In the early days of my business management studies, a finance professor posed a question to our class:
Whom do you admire more — Mukesh Ambani or Anil Ambani?
Without hesitation, the entire class echoed the name Anil Ambani.
Anil was the epitome of charisma. He was suave, stylish, and married to a famous actress, with the media capturing his high-profile life, including his morning walks along Marine Drive with tight security. Who wouldn’t admire him? He was everything the public admired in a successful businessman: fit, charming, and glamorous.
On the other hand, Mukesh Ambani didn’t seem to fit the mold of the “ideal” business leader. He looked like an average, simple man—someone lacking the public speaking skills and charisma that his brother possessed.
Even his daughter, Isha Ambani, humorously remarked that her father’s interviews were boring.
But here’s where the perception shifted.