From Air India's massive deal with Airbus and Boeing to turmoil at Adani group, here are our most-read stories of the week

Conversation with the Sharks on Shark Tank India, Jet Airways' revival path, and the out-of-the-box approach of Sanjeev Sanyal, Member, EAC-PM are some of the stories that piqued the interest of our readers this week

By Forbes India

Published: Feb 18, 2023 09:00:00 AM IST

Every week, catch up on the best long form stories from Forbes India. Often peppered with our binge-worthy podcasts, videos or infographics too. Image: Shutterstock

1) Makeover for Air India

Air India returned to the Tata group after 70 years when the government chose the Mumbai-headquartered salt-to-steel conglomerate as part of its disinvestment plan. Since the takeover, the airline has gone on an offensive under a new management team led by CEO Campbell Wilson who previously helmed Scoot, the low-cost arm of Singapore Airlines. The goal is to restore Air India to its former glory but with a modern and efficient fleet. And one of the initial steps towards that is the mother of all aviation deals--purchasing 470 aircraft from airline manufacturers Airbus and Boeing at the combined value of $80 billion. Read more

2) Inside the shaken house of Adani

On January 24, Hindenburg Research, a US-based research firm, released a report levying various allegations on the Adani group encompassing multiple litigations, related party transactions, shareholding ownership by few overseas investors in non-promoter group entities amidst other series of questions. Since then, Adani Enterprises has seen massive stock sell-off and the group has been frantically looking for alternative routes and options to raise funds so that its capex plans are not hit, and revenue targets are met. Experts weigh in on the pathways for the group and if the market will digest the justifications for the steep valuations anymore. Read more

3) Sharks on investing

Shark Tank India has found many takers. It has taken the concept of pitching to investors in a closed conference room and put it on air, making it prime-time entertainment for millions of homes. The judges on the show, Vineeta Singh, co-founder & CEO of SUGAR Cosmetics; Peyush Bansal, founder & CEO of Lenskart.com; and Amit Jain, CEO and co-founder of CarDekho Group & InsuranceDekho.com, sat down for a conversation with Forbes India to discuss their investment philosophy, major criteria they consider before investing, justify their investments amid the current market meltdown. Watch here

Discover

1) Onto the next hurdle for Jet Airways

Before June 16, 2019, Ashish Chhawchharia was leading the restructuring practice and looking after the eastern region for the consultancy firm, Grant Thornton. He received a fateful call on the day. It informed him about a decision by a group of banks in India designating him as the man in charge of deciding the fate of Jet Airways. 12,000 employees were not paid, aircraft were grounded, 30 financial creditors and 4,000 operational creditors had staked claims in 28 different currencies in the world when Chhawchharia and his team undertook the task of untangling the mess of an insolvent Jet Airways. The resolution professional has cleared the first hurdle and is watching the court battle as lenders challenge the NCLT decision to transfer ownership. Can he help Jet Airways fly? Read more

2) What a road trip can teach about startup

Do you think you will have a better understanding of your country and what it means to be Indian if you travel over 18,000 kilometres, on the road for more than 50 days? When fourth-generation entrepreneur Bhairavi Jani did that, she discovered new facets and truths about India that are now part of her new book 'Highway to Swades'. In this episode of From the Bookshelves of Forbes India, she speaks about why the definition of entrepreneurship and “starting up” is very different in villages and non-metros, how the history of trade has shaped the way we trust and do business, and what her travels taught her about the purpose of enterprise and giving back to society. Listen here

3) Culture that powers ambition

One of the episodes of Daily Tech Conversation this week featured Sudhir Singh, CEO and executive director at Coforge, one of India's well-known mid-cap IT services providers. Singh talked about how the company is set to more than double its annual revenues to a billion dollars, for the current fiscal year, compared with five years ago. He believes that 'culture' is a fancy word for the lived experience of the employees in the company. It is something Coforge has not economised. Singh believes that this culture supports the 22,500-strong IT provider's ambition to double its revenues again. Listen here

4) Unconventional narratives of growth

Sanjeev Sanyal, Member, EAC-PM is the guest on this episode of Forbes India Pathbreakers. Sanyal wears many hats. He is one of Asia's leading economists, a historian, a writer, an environmentalist, and an urban theorist. In a wide-ranging conversation, he explains why and how complexity theory is the starting point of his intellectual framework. He presents the unconventional "other narrative" in areas relating to India's history, economy, geopolitical ties, and environmental challenges. He also shares some out-of-the-box insights on sustainable growth and development. Watch here