Where shades of Nehru’s taste for life & Gandhi’s honest confession meet

Review of K P Singh’s Whatever the Odds

By: Ravi Sinha

Anything said on the contribution of K P Singh to the evolution of Indian real estate would be stating the obvious. Why will then somebody read his autobiography? Well, I also had the same impression knowing well the credentials of the man and his tryst with the system in a License Raaj to achieve what the Government failed to, in terms of India’s urbanization. Of course, this destiny’s blessed child had his share of trials and frustrations where the only cheating he had, if the term “cheating” is allowed in a loose sense, was with death—not once but half a dozen times.

However, what impressed me the most is the fact that the man behind the incredible success of India’s largest real estate company, DLF, had not only challenged the road blocks in the power corridors & policies for all the right reasons, he has with his autobiography now challenged the conventional school of journalism. After all, purists in media academics define autobiography as a chronicled compendium of personal achievements and glorifications. And it is here that K P Singh’s Whatever the Odds fails to fit into that defined parameter of autobiography.

The autobiography is also an inspirational epic for aspiring entrepreneurs. It traces the life of a guy from a small town in Uttar Pradesh who reaches England and studies Aeronautical Engineering. May be an astrology school would also like his horoscope as a case study to see the planetary configuration that made him do all the balancing act between the strict army regime and an unorganized sector like the real estate, that too in the regulatory maze of ‘70s India where lopsided model of socialist economy was a road blocker for even the organized business segments.

Whatever the odds is also a trendsetter in the genre of business tycoons’ autobiography for it reflects the emotional side of the man who probably never aspired for such fame. No wonder, while some of his global peers are glorified for philanthropy, K P Singh’s brain child DLF Foundation has always been a low key affair despite of the media attention to his empire, where as and when DLF’s stocks goes into red, the realty sector starts sinking.

This humble shade of K P Singh is quite visible in his admission of personal life’s crossroads as well. He mentions about his friendship with Julie Rosemary Wells in early days during his stay in England in 1949. “Just being together gave me a kind of happiness that I had never known before. I looked forward to and enjoyed every excursion with her. But there was a downside to all this fun and frolic. I was neglecting my studies,” Singh is candid.

It is difficult to say how far it was reminiscence of colourful Pandit Nehru during those days in K P Singh, and how far it was inspiration of Mahatma Gandhi’s experiments with truth when he recalled this. But, all said and done, it is something that teaches a lesson to wannabe millionaires—only you have to pay the price of your success, no one else will. And it is not just about entrepreneurs, but the management students can also take a leaf out of the life of K P Singh who himself never had any formal management degree.

Had he not given up his English romance or had he sold ailing DLF’s shares….but then a candid K P Singh admits that the mysteries of fate bestowed him a splendid life. At a time when the industrialists try their best to conceal political connections, K P Singh doesn’t mince words when he talks about his relations with a pragmatic Rajiv Gandhi. In the similar vein, he shares his moment with a Prime Minister whom he found sleeping to the concerns of the business community.

In a nutshell, Whatever the Odds is not just the story of a humble but adventurous small town boy who made a fortune by sheer grit. It is also not just the incredible story behind DLF. With shades of Nehru’s taste for life and Gandhi’s honest admission, the trials and triumphs of K P Singh is the story of an evolving urbanized nation chained for long in a regressive economy, where Gurgaon stands out as just a case study.