A couple of months back I got this email out of the blue. I had never met Mr. Subramanyan, however it is not everyday that the CMD of a giant company like L&T calls you for a meeting. So I went.

He spent an hour with me. 

He was curious about my story. Entrepreneurship. Investing in startup’s. All things digital etc etc

There was no agenda except that he wanted to learn.

He struck me as humble, amiable and affable. And he told me about his career and his family.

At the end of the meeting I asked him how much cash L&T had. He gave me a wild number - Rs. 50000 crs I think (not sure).

I advised him to deploy some if it judiciously in startup’s. India needs domestic Venture Capital I told him and a company with a balance sheet like L&T could take the lead.

And then I explained the kind of returns Info Edge has earned on Zomato and Policybazaar.

We agreed to meet again and discuss ideas.

I walked away impressed.

He was decent enough to walk me to my car.