Ratan Tata’s troubled childhood: Why did mother abandon him to remarry? Who was Simone Tata for whom Ratan's parents separated?

Ratan Tata, the man who drove the salt-to-software conglomerate Tata Group to a new height, had a painful, turbulent and disturbed childhood, in spite of being a billionaire at the time of his birth. His father, Naval Tata, was bewitched when he met Simone Dunoyer, a Swiss tourist. Born in 1930 and brought up in Geneva, she had graduated from Geneva University before she came to India as a tourist in 1953. Naval Tata divorced his wife and Ratan's mother, Sonoo Commissariat, to marry Simone. According to Vijay Patel, who wrote a book on the Tata family and its business empire, Ratan's mother married Sir Jamsetjee Jejeebhoy, 6th Baronet, Cowasjee to become Lady Jamsetjee Jejeebhoy. 

(Ratan Tata with father Naval Tata and stepmother Simone Tata)

Ratan Tata's mother abandons him

Thus, at the age of 10, his mother left Ratan Tata, remarried, and settled with someone else. Ratan was raised by his grandmother, Navajbai Tata. Remembering the agony and pain arising from his parents' separation, he said in an interview with the 'Humans of Bombay,' "I had a happy childhood, but as my brother and I got older, we faced a fair bit of ragging and personal discomfort because of our parent’s divorce, which in those days wasn’t as common as it is today."

He added, "But my grandmother brought us up in every way. Soon after when my mother remarried, the boys at school started saying all kinds of things about us—constantly and aggressively. But our grandmother taught us to retain dignity at all costs, a value that’s stayed with me until today."

(Ratan Tata's grandfather Ratanji Tata and grandmother Nawajbai Tata)

Who was Ratan Tata's grandmother?

Ratan Tata's grandmother, Navajbai Tata, became the first woman director of Tata Sons in 1925. She was a generous philanthropist. Known for her generosity, she donated her manor in Matheran, ‘Homestead,’ to a social worker when he requested her to establish a convalescent home. She also donated Rs 3 lakh, a whopping amount in those days. Navajbai Tata became the chairperson of the Sir Ratan Tata Trust in 1932.

She left a deep influence on the nature, character, and behavior of Ratan Tata. Ratan loved her so much that he left his lucrative job in the US and decided to return to India so that he could take care of her, who was not keeping well. In an interview with 'Humans of Bombay,' he said, "I had made the decision to move back at least temporarily since I had been away from my grandmother, who wasn’t keeping too well for almost 7 years."