He
steers the fastest growing cement company in the country, and his plans against
tobacco-use are concrete. Narottam Sekhsaria, 48, the Managing Director
of the Rs 979.17-crore Gujarat Ambuja Cements, is now going public with the saga of his
own suffering. In 1993, Narottam had to be operated upon for oral cancer-caused by
constant gutkha-chewing-but the affliction recurred in 1995. And, this time, his jaw had
to be reconstructed. Now, the chemical engineer is spurring the tobacco awareness
programmes of the Cancer Patients' Association. Says he: ''Generally, people in my
position tend to hide such things. But I felt I should tell people that I was stupid.''
But that's wisely said...
Blending different colours on her life's
canvas is the 42-year-old Shweta Parikh. A Senior Research Associate at
the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad-where she also teaches-with an MBA and a
Ph.D in Finance, Parikh is also a trained painter from the C.N. College of Fine Arts,
Ahmedabad, and Vanasthali Vidyapith, Rajasthan. But what makes the specialist in Portfolio
& Investment Mangement pick up the brush-the other one-every morning? Says the mother
of two: ''Painting is my first priority. It's a truly expressive medium. Words have
limitations, but colours don't.'' That's the Portrait Of An Artist...
Soon after the Bharatiya Janata Party
(BJP) assumed governance in March, 1998, the affable defence, foreign affairs and
economics specialist Mohan Guruswamy, 50, was asked what post he wished
to hold. He sought an ambassador's. But that was denied to keep the wildlife-enthusiast
home. Now Mohan, who went to Harvard U-to study economics, and interactive business-and to
MIT-again, to study economics-has been named Special Advisor to the Finance Minister. He
will keep the fm informed on all basic policy issues. Says Mohan, who was a key member of
the BJP Manifesto Committee: ''My first and primary client will remain the minister. I
will not get into the operational issues of the ministry.'' A brief brief?...
The turns around steel mills but, it
seems, there's no turning back for him. In June, 1998, Lakshmi N. Mittal,
47, the CEO of the £5.20-billion London-based Ispat International was honoured with the
8th honorary Willy Korf Steel Vision Award by the American Metal Market and Paine Webber's
World Steel Dynamics in New York. The award, instituted in the memory of the visionary
Willy Korf, is the highest honour for worldwide achievement in steel. It recognises LNM's
feat in turning around a 30,000-tonne rolling mill that he acquired in Indonesia 22 years
ago into a global steel giant producing 15 million tonnes a year now. Says Mittal: ''My
role has always been to provide leadership, strategic vision, and support.'' Kudos, LNM...
Last month, he got India on
the American Theatre. And got himself into the American Leadership Team of the $15-billion
PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC). Besides, Roopendra Narayan 'Roopen' Roy,
46, Director, PwC, also secured a place in the Global Leadership Group of PwC's Management
Consultancy Services (MCS)-the global think-tank with about 70 members. Post-merger, PwC
has structured its MCS practice into 3 theatres: the Americas, Europe, and the
Asia-Pacific. And at Roopen's insistence, India is now part of the Americas Theatre.
Reasons Roopen: ''Our synergies lie more with the US, than with any other part of the
world.'' But is there a shake-up at PwC? What about J. 'Raju' Rajagopal, 48, joining
competitor KPMG Peat Marwick? ''More interesting changes are in the offing,'' is Roopen's
cryptic repartee. We believe him, for no sooner had he aired the ambiguity than PwC roped
in KPMG's Consulting Chief Ashvin Parekh, 46, as its financial services head. A clean
swap, that.
He
steers the fastest growing cement company in the country, and his plans against
tobacco-use are concrete. Narottam Sekhsaria, 48, the Managing Director
of the Rs 979.17-crore Gujarat Ambuja Cements, is now going public with the saga of his
own suffering. In 1993, Narottam had to be operated upon for oral cancer-caused by
constant gutkha-chewing-but the affliction recurred in 1995. And, this time, his jaw had
to be reconstructed. Now, the chemical engineer is spurring the tobacco awareness
programmes of the Cancer Patients' Association. Says he: ''Generally, people in my
position tend to hide such things. But I felt I should tell people that I was stupid.''
But that's wisely said... 
Blending different colours on her life's
canvas is the 42-year-old Shweta Parikh. A Senior Research Associate at
the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad-where she also teaches-with an MBA and a
Ph.D in Finance, Parikh is also a trained painter from the C.N. College of Fine Arts,
Ahmedabad, and Vanasthali Vidyapith, Rajasthan. But what makes the specialist in Portfolio
& Investment Mangement pick up the brush-the other one-every morning? Says the mother
of two: ''Painting is my first priority. It's a truly expressive medium. Words have
limitations, but colours don't.'' That's the Portrait Of An Artist... 
Soon after the Bharatiya Janata Party
(BJP) assumed governance in March, 1998, the affable defence, foreign affairs and
economics specialist Mohan Guruswamy, 50, was asked what post he wished
to hold. He sought an ambassador's. But that was denied to keep the wildlife-enthusiast
home. Now Mohan, who went to Harvard U-to study economics, and interactive business-and to
MIT-again, to study economics-has been named Special Advisor to the Finance Minister. He
will keep the fm informed on all basic policy issues. Says Mohan, who was a key member of
the BJP Manifesto Committee: ''My first and primary client will remain the minister. I
will not get into the operational issues of the ministry.'' A brief brief?... 
The turns around steel mills but, it
seems, there's no turning back for him. In June, 1998, Lakshmi N. Mittal,
47, the CEO of the £5.20-billion London-based Ispat International was honoured with the
8th honorary Willy Korf Steel Vision Award by the American Metal Market and Paine Webber's
World Steel Dynamics in New York. The award, instituted in the memory of the visionary
Willy Korf, is the highest honour for worldwide achievement in steel. It recognises LNM's
feat in turning around a 30,000-tonne rolling mill that he acquired in Indonesia 22 years
ago into a global steel giant producing 15 million tonnes a year now. Says Mittal: ''My
role has always been to provide leadership, strategic vision, and support.'' Kudos, LNM...
Last month, he got India on
the American Theatre. And got himself into the American Leadership Team of the $15-billion
PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC). Besides, Roopendra Narayan 'Roopen' Roy,
46, Director, PwC, also secured a place in the Global Leadership Group of PwC's Management
Consultancy Services (MCS)-the global think-tank with about 70 members. Post-merger, PwC
has structured its MCS practice into 3 theatres: the Americas, Europe, and the
Asia-Pacific. And at Roopen's insistence, India is now part of the Americas Theatre.
Reasons Roopen: ''Our synergies lie more with the US, than with any other part of the
world.'' But is there a shake-up at PwC? What about J. 'Raju' Rajagopal, 48, joining
competitor KPMG Peat Marwick? ''More interesting changes are in the offing,'' is Roopen's
cryptic repartee. We believe him, for no sooner had he aired the ambiguity than PwC roped
in KPMG's Consulting Chief Ashvin Parekh, 46, as its financial services head. A clean
swap, that.