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ACPramod Saxena asks a Question That Most Young Indians cannot answer. Who Was Reliance's Biggest Competitor? The Answer Is Essar. And Almost Nobody Remembers Them.
The Rivalry That History Forgot:
Essar Group was built by Shashi Ruia and Ravi Ruia in the same era as Reliance.
The scale was comparable. The ambition was comparable. The family conglomerate model was identical.
For a period in Indian business history, these two groups were genuine peers.
Then one name endured, and the other faded.
The IPO That India's Largest Got Stuck:
Essar launched what was at the time India's biggest public issue.
It attracted massive attention and significant capital commitment.
Then it got stuck for months. Multiple stories exist for why.
The largest IPO of its era, becoming stuck, is the moment that marked a different trajectory.
The Telecom Lesson Inside the Story:
Essar had telecom involvement, but it was financial, not operational.
The companies that built lasting telecom businesses were operationally invested.
Financial interest without operational commitment is a different kind of bet.
And in telecom India, that bet produced different outcomes.
Did you know Essar was once Reliance's equal?
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