Ratanji Dadabhoy Tata

Ratanji Dadabhoy Tata
Born	1856 Navsari, Gujarat
Died	1926 Paris, France
Alma mater	Cathedral & John Connon School
Occupation	Industrialist
Spouse(s)	Suzanne Brière
Children	Rodabeh, Jehangir, Jimmy, Sylla and Darab

Ratanji Dadabhoy Tata (R.D. Tata, 1856–1926) was a Parsi businessman who played a pivotal role in the growth of the Tata Group in India. He was the first cousin of Jamsetji Tata, a pioneering industrialist of India and the Founder of Tata Sons. He was one of the partners in Tata Sons founded by Jamshedji Tata. Ratanji is the father of J. R. D. Tata.

Ratanji was born in Navsari in Gujarat in 1856. He studied at The Cathedral & John Connon School and Elphinstone College in Bombay. After graduating, he took up a course in agriculture in Madras. He then joined his family trade in the Far East.

Ratanji was married at an early age to a Parsee girl from the Banaji family. However, she died childless not long after the marriage. Ratanji was in his forties when he remarried a French woman, Suzanne Brière, in 1902. This was considered revolutionary in his times and was not welcomed by some in the Parsi community. They had five children Rodabeh, Jehangir (JRD Tata), Jimmy, Sylla and Dorab.

Under the name Tata & Co, Ratanji ran an opium importing business in China, which was legal at the time. In 1887, he and other merchants such as David Sassoon presented a petition on behalf of the opium traders to complain about a Hong Kong Legislative Council bill that threatened to affect their trade.

Tata Steel was conceived and commissioned by Jamshedji Tata. However, Jamshedji died before the completion of the project. Ratanji played an important role in the completion of the Tata Steel Project along with Jameshdji's son Dorab and thus Tata Steel was established in Jamshedpur.

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