Ramoji Rao: The individual who served as a mediator between politics and business
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He was full of ideas and attained the pinnacle of his reputation and influence well before the age of fifty. He passed away just a few months before that.
Today, at the age of 88, Padma Vibhushan Cherukuri Ramoji Rao passed away. In addition to founding and operating a highly successful chit fund business, selling bottled pickles and founding a hospitality group, he started as a small-time exporter of Indian goods to the Soviet Union, launched Telugu and English newspapers that ruled over undivided Andhra Pradesh for several decades, produced numerous low-budget, critically acclaimed films, and was a major driving force behind the rise and expansion of the Telugu Desam Party (TDP).
Before the age of fifty, he achieved the pinnacle of his fame and influence, and only months before his passing, he was full of brilliant ideas that would make today's bright young entrepreneurs blush.
In an interview with Business Standard almost three decades prior, he clarified, saying, "The key is to use capital wisely." To extract every last drop, you must be skilled at doing so. Of course, he was referring to the time when credit was expensive and state-owned institutions predominated. But up until the very end, this idea served as the foundation of his company.
In contrast to popular perception, Ramoji Rao did not inherit wealth; rather, it was arranged for him when he married Rama Devi, his reserved right hand in business and politics.
Within the rich, irrigated Krishna district of undivided Andhra Pradesh (now Andhra Pradesh), Rao belonged to the Kamma caste, which was primarily composed of landowners. Even without much money to support it, he knew power. In 1962, when few people knew what a chit fund was, he founded Margadarsi Chit Funds. Margadarsi is a company that operates throughout Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu. Its current turnover is estimated to be Rs 10,000 crore. Many years later, Subrata Roy Sahara was to adopt his concept. Bold heirs such as BandhanBank came after. When it first began, agents would gather tiny amounts from far-flung state villages and deposit them into an account with Margadarsi, who would then advance the funds as needed.
Customers with eligible accounts might participate in a prize lottery. Credibility, trust, and a certain amount of cheekiness were the cornerstones of the chit fund industry, and Ramoji Rao possessed all three.
Ramoji Rao looked for business ideas with the help of his wife and her family, as well as the funds from Margadarsi. Although he first started an advertising firm, he was considering starting a Telugu newspaper by 1970. 'Today', or Eenadu, was first launched in August of 1974. With the reverent Andhra Jyothi and Andhra Prabha in its midst, it was a newspaper unlike anything Andhra Pradesh had ever seen. Readers could find little value in the content of the publications that were already in print; localization was mostly lacking. All of it was upended by Eenadu, who became hyper-local and irreverent, making him the first to break the news.
Ever the tech enthusiast, Ramoji Rao localised the printing and production of Eenadu in several editions, particularly once the facsimile machine reached India and allowed versions to be updated by fax. He informed interviewers that the circulation had reached about 180,000 by 1979. "Two out of every five readers of dailies in the state are Eenadu readers," he stated.
Andhra Pradesh was not an exception to the political changes that were occurring in Indian politics at the same time. Though Ramoji Rao considered alternative options that would include money but improve political capital, he toyed with the idea of entering politics. When the Andhra Pradesh assembly elections of 1983 rolled around, Eenadu was firmly in favour of the Telugu Desam Party (TDP).
founded in 1982 and led by the unpredictable yet well-known actor NT Rama Rao. Ramoji Rao was among those who contributed the Telugu self-respect, or "atma gouravam," "ideology" to the TDP. This came when the then-rising star in the Congress, Rajiv Gandhi, "insulted" an incumbent chief minister, T Anjaiah, and the ruling Congress changed chief ministers quickly—six times between 1971 and 1983, including a brief period of President's Rule.
The TDP entered elections for the first time in 1983. Everyone was shocked by the party's performance, which was 202 out of 294 in the assembly.
Newsrooms in India and outside were talking about Eenadu's front page at the time because it featured a large photo of NTR waving his arm, seemingly telling the Congress to leave the state. The headline, a play on movie slang, read "NTR sooper hit." It was a blow from which conservative publications never fully recovered. In 1983, he launched Newstime, an English counterpart, in response to the success of Eenadu. But that was an avant-garde experiment, and it closed later. A movie about a local girl who was a classical dancer and lost her leg in an accident but continued to dance with an artificial leg was produced by the film production firm he founded. The movie took home numerous accolades.
Ramoji Rao, though, eventually became tired of NTR's outbursts and demeanour. He provided substantial financial and media support to Nara Chandrababu Naidu, also known as Alludu Garu (son-in-law), for his insurrection. After TDP split, NTR and his wife Lakshmi Parvati—who would eventually become widow—would gradually fade into obscurity. Later on, Ramoji Rao broke with the TDP, but he still supported Naidu. Chandrababu Naidu would go on to become the chief minister of Andhra Pradesh with the longest tenure in 1999, all the while having the unwavering backing of Eenadu. It was only fitting that the state government pursue Ramoji Rao and the Eenadu gang after Naidu lost the 2004 assembly elections and the Congress took 185 of 294 assembly seats.
which had a thriving TV empire by then. Rival television channel Sakshi was started by YS Rajashekhar Reddy, who rose to the position of chief minister, and his son Jaganmohan Reddy.
Ramoji Rao, however, suffered a number of personal difficulties. It was unexpected that his wife had died. However, Kiran and Suman, his two boys, died before him. Though other family members currently run the company, Ramoji Rao was still planning political and business moves from his hideout in Ramoji City on the outskirts of Hyderabad until a few years ago, particularly during the split of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.
For the majority of his extraordinary life, Ramoji Rao actively participated in both politics and business, living on the brink of these two worlds. He wore exclusively white and was always referred to as "Chairman." Chief Minister Revanth Reddy planned a state funeral for him as a sign of the respect the state had for this giant.
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