The book took one down memory lane. S N N Sankaralinga Iyer was the founder of India Cements, set up in the pre-Independence period. Lots have changed since then. India Cements itself has been acquired by Ultratech, a part of the Aditya Birla group. History cannot be wished away. India Cements was, perhaps, the first company in the country to come out with an initial public offer? Curiously enough, the IPO was done in the pre-Independence period! Its maiden public issue of equity shares for Rs 1 crore was oversubscribed. More than anything else, the IPO was a testimony to the entrepreneurial mindset of S N N Sankaralinga Iyer. In fact, Tamil Nadu has seen path-breaking initiatives such as this one for many years now. Some have succeeded. Others have failed. The fact, however, is that Tamil Nadu has been a breeding-ground for innovation and risk-taking. Indeed, many firsts have emerged from this land. The origin of corporate hospital (Apollo), corporate film firm (GV Films), corporate school (Thriveni Academy promoted by Madras Motor Finance and Guarantee Ltd.), hostile corporate takeover (acquisition of Wendt India by the Murugappa group in the early 90s), first private mutual fund (Kothari Pioneer) and the like. Likewise, several innovative experiments – shampoo in sachet (Velvette), time-share concept (Sterling Holiday), leasing idea (First Leasing) have also come up from Tamil Nadu. The much-talked-about and globally appreciated noon meal scheme, a welfare initiative by former chief minister late K. Kamaraj to entice children from economically backward strata to join school and others have emanated from Tamil Nadu. Despite all these, Tamil Nadu has often been viewed as a conservative state. Truth is that risk-takers and innovators are aplenty.
