Best work moment
Signing the shareholder agreement for Aleph Book Company and signing the contract for Aleph's first book, Between Clay and Dust by Musharraf Ali Farooqi
Books on your bedside
Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman, What It Was by George Pelecanos
To de-stress: massage or workout?
Workout
Designs that have caught your eye recently
The Dyson Air Multiplier Bladeless Fan; the iPhone, of course, although it's not new
Your IT tools
Macbook Pro, iPad
Favourite spirit
I don’t drink any longer, but when I did it was Lagavulin
Your sleeping ritual
In bed by 10, up at 5.15
Favourite TV show
Game of Thrones
Best gift received
[My wife] Rachna gave me a Rolex Seadweller when I turned 40. Pretty much the only fancy thing I own. I’m not big on material possessions
Best gift given
Don’t know — you'll have to ask Rachna
Favourite cuisine
Sushi, sashimi. Biryani
Foods you like to shop for
Cheese, mangoes
Newspaper TV channels and websites you prefer
A number of Indian newspapers and magazines, the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Guardian, New Yorker online. ESPN Star Sports, NDTV, sundry movie and current-affairs channels. Slate, Byliner, Bleacher Report
In the car, do you sit in front with the driver or in the back seat like a sahib?
Back seat, because I like to read and watch movies on my daily commute
On a plane: network, sleep or catch up on films and reading?
Watch movies
Fancy coffee or masala tea?
Fancy coffee
What do you cook on your day off?
I don’t cook
Do you fill out customer feedback forms? Why?
No. Waste of time
Are you a beach or mountain person?
Mountain
Your cologne
Hermès
You get your suits from...
I don’t wear suits any longer, this is a hot country
Bathing preference: shower, tub or bucket?
Shower
Weekday breakfast? And weekend?
Cereal
Your current wheels
Skoda Superb
God, for you, is…
God
Workday lunch
Changes every day, as I entertain and eat out often
Workout regime
Swimming laps
At parties: talk turkey or make PC?
I avoid parties if I can help it
A few of your goddesses are...
Umm...
Alpha males you know
None
Your ideal holiday
Somewhere in the Himalayas, where I am unlikely to bump into other people bar the locals. Or Mongolia, the least populated country on the planet
Your favourite motto
I read Ecclesiastes and the Gita from time to time as I believe they possess all the wisdom a man will ever need
David Davidar
Co-founder, Aleph Book Company
