Some Raghuisms

Mr. Raghu Pillai was a delightful contradiction of sophistication and simplicity as also all the wonderful things that others have written about. He was - simply put -  “One of a kind”. Guess God broke the mould after he made him. His ease of dining in a 5 star hotel was exactly the same when having vada pav from the roadside vendor outside the Nariman Point office.

He was a master at using the carrot and stick. The beauty was he would give away carrots most of the time and just had to wave the stick once in a blue moon. His nature made everyone want to ensure that the stick never came out and as others have mentioned, his smile was always in place.

Essentially he strove to simply things and make life easier and therefore increase the chances of good implementation and thereby success. His famous query to any outlandish or complicated ideas was to say “Pagal hain kya” (Are you mad).  In line with his approach of simplicity, he was well known for certain things in the corporate circuit, the central theme being simplicity and ease of execution. Some of the more memorable reactions by him are as follows and have taken the liberty of calling them ‘Raghuisms’.

• When presented with a complicated Excel working he would say “Stop this Excel gymnastics and tell me what it means and what you will do with it”. 
• His comment “English jhadna band kaar” (Stop spouting English) has been the

   guiding light to making crisp and meaningful presentations for many.
• The customer is always right was not mere words and he walked the talk by briefing the cashiers during any store launch to not argue about promotions with the customers. 
• His perspective of the larger picture and its components was amply illustrated when he told someone who was discussing compensation; “I don’t think a few thousands here or there will significantly affect the balance sheet of this company”. 
• The minute his attention was lost or he was bored or impatient to act, he would hum a completely off tune “Choon choon choon…..” That is a clear signal and one that I have witnessed often enough.

I am sure that these are only a few of the Raghuisms and there are many more which others might be able to recall and share.

Of course, the void he leaves behind as my mentor, guise, advisor and well wisher is not something that will be filled soon or easily. However, memories of all the interactions with him will go some way in filling the same.

V Rajesh has worked with Raghu at RPG Retail, Home Solutions and Reliance Retail. He is now a Retail Subject Matter Expert and author of “The INDIAN reTALEs”.