‘Wonder is foundational to creativity’: Industrialist Subroto Bagchi looks back at life in new book

Some lives refuse the neat lines of chronology. They wander through salt-crusted lanes, linger in the scent of wet earth, pause under trees, and then, without warning, leap into worlds where glass walls mirror the sky.

Subroto Bagchi’s journey has been one such, from the small towns of Odisha to the front lines of India’s IT revolution; from co-founding Mindtree to shaping a state’s skill development vision; from corporate boardrooms to authoring several books that speak intimately to the nation’s youth.

To speak of him only in the language of management, revenue curves, strategic pivots, market share, would be to reduce a river to a spreadsheet. The real story flows in quieter currents: childhood, unseen mentors, and moments that turn in the hand to reveal new shapes.

For Bagchi, Mindtree was an act of collective imagination. Go Kiss the World was a personal note to young Indians finding their way. The Day the Chariot Moved is less about answers than the art of asking better questions. His work with the Odisha Government redrew his definition of success, while his view of Corporate Social Responsibility remains rooted in nation-building, not ornament.

In a conversation with Scroll, Bagchi talked about founding Mindtree, his role as a public servant, and the joy of “pulling the chariot”....

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