What is your routine before and after office hours on a working day? How do you manage to spare time for your family and yourself on weekdays?
Yoga 3 days a week, reading the newspaper, performing my daily puja and clearing emails are things I focus on in the morning. We try to have dinner together as a family every night and I make it a point not to have too many dinner / external engagements after work when in Mumbai. If I have work to finish, I try to do that after dinner.
What is your routine on weekends?
Weekends are reserved for personal work, social engagements and family time. I also like to take a quick siesta in the afternoon as I often feel quite sleep deprived during the week. My wife and I still do the weekly shopping together. We have a dog and grooming and bathing her are important parts of my Sunday morning routine. We also take brisk evening walks at the park next to our house as a family. I do take time to clear emails and catch up on reading – I like to come back on a Monday without having too many pending items.
How many breaks do you take in a year?
We try to have a number of breaks – maybe 4 – 5. One long break over the summer and then a few short breaks throughout the year. We also try to have one trip every year to Goa – not just for the beaches though we quite enjoy those – but to visit our family temples.
Where do you prefer to go in India or outside and why? What is your ideal vacation like?
Our goal is to visit one country in Europe every year. We’ve also been frequent visitors to the USA as our daughter was studying there and our son is now readying to head there as well, so I see that continuing. Outside of that, we visit varied destinations. For me, an ideal vacation is a relaxed vacation – whether it’s a beach or a city. I am not one to get up early and rush around to see everything a location has to offer. I prefer soaking in the culture and taking my time so I may just end up seeing the top 2 – 3 things but really enjoying them. My wife is brilliant at finding excellent boutique hotels, and at booking great dinner spots and we enjoy those experiences a lot.
What are your major interests and passions?
Music and F1 racing are 2 things I really enjoy. I have varied taste in music – from Hindustani Classical and old Hindi songs to Classic Rock and even the latest popular music. Whether I’m driving or at home, music will often be playing. I do enjoy watching Hollywood movies and selected series on Netflix or Amazon Prime. Two recent favorites were “The Man in the High Castle” and “The Art of Racing in the Rain”. I was an avid fiction reader but most reading is now reserved for work related publications, articles, blogs and websites.
Which is your favorite cuisine and the dish that you enjoy the most? Which is your favorite restaurant?
Interestingly, the one cuisine I don’t like eating out is Indian, though most lunches are Indian. I really enjoy Asian cuisine, Japanese in particular, and Wasabi is one of my favorite restaurants in Mumbai though I only go there maybe once or twice a year for very special occasions.
Which is your favorite drink or cocktail? Which is the bar that you often visit?
I’m not sure I have visited a bar in a fairly long time – most social engagements are at home or at a friend’s house. While I was a single malt aficionado for many years, I have now almost completely switched to gin as my tipple of choice.
Tell us about any cause/NGO that is close to your heart and your involvement in it.
Through work and our CSR program at Franklin Templeton, I’ve had the opportunity to be closely involved with a number of great NGOs, primarily in the fields of education, childcare, infrastructure and skilling. On a personal front though, all of us at home are avid dog lovers and our cause of choice is WSD – Welfare of Stray Dogs. We have limited formal involvement beyond monetary contributions, but we do look out for a number of stray dogs in our area to make sure they are safe, fed and cared for, and any medical needs are attended to. My wife is leading an effort to get stray cats in our area sterilized, where again my contribution has been primarily monetary.
