The Z Factor: My Journey as the Wrong Man at the Right Time
By Subhash Chandra with Pranjal Sharma
HarperCollins
Review by Krishna Kumar Mishra
This is the first-hand inside look at what it took to build Zee and also Subhash Chandra’s various other businesses. The story-like narrative unfolds everything – not only how he deals with various business dilemmas, but also what he goes through personally as he is dealing with them. This was the much-awaited book for a long time. This amazing book is not only motivational for budding entrepreneurs, but it also summarises the Indian economic scene after the independence, how it grew, the pitfalls, as well as the political upheaval it suffered. If you really want to get inspired and taste success, go for it, read it and get on the job quickly. Dr Subhash Chandra gives a detailed account of his life, about the importance of hard work and in a scenic detail describes what it took for him to reach where he is today. In fact, the first person narration is very candid.
IE&M Take
“A pretty interesting life story of a billionaire. This book will only inspire, encourage, and motivate you.”
This is a story of hard, but smart work, dedication and determination with a lot of insight. From exporting rice to manufacturing to laminated tubes to amusement park to setting up India`s first private TV channel and media – and there are many more, Subhash Chandra adopted the philosophy of entering into niche markets. He started at the age of 17 with a family business almost gone haywire, worked hard and now rules over a 60 billion business empire. Although it all seems to have been done by design but, the truth is most was by default. And that’s called destiny. Always a risk taker, he took a calculated risk by entering into the markets where there was less competition.
The best is that it is the real first-hand account from the horse’s own mouth. A pretty interesting life story of one of our own foremost billionaires, and media tycoon. Subhash Chandra’s business story is entertaining, inspiring, gripping, and never confusing. He does come across as someone who has his feet firmly on the ground.
