How did the Mistrys of the Shapoorji Pallonji group manage to acquire shares in the Tata Group?

Nobody can hurt me without my permission.

There are a great many erroneous stories about the Dinshaw relationship with the Tatas and Wadias. The families were indeed close and were leaders in the Bombay community. The Tatas and the Dinshaws were all well known for their deep Zoroastrian faith and extraordinary philanthropic gestures. Both families donated a lot of their wealth to help establish schools and hospitals. However, the Wadia clan’s conversion to Christianity caused some strains in this relationship.

One of the great myths of the Tata narrative is that the Dinshaw family was the bankers of Tata, lenders of the last resort. It was widely reported that the Dinshaws had loaned the Tatas Rs 1 crore on two occasions (in today’s money, about $2 billion) back in the 1920s to help keep the company afloat.

It was rumoured that the Dinshaws had made their money – an absolute fortune – selling supplies to the British Army during the Second Afghan War (1878-81). That part is indeed true. Another common misconception, quoted by numerous sources, was that sometime during the 1920s, Edulji Dinshaw converted his loans into 12.5 per cent equity in Tata.

However, if you examine the Tata Sons Share Registry, you’ll see that…

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