaimer: I would like to thank Writers Melon for the copy. This review is my personal thought about the book.
Read other reviews like this on my blog :
https://dsr21.wordpress.com
https://dsr21.wordpress.com
“My key learning after spending time with the heroes(of both genders) of The Inheritors has been the following: while entrepreneurship may or may not lead to success, there is no success possible without the spirit of entrepreneurship.”
The Inheritors is a collection of 9 stories of entrepreneurship and success. The fact I loved about this book is, all entrepreneurs are Indians. It was my first time reading stories of Indian Bussiness Tycoons. So I was taken aback to see the struggle.
The author took several interviews before writing this book. Honestly, I was expecting monotonous business stories out of those bunch of conversations but her writing is remarkably good. I enjoyed the flow of stories; All ups and downs in their real-life stories were presented well with the brilliant support of humour, sarcasm and truth.
Each of one these stories has a timeline, from the time they started and how they are performing at the present time. So, it has some significant historical moments affecting some of these businessmen and their families. For example the partition of India and Pakistan, Globalization and Presence of MNCs. The reason all of these stories are so lively is that they include family and their values. Also for the same reason, this book feels like true India to me.
“We are allowed to take risks, innovate and sometimes even fail” Sunil Duggal, CEO of Dabur.
My learning from this book would be, to not be afraid of changes and competition. Also, one must keep their work and family affair separated. The biggest secret behind their success stories must be the right balance between the family and professionals’ involvement.
“Our family culture was that the word of the eldest was the law ” – Kuldip Singh Dhingra, Berger Paints.
I could re-read this book any day to boost my confidence. Author’s writing style of a story could energize anyone. I really recommend this book to all but especially to business students(MBA, M. Com or B. Com).
Buy your copy from here: Amazon
Rating: 4/5
Disclaimer: I would like to thank Writers Melon for the copy. This review is my personal thought about the book.
Read other reviews like this on my blog :
https://dsr21.wordpress.com
January 28, 2018
About the Author:
Sonu Bhasin is a senior banker with close to three decades of experience. Previously she has held senior roles, like COO Tata Capital, Group President Yes Bank, and President Axis Bank. She now serves on the board of companies like Vodafone Mobile Services, Mahindra First Choice, and Whirlpool India. She is the founder of boutique consultancy firm Families and Businesses (FAB).
Blurb:
Why did Harsh Mariwala leave his family business? What made the entire Dabur management to quit one day? How did Dhingra brothers turn a suffering business into India’s second largest paints company? This is a fascinating behind the scenes look into what goes behind brands like Marico, Dabar, Keventers, Berger Paints, Select Group, Max Group and many others. The book focuses on the culture, family.
My Verdict:
The inheritor name itself indicates that this book is based on a person who is entitled by law or by the terms of a will to inherit the estate of another. The book is an insightful look at family business in India. The book contains stories behind great brands like Dabur, Marico, Luxor, which are actually family owned businesses. In many cases, the 'inheritors' actually had to lead off from scratch. Honesty and ethics play a really important role in businesses. The book is an extremely interesting read and is informative as well. It mainly focuses on the nature and culture of family businesses in India. Sonu Bhasin has excellently portrayed the true nature of family businesses in India. The book besides having a professional tone has a personal feel to it.
The language used in the book is simple and a good read. Currently, new generation people are not willing to go to any organization rather than build up their own business. In other words, every individual person wants a startup of their own business by some creativity. Nobody gets success in a single attempt and we have seen that so many successful people experience hard times in their life and after a hard time they became a successful business icon in India. Personally, I found out a lot from this book. I must recommend this volume to the newcomer who really wants to build up their own business or something new project.
overall rating: 4/5
Sonu Bhasin is a senior banker with close to three decades of experience. Previously she has held senior roles, like COO Tata Capital, Group President Yes Bank, and President Axis Bank. She now serves on the board of companies like Vodafone Mobile Services, Mahindra First Choice, and Whirlpool India. She is the founder of boutique consultancy firm Families and Businesses (FAB).
Blurb:
Why did Harsh Mariwala leave his family business? What made the entire Dabur management to quit one day? How did Dhingra brothers turn a suffering business into India’s second largest paints company? This is a fascinating behind the scenes look into what goes behind brands like Marico, Dabar, Keventers, Berger Paints, Select Group, Max Group and many others. The book focuses on the culture, family.
My Verdict:
The inheritor name itself indicates that this book is based on a person who is entitled by law or by the terms of a will to inherit the estate of another. The book is an insightful look at family business in India. The book contains stories behind great brands like Dabur, Marico, Luxor, which are actually family owned businesses. In many cases, the 'inheritors' actually had to lead off from scratch. Honesty and ethics play a really important role in businesses. The book is an extremely interesting read and is informative as well. It mainly focuses on the nature and culture of family businesses in India. Sonu Bhasin has excellently portrayed the true nature of family businesses in India. The book besides having a professional tone has a personal feel to it.
The language used in the book is simple and a good read. Currently, new generation people are not willing to go to any organization rather than build up their own business. In other words, every individual person wants a startup of their own business by some creativity. Nobody gets success in a single attempt and we have seen that so many successful people experience hard times in their life and after a hard time they became a successful business icon in India. Personally, I found out a lot from this book. I must recommend this volume to the newcomer who really wants to build up their own business or something new project.
overall rating: 4/5
February 4, 2018
Read full review at- https://www.banajaprakashini.in/inher...
The Inheritors by Sonu Bhasin is an anthology of business stories that lurk behind the success of some very well known companies of today’s time.
People have a common assumption that the successors of family businesses have it easy. They already have a platform to show the world that they have it in them and they can manage a business successfully, at least they have a chance.
Sonu bhasin shows the readers a different side of the story.
Ratings- 3.9 stars
The book does a great job at inspiring but in case you are looking for entrepreneurship tips, this is definitely not the book one should pick up.
It’s would become a bit of a task to read the book if you are not willing to be awed by the stories or do not find them up to your liking.
The Inheritors by Sonu Bhasin is an anthology of business stories that lurk behind the success of some very well known companies of today’s time.
People have a common assumption that the successors of family businesses have it easy. They already have a platform to show the world that they have it in them and they can manage a business successfully, at least they have a chance.
Sonu bhasin shows the readers a different side of the story.
Ratings- 3.9 stars
The book does a great job at inspiring but in case you are looking for entrepreneurship tips, this is definitely not the book one should pick up.
It’s would become a bit of a task to read the book if you are not willing to be awed by the stories or do not find them up to your liking.
August 23, 2025
Almost all the inheritors in this book are Men. Maybe, it will take another 50 years for The Women Inheritors.
July 19, 2023
This book contains short stories of some of the greatest entrepreneurs and business families of India.
There are a total of 9 stories and some of them are from - the Dalmia family, Dabur family, Motilal Oswal group, Luxor (stationery items) group, Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas (India's biggest law firm) family, Max group, Berger Paints family, Select City Walk (Delhi Mall) story, and some more.
The book is beautifully written and is a conversation between Sonu Bhasin (author) and the different entrepreneurs and Inheritors she interviews.
This book is a quick and great read. It's not a how-to-build business book. But, you can learn many things that help to build inter-generational empires.
There are a total of 9 stories and some of them are from - the Dalmia family, Dabur family, Motilal Oswal group, Luxor (stationery items) group, Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas (India's biggest law firm) family, Max group, Berger Paints family, Select City Walk (Delhi Mall) story, and some more.
The book is beautifully written and is a conversation between Sonu Bhasin (author) and the different entrepreneurs and Inheritors she interviews.
This book is a quick and great read. It's not a how-to-build business book. But, you can learn many things that help to build inter-generational empires.
February 10, 2018
THE INHERITORS BY SONU BHASIN: A REVIEW
The Inheritors dawned on my radar as I was browsing through Amazon. The book written by Sonu Bhasin with a Forward by Anand Mahindra appeared to be a unique product about the Indian entrepreneurial setup. The term ‘Indianness’ arises often in the Indo-Anglian literature. Certain writers attempt to describe the term too. I doubt that anyone of those critics or writers ever defined the term properly. The Indian way of writing, along with the Indian way of performing various other cultural, political, and sociological activities is unique. It cannot be seen as a copy of or a direct oppositional force set against a Eurocentric system. The Indian way incorporates the best in every culture and social system. It also distinguishes itself from all those streams from which it drew inspiration. Sonu Bhasin’s attempt is to delineate the major Indian way of doing business. She does that by telling the stories of many family-owned businesses in India.
Sonu Bhasin introduces a unique project in the form of The Inheritors. In six readable, lucidly written narrative chapters span a story that makes up the six pillars of the Indian market space. These businesses are family-owned. However, Sonu Bhasin sets a working angle to the story through the eyes of the decedents of these families.
The first chapter is titled “Dabur Group and Lit Bite Foods: Amit Burman”. This chapter moves through the life of Amit Burman the young entrepreneur from the Dabur family that took the charge as Vice Chairman at Dabur India. After his higher education abroad, Amit returns to India to work at Dabur, his family business. After working in several departments with his company, he realizes that his calling lay somewhere else. So he ventures into the world of startups. This is the story of a young man who finally finds harmony with his family business, by adorning the space of its Vice President while at the same time initiates a path-breaking set of ventures in the food industry of India.
The second chapter is “Marico: Harsh Mariwala.” As the title suggests, the second chapter of The Inheritors deals with the journey of Harsh Mariwala who feels at one point that he is in control of his future. He founded the company named Marico and you read about that journey too.
The third chapter “Berger Paints: Kuldip Singh Dhingra and Gurbachan Singh Dhingra” and the fourth chapter “Motilal Oswal Group: Motilal Oswal and Raamdeo Agrawal recount the tales of family-owned businesses that made it big even beyond the previous two entities in the Indian market. “Berger Paints is the second-largest paint company in India today” (113), Attests Sonu Bhasin. In the hands of the fourth generation of the Rangwala family, Kuldip and Gurbachan keep on delivering their best in continuing the legacy of their brother Sohan Singh Dhingra who is the progenitor of the business. This chapter also focuses on how the interpersonal relations between the two brothers, Kuldip and Gurbachan help them grow the company.
The key players in the Motilal Oswal Group, Motilal and Raamdeo are not families but friends taking their friendship to new levels of productive meaning. Other chapters include “Keventers: Agastya Dalmia”, “Max Group: Tara Singh Vachani”, “Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas: Rishabh and Saloni Shroff”, “Luxor: Pooja Jain”, and the “Select Group: Arjun Sharma”. Author Sonu Bhasin has effectively tied the chapters into this volume. The Inheritors will leave a deep impression on the reader, for sure. This deep impression would make the reader picture himself or herself to be the inheritors of the spirit of entrepreneurship.
Portfolio Penguin, an imprint of Penguin Random House published The Inheritors. This book is sure to reflect what every budding entrepreneur of India expects. It’s clearly a good package full of practical lessons and stories that could serve the launch pad for inspiration in the lives of wanna-be entrepreneurs.
The Inheritors dawned on my radar as I was browsing through Amazon. The book written by Sonu Bhasin with a Forward by Anand Mahindra appeared to be a unique product about the Indian entrepreneurial setup. The term ‘Indianness’ arises often in the Indo-Anglian literature. Certain writers attempt to describe the term too. I doubt that anyone of those critics or writers ever defined the term properly. The Indian way of writing, along with the Indian way of performing various other cultural, political, and sociological activities is unique. It cannot be seen as a copy of or a direct oppositional force set against a Eurocentric system. The Indian way incorporates the best in every culture and social system. It also distinguishes itself from all those streams from which it drew inspiration. Sonu Bhasin’s attempt is to delineate the major Indian way of doing business. She does that by telling the stories of many family-owned businesses in India.
Sonu Bhasin introduces a unique project in the form of The Inheritors. In six readable, lucidly written narrative chapters span a story that makes up the six pillars of the Indian market space. These businesses are family-owned. However, Sonu Bhasin sets a working angle to the story through the eyes of the decedents of these families.
The first chapter is titled “Dabur Group and Lit Bite Foods: Amit Burman”. This chapter moves through the life of Amit Burman the young entrepreneur from the Dabur family that took the charge as Vice Chairman at Dabur India. After his higher education abroad, Amit returns to India to work at Dabur, his family business. After working in several departments with his company, he realizes that his calling lay somewhere else. So he ventures into the world of startups. This is the story of a young man who finally finds harmony with his family business, by adorning the space of its Vice President while at the same time initiates a path-breaking set of ventures in the food industry of India.
The second chapter is “Marico: Harsh Mariwala.” As the title suggests, the second chapter of The Inheritors deals with the journey of Harsh Mariwala who feels at one point that he is in control of his future. He founded the company named Marico and you read about that journey too.
The third chapter “Berger Paints: Kuldip Singh Dhingra and Gurbachan Singh Dhingra” and the fourth chapter “Motilal Oswal Group: Motilal Oswal and Raamdeo Agrawal recount the tales of family-owned businesses that made it big even beyond the previous two entities in the Indian market. “Berger Paints is the second-largest paint company in India today” (113), Attests Sonu Bhasin. In the hands of the fourth generation of the Rangwala family, Kuldip and Gurbachan keep on delivering their best in continuing the legacy of their brother Sohan Singh Dhingra who is the progenitor of the business. This chapter also focuses on how the interpersonal relations between the two brothers, Kuldip and Gurbachan help them grow the company.
The key players in the Motilal Oswal Group, Motilal and Raamdeo are not families but friends taking their friendship to new levels of productive meaning. Other chapters include “Keventers: Agastya Dalmia”, “Max Group: Tara Singh Vachani”, “Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas: Rishabh and Saloni Shroff”, “Luxor: Pooja Jain”, and the “Select Group: Arjun Sharma”. Author Sonu Bhasin has effectively tied the chapters into this volume. The Inheritors will leave a deep impression on the reader, for sure. This deep impression would make the reader picture himself or herself to be the inheritors of the spirit of entrepreneurship.
Portfolio Penguin, an imprint of Penguin Random House published The Inheritors. This book is sure to reflect what every budding entrepreneur of India expects. It’s clearly a good package full of practical lessons and stories that could serve the launch pad for inspiration in the lives of wanna-be entrepreneurs.
February 10, 2018
As published on
The Reading Owl
'The Inheritors' is a compilation of 9 interviews in which Sonu Bhasin has tried to bring "behind the scenes" stories of some well known Indian businesses. These are mostly the family-owned enterprises which were handed down from one generation to another. The list includes Dabur, Marico, Berger, Motilal Oswal, Keventers, Max, Amarchand Mangaldas, Luxor, and Select.
Breaking the Common Perception:
The common perception is that the inheritors have it easy, that born with a silver spoon, they are served success on a silver platter as well. Not entirely true. They indeed have the advantages of a quality education, working capital, and a steady infrastructure in place but they face different problems. They always have big shoes to fill, a family reputation to maintain, and a need to carve a place for themselves. They have to work hard to prove themselves and to be accepted as the boss by the seasoned professionals. This book does a great job of bringing those challenges to light.
Diverse:
What I liked best about the 'The Inheritors' is that Sonu has chosen a very diverse set of people to feature. These are people from varied sectors such as FMCG, food, writing instruments, real estate, finance, paints, and law. All of them have a unique story to tell. Some had to face repeated failures, some had to look out for financial help, while others had to work against their families. But they share similar characteristics. I learned how it is important to be innovative, headstrong, and a risk taker to succeed. Also, that holding on to family values is extremely important no matter where one goes.
Food For Thought:
The book gave me a lot of food for thought. It is one of those books which have to be read slowly, one chapter at a time, chewed thoughtfully and later discussed. I would read about one of the companies and discuss with my friends and colleagues if they thought the inheritors had it easy. If having the required infrastructure made them better risk-takers, and if their failures count as mere experiments.
There are only 2 women inheritors mentioned out of 9 and it again raised a question 'if patriarchy suppresses women talent?'. When major families like the Dabur refuse to give the women their share of representation, how can one expect others to break the shackles of gender bias?
More Expectations:
Sonu Bhasin has a remarkable portfolio with some reverential designations under her belt. It is thus natural to have high expectations from a book written by her, on a subject she excels in, "Families and Business". I loved the concept of the book and it was worth reading but I also felt that the narration could be much better. I found the style verbose at places and the timelines within some stories confusing. A lot of them read like college essays.
I also wished that the author had kept to the title. While most of the stories are about family-owned businesses, they are a couple of them about founders (I actually liked them better for the inspiration). Motilal Oswal is one.
Recommendation:
I believe that it is important to read such books once in a while. To get a glimpse into the lives and minds of successful people give us an insight into their recipes for success. I personally prefer reading about startups because I relate to them more, but this book has different lessons to teach, those of perseverance and family values. It is indeed a good read. Go for it.
Disclaimer: I thank WritersMelon for sending me a review copy but all the views are my own.
'The Inheritors' is a compilation of 9 interviews in which Sonu Bhasin has tried to bring "behind the scenes" stories of some well known Indian businesses. These are mostly the family-owned enterprises which were handed down from one generation to another. The list includes Dabur, Marico, Berger, Motilal Oswal, Keventers, Max, Amarchand Mangaldas, Luxor, and Select.
Breaking the Common Perception:
The common perception is that the inheritors have it easy, that born with a silver spoon, they are served success on a silver platter as well. Not entirely true. They indeed have the advantages of a quality education, working capital, and a steady infrastructure in place but they face different problems. They always have big shoes to fill, a family reputation to maintain, and a need to carve a place for themselves. They have to work hard to prove themselves and to be accepted as the boss by the seasoned professionals. This book does a great job of bringing those challenges to light.
Diverse:
What I liked best about the 'The Inheritors' is that Sonu has chosen a very diverse set of people to feature. These are people from varied sectors such as FMCG, food, writing instruments, real estate, finance, paints, and law. All of them have a unique story to tell. Some had to face repeated failures, some had to look out for financial help, while others had to work against their families. But they share similar characteristics. I learned how it is important to be innovative, headstrong, and a risk taker to succeed. Also, that holding on to family values is extremely important no matter where one goes.
Food For Thought:
The book gave me a lot of food for thought. It is one of those books which have to be read slowly, one chapter at a time, chewed thoughtfully and later discussed. I would read about one of the companies and discuss with my friends and colleagues if they thought the inheritors had it easy. If having the required infrastructure made them better risk-takers, and if their failures count as mere experiments.
There are only 2 women inheritors mentioned out of 9 and it again raised a question 'if patriarchy suppresses women talent?'. When major families like the Dabur refuse to give the women their share of representation, how can one expect others to break the shackles of gender bias?
More Expectations:
Sonu Bhasin has a remarkable portfolio with some reverential designations under her belt. It is thus natural to have high expectations from a book written by her, on a subject she excels in, "Families and Business". I loved the concept of the book and it was worth reading but I also felt that the narration could be much better. I found the style verbose at places and the timelines within some stories confusing. A lot of them read like college essays.
I also wished that the author had kept to the title. While most of the stories are about family-owned businesses, they are a couple of them about founders (I actually liked them better for the inspiration). Motilal Oswal is one.
Recommendation:
I believe that it is important to read such books once in a while. To get a glimpse into the lives and minds of successful people give us an insight into their recipes for success. I personally prefer reading about startups because I relate to them more, but this book has different lessons to teach, those of perseverance and family values. It is indeed a good read. Go for it.
Disclaimer: I thank WritersMelon for sending me a review copy but all the views are my own.
February 6, 2018
Book Name: The Inheritors
Author: Sonu Bhasin
Publisher: Penguin Random House India
Total Pages: 304 pages
Edition: First edition
Genre: Non- Fiction, Business
Source: Writers Melon
Format: Available in both Kindle and Paperback
The Inheritors is a collection of 9 stories of entrepreneurship and success.Stories about the personalities who shaped the companies. Its a sneak peek of what goes on behind the popular brands. It focuses on the nature and culture of family businesses in India. Each chapter tell the story of a family-owned, well-known business.
The author took several interviews before writing this book. And has beautifully narrated and depicted the true accounts of entrepreneurship and success. The book perfectly describes the challenges faced by the entrepreneurs, how they tactfully overcame the problems and expanded their businesses.
The author has covered the stories of Amit Burman of Dabur Group and Lite Bite Foods, Harsh Mariwala of Marico, Kuldip Singh Dhi-ngra and Gurbachan Singh Dhingra behind Berger Paints, the founders of Motilal Oswal Group - Motilal Oswal and Raamdeo Aggarwal, young entrepreneur Agastya Dalmiya - who resurrected the Keventers, Tara Singh Vachani of Max Group, the lawyer couple Rishabh and Saloni Shroff of the law firm Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas, Pooja Jain of the prominent writing instrument manufacturing brand Luxor, and Arjun Sharma of Select Group.
The Inheritors showcases the real struggle of the business heirs and is a eye opener to many who thinks that its decorated in a plate and given to the family members. Each story takes you to the life journey of every business and the struggle behind the brand building. Its journey of rags to rich, dreams fulfillment and vision. The stories behind the names you have known. The dedication, hard work, knowledge, the hunger is just wow.
Experience the journey of The Entrepreneurs (Leaders) through the book. Its a guide to aspiring entrepreneurs.
What I loved in this book?
For the first time its hell lot of things.
Theme: I loved it, its like a eye opener, v inspiring.
Quotes: One from each chapter
"If a picture is worth a thousand words, then a story is worth a thousand sermons"
"the tortoise in the race remained focused and went on taking steady steps towards Profitability."
"when the consumer starts paying for the brand rather than the product, you know that you've made it".
"Innovation is a way of Life at Marico"
"I've always wanted to make a difference to peoples lives. But I also realize that as a single individual, there is a limit to how much i can do"
The firm does not hire women or men, we only hire good lawyers.
Story: I love the way the stories has been told from scratch with the right information. I personally loved Berger Paints, Cyril Amarchand Mangaladas & Luxor.
Characters/ Personality: My favorite personality's are Pooja Jain, Tara Singh Vachani, Kuldip Singh Dhingra & Harsh Mariwala
What I did not like?
I personally took lot of time reading it, their is lot of information to digest. (Otherwise its wow).
Verdict: I loved reading this book, its truely an inspiration. I would say,"its a map to aspiring entrepreneur's". Recommendation to of-course business students(MBA, Mcom, BBM, B.com) but also to one who do not know have a motive or aim, to the one who needs inspiration.
My Rating:
Title- 5/5
Cover- 5/5
Blurb- 5/5
Characters- 5/5
Plot-5/5
Presentation-5/5
Overall Rating- 5/5
Psst: Thank you so much Writers Melon for giving me such wonderful book for Review, And Sonu Bhasin Ma'am for writing it.
Author: Sonu Bhasin
Publisher: Penguin Random House India
Total Pages: 304 pages
Edition: First edition
Genre: Non- Fiction, Business
Source: Writers Melon
Format: Available in both Kindle and Paperback
The Inheritors is a collection of 9 stories of entrepreneurship and success.Stories about the personalities who shaped the companies. Its a sneak peek of what goes on behind the popular brands. It focuses on the nature and culture of family businesses in India. Each chapter tell the story of a family-owned, well-known business.
The author took several interviews before writing this book. And has beautifully narrated and depicted the true accounts of entrepreneurship and success. The book perfectly describes the challenges faced by the entrepreneurs, how they tactfully overcame the problems and expanded their businesses.
The author has covered the stories of Amit Burman of Dabur Group and Lite Bite Foods, Harsh Mariwala of Marico, Kuldip Singh Dhi-ngra and Gurbachan Singh Dhingra behind Berger Paints, the founders of Motilal Oswal Group - Motilal Oswal and Raamdeo Aggarwal, young entrepreneur Agastya Dalmiya - who resurrected the Keventers, Tara Singh Vachani of Max Group, the lawyer couple Rishabh and Saloni Shroff of the law firm Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas, Pooja Jain of the prominent writing instrument manufacturing brand Luxor, and Arjun Sharma of Select Group.
The Inheritors showcases the real struggle of the business heirs and is a eye opener to many who thinks that its decorated in a plate and given to the family members. Each story takes you to the life journey of every business and the struggle behind the brand building. Its journey of rags to rich, dreams fulfillment and vision. The stories behind the names you have known. The dedication, hard work, knowledge, the hunger is just wow.
Experience the journey of The Entrepreneurs (Leaders) through the book. Its a guide to aspiring entrepreneurs.
What I loved in this book?
For the first time its hell lot of things.
Theme: I loved it, its like a eye opener, v inspiring.
Quotes: One from each chapter
"If a picture is worth a thousand words, then a story is worth a thousand sermons"
"the tortoise in the race remained focused and went on taking steady steps towards Profitability."
"when the consumer starts paying for the brand rather than the product, you know that you've made it".
"Innovation is a way of Life at Marico"
"I've always wanted to make a difference to peoples lives. But I also realize that as a single individual, there is a limit to how much i can do"
The firm does not hire women or men, we only hire good lawyers.
Story: I love the way the stories has been told from scratch with the right information. I personally loved Berger Paints, Cyril Amarchand Mangaladas & Luxor.
Characters/ Personality: My favorite personality's are Pooja Jain, Tara Singh Vachani, Kuldip Singh Dhingra & Harsh Mariwala
What I did not like?
I personally took lot of time reading it, their is lot of information to digest. (Otherwise its wow).
Verdict: I loved reading this book, its truely an inspiration. I would say,"its a map to aspiring entrepreneur's". Recommendation to of-course business students(MBA, Mcom, BBM, B.com) but also to one who do not know have a motive or aim, to the one who needs inspiration.
My Rating:
Title- 5/5
Cover- 5/5
Blurb- 5/5
Characters- 5/5
Plot-5/5
Presentation-5/5
Overall Rating- 5/5
Psst: Thank you so much Writers Melon for giving me such wonderful book for Review, And Sonu Bhasin Ma'am for writing it.
February 12, 2018
Dedicating a book to the inheritors of the family business, the unsung heroes- This is the most unique thing that a writer could do. Pooja Jain's worry was not misplaced that the people might think that the business was presented to them in a golden plate without a sliver of hardwork. While the world sings the hardwork, dedication and resolve of the fathers, grandfathers and the great grand fathers, the younger generations are always ignored unless they start something of their own. I could well relate to the clan of inheritors since I got married to pne of that sort. The term "unsung heroes" is the perfect definition for them. However they work hard their achievements would be looked down upon as 'Oh they could work in an already established business. It is unknown to many that most successful second generation third generation businessmen get inducted to their business in the entry level. Very few get everything in a platter and they usually end up destroying what they got.
What better way to begin the book than the story of Dabur and Lite Bite foods. The life of Amit Burman is the best case study any management student should have and the books give in detail how Amit, started off with Real Juice. The struggle he had to face in the initial stages. In a community that is obsessed with sugary juices, Amit's idea of sugarless preservativeless juice did not workout well. On getting a second chance, amit, with his team impecabbly established the brand to finally merge the same to Dabur Group thereby making himself jobless. From there how Amit Burman started off with Lite Bite foods and through trial and error, attained success is not less spicy that any fiction thriller. I genuinely expect to see a Bollywood movie on his life. So is the life of Harsh Mariwala of Marico Ltd. While Amit Burman and Harsh Mariwala follow more or less a similar line, that of Kuldip Singh Dhingra and Gurbhajan Singh Dhingra of Berger is way apart.
Kuldip and Gurbachan had to start from the scratch. Hence I would not find the term Inheritor appropriate in their case. Post the demise of their fathe Late Niranjan Singh, Kuldip and Gubhajan were the poor cousins in the family who were looked down upon. They were not given the due respect and support from the family. Same is the case of Motilal Oswal and Ramdeo Agarwal of Motilal Oswal Group. In fact I would wonder how the name inheritor suit them at all. As far as I could comprehend, they are the first generation since they were not as flourished as compared to the rest and how they made it to the harward Business School as a case study seems like a fairy tale. But no, it is sheer hard work.
Agastya Dalmia of Keventers , Rishabh and Saloni Shroff of Cylril amarchand Mangaldas and Pooja Jain of Luxor are the inheritors in the truest sense, who inherited their father's business and made it manifold. Tara Singh Vachani of Max Group, and Arjun Sharma of Select group are the two inheritors who in-spite of inheriting a successful business.
The book is truly inspiring and unputdownable. It is an asset to all aspiring businessmen and women.
January 30, 2018
The inheritors is a collection of stories about some of the biggest entrepreneurs and how they have strived to achieve the success they have today and how the common conception of people is that they have inherited the wealth from their ancestors which is not at all true. The book is about value like honesty, culture, the hard work which every person from the family puts into their business and how everyone aims to see their business on the top eventually shaping the persons personality and also of the business. The book shows us how the great personalities took some decisions but all their tactics and decision do not work and how they have tried and tested other tactics and achieve the success rather than giving up on the business.
The book contains stories of some of the biggest brands like Dabur Group, Marico, Berger Paints, Motilal Oswal Group, Keventers, Max Group, Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas, Luxor and Select Group. The title of the book is “The Inheritors” but the book is not all about the Inheritors i.e. the 2nd or 3rd Generations but we also get to see how the thinking processes about the owners i.e. the mastermind behind the business and in what condition they have created the business. We also get to see that the business is not actually inherited but the inheritors also had to strive to get the business to the next level and strive to keep it alive and how much of time they put into it while doing so.
What I learned from this book is that honesty and ethics play an important role not only in personal life but in every kind of work be it family business or a large MNC. We also get to know about how the various inheritors had a clear vision about the goal and what they wanted to create out of their business which they have achieved through hard work and dedication at all stages of their decision making. At times we can experience thin times but instead of giving up one should strive to reach their goal and not give up. Again, accepting our mistake and correcting them at the earliest will help us achieve more.
I would definitely recommend ‘The Inheritors’ to people who love reading books about how the businesses work and the thought process about the people creating the business.
The book contains stories of some of the biggest brands like Dabur Group, Marico, Berger Paints, Motilal Oswal Group, Keventers, Max Group, Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas, Luxor and Select Group. The title of the book is “The Inheritors” but the book is not all about the Inheritors i.e. the 2nd or 3rd Generations but we also get to see how the thinking processes about the owners i.e. the mastermind behind the business and in what condition they have created the business. We also get to see that the business is not actually inherited but the inheritors also had to strive to get the business to the next level and strive to keep it alive and how much of time they put into it while doing so.
What I learned from this book is that honesty and ethics play an important role not only in personal life but in every kind of work be it family business or a large MNC. We also get to know about how the various inheritors had a clear vision about the goal and what they wanted to create out of their business which they have achieved through hard work and dedication at all stages of their decision making. At times we can experience thin times but instead of giving up one should strive to reach their goal and not give up. Again, accepting our mistake and correcting them at the earliest will help us achieve more.
I would definitely recommend ‘The Inheritors’ to people who love reading books about how the businesses work and the thought process about the people creating the business.
February 11, 2018
The Inheritors is a non fiction book about the stories of Indian entrepreneurs who have been in their respective businesses since generations. Every person whom Sonu has interviewed for this book is either a fourth or a fifth generation of a business family.
The length of these interviews are not too short that a reader would long for more and not too long that a reader might feel that a lot of unnecessary information is being given. I won’t call them interviews, I would actually categorise them as short stories about the success of business families and how they have been carried out in all these decades. The stories are crisp, interesting,motivating and also brings out some aspects which a common person may not be knowing at all. For example, the story of Real Fruit juice, how they struggled initially and how it was almost about to get discontinued in the very beginning.
There are many other very interesting stories about these business houses, the story of their struggles in their initial days, their progress and their never say die attitude. After reading this book, I am sure anyone with even a small wish to become an entrepreneur will get fully charged up and start making his or her business plan right away. The book is encouraging, educating, and a joy to read about successful businesses from the owners themselves. The stories reflect each individuals personalities, their vision and how each one is a star in the businessworld.
Sonu’s writing is brilliant, she has not made this book a biographical one, but made into a sort of live snippets from the inheritors themselves, from their own offices or homes, which makes the reading even more interesting to check out how they live in their daily lives. One can visualise how their offices look like, Sonu has successfully managed to give you the feeling of aura when one enters these premises , specially on the chapter about Antara, I could feel myself in Dehra Dun amongst the greenery and peace surrounding myself.
All in all, this is one book, which if you try reading at night before going to bed, will make you get rid of your sleep and will make you get up and read more, and perhaps make you think positive of any failures you might have faced in your life, it will make you feel good, for sure!
The length of these interviews are not too short that a reader would long for more and not too long that a reader might feel that a lot of unnecessary information is being given. I won’t call them interviews, I would actually categorise them as short stories about the success of business families and how they have been carried out in all these decades. The stories are crisp, interesting,motivating and also brings out some aspects which a common person may not be knowing at all. For example, the story of Real Fruit juice, how they struggled initially and how it was almost about to get discontinued in the very beginning.
There are many other very interesting stories about these business houses, the story of their struggles in their initial days, their progress and their never say die attitude. After reading this book, I am sure anyone with even a small wish to become an entrepreneur will get fully charged up and start making his or her business plan right away. The book is encouraging, educating, and a joy to read about successful businesses from the owners themselves. The stories reflect each individuals personalities, their vision and how each one is a star in the businessworld.
Sonu’s writing is brilliant, she has not made this book a biographical one, but made into a sort of live snippets from the inheritors themselves, from their own offices or homes, which makes the reading even more interesting to check out how they live in their daily lives. One can visualise how their offices look like, Sonu has successfully managed to give you the feeling of aura when one enters these premises , specially on the chapter about Antara, I could feel myself in Dehra Dun amongst the greenery and peace surrounding myself.
All in all, this is one book, which if you try reading at night before going to bed, will make you get rid of your sleep and will make you get up and read more, and perhaps make you think positive of any failures you might have faced in your life, it will make you feel good, for sure!
February 12, 2018
Excellent, this book must be translated into different regional languages, and if any small or big entrepreneur read this book, will receive good ideas to implement in their own firm.
The writing style of author is mesmerizing; she is really God gifted, she has presented each and every chapter in very simple way that readers adrenaline rushes to do some business, she first gives the basic background of the person or a firm and then gives an in-depth descriptions from their past till current situation. Each and every chapter is provided in informative way, which creates good curiosity to the readers to know further. Among all 9 chapters I was unknown to many brands, but after reading them I got good inspiration and further I googled to know more about them. In the chapter of Keventers, the life of R.K. Dalmia is provided which is one of the best chapter I got inspired, a real-life rags-to-richness.
The book covers the story of how Dabur group’s Amit Burman created Lite bite foods, Harsh Mariwala a small trader of spices converted into giant Marico, Kuldip singh Dhingra and Gurbachan singh Dhingra of Rajdoot Paints acquired Berger Paints and made 2nd largest Paint company of India, Motilal Oswal and Raamdeo Agrawal two CA converted passion into profession: Motilal Oswal Group, Agastya Dalmia: the milkshake man of Keventers, Tara singh Vachani of Max group: the old age home, the Lawyers: Rishabh and Saloni Shroff of Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas, Luxor: D.K Jain and Pooja Jain, the person who changed the writing styles of India by introducing Pilot pen and last but not least the Mall man Arjun Sharma of Select group.
In today’s fast world this book provides many such stories were entrepreneur’s have faced hurdles and converted them into success is perfectly presented to the readers by the author. I am an entrepreneur and love to read books on entrepreneurship; I have kept this book in my favorite shelf, this book inspired me much and which is close to my heart, hats-off to the author, waiting to read more from her on entrepreneurship.
I highly recommend this business book to each and every aspiring entrepreneur, and those who are students of BBA or MBA.
The writing style of author is mesmerizing; she is really God gifted, she has presented each and every chapter in very simple way that readers adrenaline rushes to do some business, she first gives the basic background of the person or a firm and then gives an in-depth descriptions from their past till current situation. Each and every chapter is provided in informative way, which creates good curiosity to the readers to know further. Among all 9 chapters I was unknown to many brands, but after reading them I got good inspiration and further I googled to know more about them. In the chapter of Keventers, the life of R.K. Dalmia is provided which is one of the best chapter I got inspired, a real-life rags-to-richness.
The book covers the story of how Dabur group’s Amit Burman created Lite bite foods, Harsh Mariwala a small trader of spices converted into giant Marico, Kuldip singh Dhingra and Gurbachan singh Dhingra of Rajdoot Paints acquired Berger Paints and made 2nd largest Paint company of India, Motilal Oswal and Raamdeo Agrawal two CA converted passion into profession: Motilal Oswal Group, Agastya Dalmia: the milkshake man of Keventers, Tara singh Vachani of Max group: the old age home, the Lawyers: Rishabh and Saloni Shroff of Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas, Luxor: D.K Jain and Pooja Jain, the person who changed the writing styles of India by introducing Pilot pen and last but not least the Mall man Arjun Sharma of Select group.
In today’s fast world this book provides many such stories were entrepreneur’s have faced hurdles and converted them into success is perfectly presented to the readers by the author. I am an entrepreneur and love to read books on entrepreneurship; I have kept this book in my favorite shelf, this book inspired me much and which is close to my heart, hats-off to the author, waiting to read more from her on entrepreneurship.
I highly recommend this business book to each and every aspiring entrepreneur, and those who are students of BBA or MBA.
February 11, 2018
It's a misconception that it is a cake walk to run a booming family business. People are unaware that the successors have to work even harder to carry the legacy forward
and at the same time work towards making a mark for themselves in the business circles. Above all they have to rise above the family squabbles regarding running the business and concentrate on keeping their competitors at bay.
' The Inheritors' gives a collective account of success stories of the richest families in India. All the entrepreneurs mentioned in the book are in stark contrast with each other in terms of their journey, style of functioning and their expectations from life. They have failed many a times and incurred irrecoverable losses only to fall back on their faith and hard work.
Some have invested in multiple ventures while some have them focused on a single one. But all of them tasted success owing to the factors like recruiting professionals in their close knit family business, taking risks, backing talent and innovation above dynasty politics.
The chapters traces the humble beginnings of the company, which I found inspiring and fascinating. The events have been arranged in the form of a logically coherent timeline. The facts and figures mentioned in the book won't make you dizzy, rather the interesting trivia alongside them will keep you hooked. The writing style is lucid and will engage the reader throughout the book. The stories are narrated in first person perspective by none other than the successful entrepreneurs themselves. The chapters can be thought as candid interviews of the entrepreneurs. The author has put her entrepreneurship background to good use while facilitating the interviews.
This book can be a handy guide for numerous youngsters who are embarking on the path of entrepreneurship. The success of these self-made men and women will definitely inspire many.
and at the same time work towards making a mark for themselves in the business circles. Above all they have to rise above the family squabbles regarding running the business and concentrate on keeping their competitors at bay.
' The Inheritors' gives a collective account of success stories of the richest families in India. All the entrepreneurs mentioned in the book are in stark contrast with each other in terms of their journey, style of functioning and their expectations from life. They have failed many a times and incurred irrecoverable losses only to fall back on their faith and hard work.
Some have invested in multiple ventures while some have them focused on a single one. But all of them tasted success owing to the factors like recruiting professionals in their close knit family business, taking risks, backing talent and innovation above dynasty politics.
The chapters traces the humble beginnings of the company, which I found inspiring and fascinating. The events have been arranged in the form of a logically coherent timeline. The facts and figures mentioned in the book won't make you dizzy, rather the interesting trivia alongside them will keep you hooked. The writing style is lucid and will engage the reader throughout the book. The stories are narrated in first person perspective by none other than the successful entrepreneurs themselves. The chapters can be thought as candid interviews of the entrepreneurs. The author has put her entrepreneurship background to good use while facilitating the interviews.
This book can be a handy guide for numerous youngsters who are embarking on the path of entrepreneurship. The success of these self-made men and women will definitely inspire many.
January 24, 2018
The Inheritors is a book telling stories of few successful Indian family businesses. Though the future generations have inherited the legacy of the family business and the brand name but they have really earned the right to lead it through their hard work and persistence.
These protagonists have taken their businesses to even more greater heights. The book recounts how these Inheritors have turned out to be greatest entrepreneurs and business magnates.
The author has covered the enthralling success stories of Dabur, Marico, Berger Paints, Motilal Oswal Group, Keventers, Max group, Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas, Luxour and Select Group.
Each story has something to give and to learn from.
The success stories of Berger Paints, Motilal Oswal Group and Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas fascinated me the most. And I would say, the most inspiring one is of the Luxour group and yes! the leading lady of the Luxour, Pooja Jain is an influential personality.
People often regard the inheritors with good fortune but what they fail to realise that these inheritors also face lot of struggles and hardships while running their business. This book gives the insight of their adversities and agony faced by them and how they built the business from rags to riches.
The author has narrated all the stories with so much ease that the reader stays connected with every change of story.
Though I would have loved to read more of detailed business insights and their ideas and reasoning instead of detailed background information of the protagonists.
Why to read this book
If you love to read inspiring stories of business leaders. If you love to know the stories of the successful Indian leaders. This book may not disappoint you.
This book is a must read for those who wishes to learn entrepreneurship skills from the most successful leaders of our country.
These protagonists have taken their businesses to even more greater heights. The book recounts how these Inheritors have turned out to be greatest entrepreneurs and business magnates.
The author has covered the enthralling success stories of Dabur, Marico, Berger Paints, Motilal Oswal Group, Keventers, Max group, Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas, Luxour and Select Group.
Each story has something to give and to learn from.
The success stories of Berger Paints, Motilal Oswal Group and Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas fascinated me the most. And I would say, the most inspiring one is of the Luxour group and yes! the leading lady of the Luxour, Pooja Jain is an influential personality.
People often regard the inheritors with good fortune but what they fail to realise that these inheritors also face lot of struggles and hardships while running their business. This book gives the insight of their adversities and agony faced by them and how they built the business from rags to riches.
The author has narrated all the stories with so much ease that the reader stays connected with every change of story.
Though I would have loved to read more of detailed business insights and their ideas and reasoning instead of detailed background information of the protagonists.
Why to read this book
If you love to read inspiring stories of business leaders. If you love to know the stories of the successful Indian leaders. This book may not disappoint you.
This book is a must read for those who wishes to learn entrepreneurship skills from the most successful leaders of our country.
February 1, 2018
The writer has completed an awesome activity by picking business visionaries from a range of enterprises, foundations, and states of mind, all bound by the ligament and will to succeed.Reading it resembles taking an intriguing lesson in business administration with the meetings and stories of the absolute most effective privately-run companies proprietors in India.
The book contains stories of a portion of the greatest brands like Dabur Group, Marico, Berger Paints, Motilal Oswal Group, Keventers, Max Group, Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas, Luxor and Select Group.
This book is absolutely in light of the lives of the accompanying previously mentioned successors who have advanced toward the stepping stool of triumph with diligent work, penances, eagerness, and enthusiasm to wind up plainly effective businessperson and lady. The Inheritors gives an understanding of how maintaining an effective business and overseeing it isn’t as simple as it sounds. The majority of the immense names referred to here have something they all share, i.e the immense hard work and struggle they had to put into their work.
The dialect utilized as a part of the book is basic and a decent read. These heroes have taken their organizations to considerably more noteworthy statures. The book describes how these Inheritors have ended up being most noteworthy business visionaries and business magnates. This book is an absolute necessity read for the individuals who wish to take in business enterprise aptitudes from the best pioneers of our nation.
Rating: 3.9/5
The book contains stories of a portion of the greatest brands like Dabur Group, Marico, Berger Paints, Motilal Oswal Group, Keventers, Max Group, Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas, Luxor and Select Group.
This book is absolutely in light of the lives of the accompanying previously mentioned successors who have advanced toward the stepping stool of triumph with diligent work, penances, eagerness, and enthusiasm to wind up plainly effective businessperson and lady. The Inheritors gives an understanding of how maintaining an effective business and overseeing it isn’t as simple as it sounds. The majority of the immense names referred to here have something they all share, i.e the immense hard work and struggle they had to put into their work.
The dialect utilized as a part of the book is basic and a decent read. These heroes have taken their organizations to considerably more noteworthy statures. The book describes how these Inheritors have ended up being most noteworthy business visionaries and business magnates. This book is an absolute necessity read for the individuals who wish to take in business enterprise aptitudes from the best pioneers of our nation.
Rating: 3.9/5
February 13, 2018
A book that delves into the life of entrepreneurs, The Inheritors by Sonu Bhasin, is an encapsulation of several success stories. It contains the zeal, enthusiasm, and passion coursing through its words. It explains how tough it is to carve out a path of your own despite hurdles and a lineage to follow. The tales expressed in the book reveal the success mantra – sheer hard work and persistence. From Amit Burman to Arjun Sharma, each story has a different perspective to offer us.
As the reader soaks himself into the lives of these maniacs, he could feel the fervor brimming within him. It takes courage to go out of the league. The book gradually unveils this.
Success is not a figment of the imagination. It exists in entirety as you fixate upon it. An urge to prove your individuality can drive you insane and trust me it is a deadly potion that helps you to achieve something. The desire to establish you amidst an already flourishing family business is challenging. There are expectations, responsibilities to shoulder, the baggage of parental business that one has to live with. It is difficult but at the end, everything is worth it.
The author has brought alive those stories with her powerful writing style. It is descriptive and interesting. The whole narrative runs smoothly in front of our eyes as they roll on the flowing words. The coherence keeps the reader engaged.
Overall, this book is a pleasure to read that fills you with thrill and motivates you to do big. One must definitely read this book.
My Rating- 4/5 stars
As the reader soaks himself into the lives of these maniacs, he could feel the fervor brimming within him. It takes courage to go out of the league. The book gradually unveils this.
Success is not a figment of the imagination. It exists in entirety as you fixate upon it. An urge to prove your individuality can drive you insane and trust me it is a deadly potion that helps you to achieve something. The desire to establish you amidst an already flourishing family business is challenging. There are expectations, responsibilities to shoulder, the baggage of parental business that one has to live with. It is difficult but at the end, everything is worth it.
The author has brought alive those stories with her powerful writing style. It is descriptive and interesting. The whole narrative runs smoothly in front of our eyes as they roll on the flowing words. The coherence keeps the reader engaged.
Overall, this book is a pleasure to read that fills you with thrill and motivates you to do big. One must definitely read this book.
My Rating- 4/5 stars
January 31, 2018
The Inheritors by Sonu Bhasin is unlike any business book, it does not tell you ‘How to be successful?’ nor is it a guide to be an affluent businessman or woman, but it is a collection of stories which revolve around the doom and success of 9 big companies in India, from the likes of Dabur Group and Lite Bite Foods: Amit Burman, Marico: Harsh Mariwala, Berger Paints: Kuldip Singh Dhingra and Gurbachan Singh Dhingra, Motilal Oswal Group: Motilal Oswal and Raamdeo Agrawal, Keventers: Tara Singh Vanchi, Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas: Rishab and Saloni Shroff, Luxor: Pooja Jain, to Arjun Sharma: Select Group
Like I have said, this book is purely based on the lives of the following aforementioned successors who have made their way to the ladder of triumph with hard work, sacrifices, enthusiasm and passion to become successful businessman and woman. The Inheritors gives an insight of how running a successful business and managing it is not as easy as it sounds. All of the great names cited here have something in common .i.e. they started off from scratch and built an empire through a great deal of effort. The book focused on the culture, family politics, business rivalries between and within families, ego battles and a lot more. It talks about how few failures at first and somewhere in between makes them even stronger to reach the place they are today.
Read the full book review on my blog post- http://bit.ly/2DKA18n
Like I have said, this book is purely based on the lives of the following aforementioned successors who have made their way to the ladder of triumph with hard work, sacrifices, enthusiasm and passion to become successful businessman and woman. The Inheritors gives an insight of how running a successful business and managing it is not as easy as it sounds. All of the great names cited here have something in common .i.e. they started off from scratch and built an empire through a great deal of effort. The book focused on the culture, family politics, business rivalries between and within families, ego battles and a lot more. It talks about how few failures at first and somewhere in between makes them even stronger to reach the place they are today.
Read the full book review on my blog post- http://bit.ly/2DKA18n
February 3, 2018
The varied business stories chosen for the book are from different industries. The author has presented the stories in a manner that I could actually feel that the subjects of her stories were narrating the stories right before me. She has spoken about some rags to riches stories, some stories of sheer had work, and some stories which were realization of dreams. In some of the stories, there is the challenge of living upto the expectations.
What I learnt from these stories is that as Rome was not built in a day and most of these family owned businesses started from a scratch, some based on intellect and some on physical labour. But all these businesses had one thing in common: Hard work and sheer diligence.
It is not a guide to start a business. But we learn from the book is that hard work pays. It also helps us understand that values like honesty, openness, hard work and culture are very important in everything we do and also in business.
Each account ends with a Conclusion part, which sums up the important parts of the story. This is followed by references which are vast, reflecting the amount of research that has gone into the book.
The language is simple, the stories flow beautifully, but mind you, it took me a long time to finish the book as I was relishing each story.
This is one book that I would recommend to everyone, not for the detailed stories they have, but for the way the author has presented these stories which teach us so many values.
What I learnt from these stories is that as Rome was not built in a day and most of these family owned businesses started from a scratch, some based on intellect and some on physical labour. But all these businesses had one thing in common: Hard work and sheer diligence.
It is not a guide to start a business. But we learn from the book is that hard work pays. It also helps us understand that values like honesty, openness, hard work and culture are very important in everything we do and also in business.
Each account ends with a Conclusion part, which sums up the important parts of the story. This is followed by references which are vast, reflecting the amount of research that has gone into the book.
The language is simple, the stories flow beautifully, but mind you, it took me a long time to finish the book as I was relishing each story.
This is one book that I would recommend to everyone, not for the detailed stories they have, but for the way the author has presented these stories which teach us so many values.
February 10, 2018
I’m not someone who reads a lot of non fiction books, but something about this book interested me and I wasn’t disappointed. The book deals with different family business and the how they have come up. It is easy to assume the road to success would have been a cakewalk for family run business but the book sheds light on reality. Pooja Jain of Luxor even questioned the author on why she was calling the book “The Inheritors” as she was of the opinion that the general opinion would be that they had it all easy! But the book delves not just into the history of the business but also about all the struggles both past and present and in parts even what awaits them in future.
Written from author’s point of view while she interviews the inheritors, the book explores their stories. It makes an interesting read as they are narrated as stories and its not facts. In the end of each story, there is a conclusion which summarizes how each business has grown and how the future looks for them. These stories are not just success stories – a lot of them deal with failures and a lot of other problems. Read these stories and you’ll be surprised. Running a family business definitely isn’t a bed of roses!
The stories are inspiring. Each business/brand has something to teach each one of us. This book may not tell you the steps you need to undertake to start your own business, but there’s definitely a lot to learn. One thing that impressed me is the amount of research the author has undertaken in writing this book. I only wished the author could add some pictures along with the stories. That would have made the book more interesting.
So if you are some who is interested in entrepreneurship or are simply interested in knowing more about some family run businesses in India, then this is for you.
Review originally published on http://reemadsouza.com
Written from author’s point of view while she interviews the inheritors, the book explores their stories. It makes an interesting read as they are narrated as stories and its not facts. In the end of each story, there is a conclusion which summarizes how each business has grown and how the future looks for them. These stories are not just success stories – a lot of them deal with failures and a lot of other problems. Read these stories and you’ll be surprised. Running a family business definitely isn’t a bed of roses!
The stories are inspiring. Each business/brand has something to teach each one of us. This book may not tell you the steps you need to undertake to start your own business, but there’s definitely a lot to learn. One thing that impressed me is the amount of research the author has undertaken in writing this book. I only wished the author could add some pictures along with the stories. That would have made the book more interesting.
So if you are some who is interested in entrepreneurship or are simply interested in knowing more about some family run businesses in India, then this is for you.
Review originally published on http://reemadsouza.com
February 11, 2018
This book was an easy read, and it was well worth it. I aspire to one day become an entrepreneur, and this book gave me ideas and advice that had never crossed my mind before. The chapters are glimpses but pack a punch with invaluable insight for aspiring entrepreneurs. It taught me a lot and at the same time, it wasn't the kind of motivational book that said anything was possible as long as you believed, but anything was definitely possible if you had the right mix of hard work, patience, passion and talent.
The book contains stories behind big brands like Marico, Dabar, Keventers, Berger Paints, Select Group, Max Group, Luxor and many others, which are actually family owned businesses. I found the book very inspiring and gripping from beginning to the end. I highly recommend it to anyone interested in starting their own business one day, as it could very teach you to be more successful than you could have ever been.
The book contains stories behind big brands like Marico, Dabar, Keventers, Berger Paints, Select Group, Max Group, Luxor and many others, which are actually family owned businesses. I found the book very inspiring and gripping from beginning to the end. I highly recommend it to anyone interested in starting their own business one day, as it could very teach you to be more successful than you could have ever been.
January 29, 2018
The Inheritors is a book that is sure to inspire all aspiring entrepreneurs seeking a road to phenomenal success. Reading it is like taking an interesting lesson in business management with the interviews and anecdotes of some of the most successful family businesses owners in India. The simple yet engaging language further helps to establish the fact that building a business from scratch requires the investment of considerable sweat and struggle. It also helps the budding entrepreneurs to understand that while inheriting a business might provide a headstart, it is through their own skill and competence that an individual is capable to earn exemplary success. Overall, I found The Inheritors to be quite inspirational and a great reading experience and wish Sonu great success with it.
February 14, 2018
Got a rare peek into the history and harsh journey of some of the most successful family-run businesses of India through Sonu Bhasin's book The Inheritors. We usually assume that the children who inherit big business from their parents have everything served on a platter, but this book proves it otherwise. Such an eye opener! Thank you Sonu Bhasin for the exclusive peek into the lives of 'the inheritors'.
For an elaborate review on the book, visit my blog, Book,
Chai, and Backpack.
For an elaborate review on the book, visit my blog, Book,
Chai, and Backpack.
February 7, 2018
I found the book very inspiring and gripping from beginning to the end. Even while talking about the details of financial aspects of the family businesses, the book doesn’t lose the interest of the reader. Reading about the personal lives and interests of the inheritors of the family businesses, their ambitions, passions and dreams while dealing with the various obstacles that they had to confront, like Amit Burman’s dream of establishing food related business and how he had to work his way through in converting Real Fruit Juices and Lite Bite Foods into big profitable brands has highly inspiring and motivating.
February 1, 2018
Author Sonu Bhasin has covered all the big names – from Amit Burman of Dabur and Lite Bite foods, Harsh Mariwala of Marico, Berger Paints - the Dhingras, Motilal Oswal Group’s Ramdeo Agrawal, Keventers group’s Dalmia, Max Group, Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas to Luxor group. The book gives us the readers, the extraordinary details of the hard work and great efforts of these individuals who faced much more than we can imagine taking their ventures to the heights of success notwithstanding the apparently undefeatable face ups with problems.
January 17, 2018
While the book is not necessarily only about inheritors (there are a few accounts of the founders too), the subjects chosen are varied in industry, background and their approach. A common thread being their unflinching vision to create value through their products or services.
It is the quickest read I have had in a while. Some of the stories are inspiring even if they lack depth or literary drama.
It is the quickest read I have had in a while. Some of the stories are inspiring even if they lack depth or literary drama.
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