HarperCollins to publish Ratan Tata's biography this November

Publishing house HarperCollins said Friday that it will be publishing the authorised biography of Tata Sons chairman emeritus Ratan Tata this November.

Written by retired bureaucrat Thomas Mathew, the book will have a comprehensive account of Tata’s life, including unknown details and stories from his formative years, his time studying in the US and his early tenure with the Tata Group, as per a press statement from the publisher.

HarperCollins India has acquired world rights in all languages for the biography from the Labyrinth Literary Agency.

The book has inputs from a wide range of people whom Tata has made acquaintance with over the years, according to the publisher. These include former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger and Karuna, the janitor at GT Hospital, Mumbai.
"This is the only comprehensive, definitive and authorized account of Mr Tata’s life and times, his struggles and his important contributions to contemporary India," read the press statement.

As part of his research, Mathew got access to the records of the Tata Group, the trusts that control it as well as Ratan Tata’s personal documents, letters and journals.

"I also enjoyed virtually unfettered access to Mr Tata himself, who narrated his life story in a tell-all fashion. The research also took me across continents following Ratan Tata’s journey, interviewing those who were involved in it, those who influenced him and those whose lives he had touched," the author said.