How Bharti Airtel's Sunil Mittal was once in financial crisis for the want of Rs 5000

There was a time when one of the richest men in India was in a deep financial crisis for the want of Rs 5000. Sunil Mittal was once the owner of a bicycle spare parts business, long before he changed the world of telecommunication with Bharti Airtel.

"It was a regular event back then that we had no money in the bank for cheques. That was the time when people did not write cheques for funding," said Mittal describing his financial status during those times.

Mittal narrated how he then approached Brijmohan Lall Munjal to write him a cheque for Rs 5000. "I approached Mr. Munjal and told him: 'Uncle, I need Rs 5000'. He picked my invoices and signed the ledger for the required amount," said Mittal.


"While I was leaving, he stopped me and said: "Beta, aadat mat dalna (Son, do not make it a habit)." That was such a strong advice and it went straight to my heart. Since that day I have never let my finances get the better of me," Mittal added.

This was around 1980 and since then Mittal has built an extraordinary empire, but not without facing some extraordinary challenges. Speaking at TieCon Delhi, Mittal narrated his challenging entrepreneurial journey and the steps he took to keep moving ahead.

Moving the dial
It was the government banning the import of portable generator sets which, revealed Mittal, put him on the course of setting his telecommunications business. Mittal was then the first dealer of Japan-based company Suzuki and was selling portable generator sets to Indian businesses and homes.

The business picked up so quickly that it soon attracted the attention of politically connected people who lobbied the government to license the business, something which Mittal did not get. "We were then the largest importer of portable gensets and it was a very profitable business. We already had a big office with many people working for us. At that time, I did not know anything about telecommunications," recalled Mittal.

Generator business shut, Mittal took a trip to foreign to scout for opportunities. It was while he was on a trip to Taiwan, where he saw push-button phones at the time when Indians, those who could afford it, were still using rotary phones. "That is when my romance with phones started," said Mittal.

Soon, Mittal started his push button phone business and named it 'MittBrau' in an attempt to make it sound more foreign. "Mittal Brothers did not sound very appealing and it was that period when people found foreign-sounding things very fascinating."

Soon, the government came out with a licensing policy for telecommunications and Mittal took his bet on the game. "Many told me that it was a business for people with deep pockets and not for entrepreneurs. We were rank outsiders and competing with big consortiums," said Mittal.

Interviewing Mittal, chairman, Clix Capital, and president, TiE Delhi NCR, Pramod Bhasin shared how Mittal had once told Bhasin about the importance of building relationships over money. "You had told me how it was very important that at the end of a negotiation, both parties must get up from the table smiling," said Bhasin.

To which Mittal responded that he does not understand the thought behind using shortcuts. "Building trust and relationships is very important. My father told me when I was starting out as an entrepreneur that it was better to get cheated than cheat someone," said Mittal.