Gujarmal Modi built corporate giant Modi Group after being banished for refusing a drink
A man, who was banished from Patiala, built one of the largest business empires in India. Here's the inspiring story of Gujarmal Modi started the Modi Group with a sugar mill. It was 1932, and a young man had been expelled from the state of Patiala. What was his crime? In a celebratory banquet at the Patiala Palace, he had denied a sip of alcohol. The fact that the man was a teetotaller had made no difference to the maharaja. The restriction proved beneficial, as the 30-year-old fled Patiala and built one of India's largest commercial empires. Gujarmal Modi chose Begumabad, a small village on the outskirts of Delhi, as the site for his new plant. The seeds of the Modi Group were planted here. Starting with a sugar mill, he built a conglomerate that included companies that produced tyres, textiles, copy machines, cigarettes, pharmaceuticals, oil, and steel, to name a few. The narrative of an ambitious young man who saw misfortune as an opportunity and went on ...