Harsh and Sanjiv Goenka outside their residence on Sunday. Picture by Sanjoy Chattopadhyaya

Calcutta, April 14: Bereaved brothers Harsh Vardhan and Sanjiv Goenka will don separate mantles as they look to carry forward the legacy of patriarch Rama Prasad Goenka who very sensibly divided his empire between his two sons more than three years ago.

Harsh, based in Mumbai for over two decades and working out of Ceat Mahal, held the reins of the undivided RPG Enterprises after his father retired in 1990 when he turned 60. Younger brother Sanjiv was named vice-chairman.

After the division of the family business, Harsh remains in charge of RPG Enterprises while Sanjiv has carved out a new identity — RP Sanjiv Goenka Group — for the companies he manages out of Victoria House in Calcutta.

Ramababu, as he is affectionately called in corporate circles, remained the chairman emeritus for both the groups. He lived with his younger son at their Alipore residence, Goenka Niwas.

Harsh Vardhan, 56, has interests in tyres through his flagship company Ceat, infrastructure with KEC, information technology through Zensar Technologies and pharmaceuticals via RPG Life Sciences, with a combined turnover worth Rs 17,000 crore.

Sanjiv, 52, owns power-generating company CESC Ltd and the world’s second-largest carbon black producer Phillips Carbon Black, and has interests in retailing through Spencer’s and in entertainment and media through Music World and the Open magazine. The group’s turnover now stands at around Rs 14,000 crore.

Last year, Sanjiv snapped up BPO firm Firstsource Solutions Ltd, revealing the same streak for acquisitions that made his father arguably India’s first home-grown takeover tycoon.

However, there are three entities that the brothers jointly own: tea and rubber plantation firm Harrison Malayalam, Spencer International Hotels, and RPG Enterprises. Harrison Malayalam is in the process of being split into two entities — with a holding structure that will mirror each other. The scheme of arrangement has been drawn up and will require shareholder and court approvals.

Spencer International Hotels operates three leased hotel properties: Taj Connemara in Chennai, Taj West End in Bangalore and Taj Savoy in Ootacamund.

RPG Enterprises is a corporate entity but with little commercial operations.

Corporate observers say the brothers have a healthy rivalry as they strive for the growth of their respective empires. Both have undertaken expansion across verticals though they are not competing in any space as of now.

Unlike the Ambani brothers, Harsh and Sanjiv have no non-compete agreement between them, allowing them to step into each other’s domain at any time they choose. The Ambanis scrapped the non-compete agreement in May 2010, five years after they had drawn it up.

However, both the Goenka groups will have the right to use the RPG brand name — just as both branches of the Ambani family use the Reliance brand.

The next generation of Goenkas has already started to assume responsibilities. Anant, son of Harsh Vardhan, became managing director of Ceat India Ltd on April 1 last year. He is also a member of the top management team of RPG Enterprises.

Sanjiv’s son Shashwat, a management graduate from Wharton, too has joined the family business, earning a board position at Firstsource Solutions. He also takes an active interest in Spencer’s. Harsh Vardhan and Sanjiv have daughters but they do not play active roles in the businesses.

“The legacy of RPG will be carried forward as much by the grandsons as by Harsh and Sanjiv. Just as RPG was there to guide them (the sons) in their formative years, they will do the same for Anant and Shashwat,” said an industrialist who has observed the Goenkas from close quarters.