Month and Year: Mid June 1985
Liquid Capital: Rs.
44,000
During this intense period of retail arbitrage in late May and early June, I also had to secure my own educational future.
With my district rank and a score of 1104 out of 1200, securing admission was a formality, but I specifically targeted the B.Com program at Loyola College.
Loyola College, situated in Nungambakkam, was and remains one of the most prestigiousprestigious educational institutions in India.
Established in 1925 by the Society of Jesus, its heritage is built on sprawling, tree-lined 99-acre campus featuring Gothic architecture.
More importantly, its commerce department was a breeding ground for future corporate leaders, chartered accountants, and politicians.
The alumni network alone was worth its weight in gold for someone with my ambitions.
I attended the interview in early June.
I wore a crisp white shirt and formal trousers my mother had ironed perfectly.
The interview panel consisted of the Head of the Commerce Department and two senior professors.
“Vijay Kumar,” the HOD said, looking at my mark sheet.
“Second in the district.Outstanding marks in Accountancy and Commerce. Why Loyola, and why not pursue a professional degree like CA immediately?”
“Loyola’s B.Com program, with its diverse student body and rigorous academic environment, will teach me how to build the businesses that require those audits. I want a comprehensive understanding of macroeconomics and corporate management, which this institution excels at providing.”
The professors exchanged an impressed look.
My answer was impeccable, driven by my decades of corporate experience in my previous life.
They tested my knowledge on double-entry bookkeeping and the latest Union Budget policies, which I answered with analytical precision.
I was admitted on the spot, highly regarded by the staff from day one.
During my free hours in the afternoons, before my evening accounting job, I began heavily scouting the Sowcarpet and George Town areas.
Sowcarpet was not just a neighborhood; it was the beating financial and wholesale heart of Tamil Nadu.
Narrow, congested streets like Mint Street, Govindappa Naicken Street, and NSC Bose Road were lined with Marwari, Jain, and Gujarati merchants who controlled massive supply chains across South India.
Every street had a specialty.
Bunder Street for stationary, Kasi Chetty Street for toys and plastics, Mint Street for textiles and pawn brokers, and Govindappa Naicken Street for electrical goods.
Millions of rupees changed hands here daily in cash and hundis (informal bills of exchange).
As I walked these streets, sipping on a cutting chai, my mind was mapping out my long-term strategy.
I knew that in the complex political climate of India, and Tamil Nadu in particular, pure financial wealth was not enough to guarantee safety.
If you only have money, you are a target for extortion by political syndicates and local mafias.
The iconic Chief Minister M.G.
Ramachandran (MGR) of the AIADMK was in power, but his health was failing, leading to fierce internal power struggles and aggressive opposition from the DMK under M.
Karunanidhi.
The politics here were deeply rooted in the Dravidian movement—focused on linguistic pride, social justice, and populism.
To survive and eventually dictate terms in this environment, I needed a shield.
That shield is a loyal vote bank.
And the easiest way to control a vote bank without running for office immediately is through massive employment.
I realized I couldn’t just be a stock market speculator or a real estate flipper.
I had to build a labor-intensive manufacturing base.
If I owned factories that employed ten thousand workers, I directly influenced the livelihood of ten thousand families.
In Tamil Nadu, that translates to roughly forty thousand votes.
No local politician, minister, or syndicate boss would dare touch a businessman who commands that many votes and sustains the local economy.
If they threaten my businesses, they threaten the jobs of their own constituents.
I began inquiring with the merchants in Sowcarpet about the manufacturing supply chains for textiles, FMCG (Fast-Moving Consumer Goods), and basic industrial components.
I needed to understand where the gaps were in the local production capacity.
My financial trading would generate the capital, but manufacturing would generate the political armor I needed to eventually become the kingmaker of Tamil Nadu.