Before dawn breaks over Mumbai, Mansi Kadam begins preparing vada pav, a savoury snack synonymous with the western Indian city, for the day’s customers. One ingredient is non-negotiable: Tata salt.
When asked whether she would ever consider switching brands, her reply is a reminder of an old Hindi ad jingle, “If it’s salt, it has to be Tata.”
She knows little about the developments unfolding in the boardroom of the Tata group, one of India’s oldest and most influential business empires that makes everything from salt to software.
But her instinctive loyalty points to a question confronting the group: Can one of India’s most trusted brands remain insulated from a public battle over power, governance and control?
A recent public disagreement between the board of Tata Sons, the holding company of the Tata group and Tata Trusts, its principal shareholder, has put a spotlight on the conglomerate.
At the centre of the dispute are two issues – the proposed public listing of Tata Sons and the reappointment of chairman N Chandrasekaran. Most of the Tata Sons board, including its biggest minority shareholder SP Group, supported the decisions.
But Noel Tata, chairman of majority shareholder Tata Trusts, has opposed both resolutions. He maintains that a public listing would dilute the group’s philanthropic ethos and is likely to get both decisions overturned at its annual general meeting.
“When we say this is a governance crisis, it’s a misalignment of interests between the board [of Tata Sons] and the shareholders [Tata Trusts],” Shriram Subramanian, head of independent corporate governance firm InGovern Research, told the BBC.
While he does not expect the brand’s image to be affected immediately, he flags concerns over the leadership’s ability to navigate the challenges.
Disagreements within the Tata Group have been simmering since the death of former chairman Ratan Tata – Noel Tata’s half-brother who designated him successor after his death – in 2024. For many Indians, Ratan Tata’s philanthropy and leadership had become inseparable from the brand. His death triggered widespread mourning and experts say it left a leadership void in the group’s image with the public.
The Tata group has topped India’s most valuable brand list by valuation consultancy Brand Finance since 2018, according to the group’s website.
Tata Sons, the business entity, is described by the group as the “fastener keeping the many disparate elements of the whole together”.
Tata Trusts, which represents seven philanthropic trusts that own the majority stake in the group, is widely regarded as its moral compass, guiding the businesses on social impact and philanthropy.
For many Indians, both the entities together make up what most companies cannot buy – trust.
Now with these entities in rival corners, that is coming under strain.
“Once upon a time, there was a unified audience which said the Tatas are good people with good governance. Today, the opinion is divided,” said Harish Bijoor, business and brand strategy consultant.
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