My Life My Style: Arvind Rao, OnMobile Systems

Best business moment?
Signing global agreements with Vodafone and Telefonica in London and Madrid

Favourite TV show?
I don’t watch TV!! Does the Pakistan-India match count?

Books on your bedside?
Fountainhead — Ayn Rand

Midnight’s Children — Salman Rushdie

Our Kind of Traitor — John Le Carré

What’s your cologne?
Comme Des Garcons

You get your suits from?
Barneys, New York

What’s your shaving mantra?
Geo F Trumper

Penhaligons

Who’s your favourite shoemaker?
Berlutti

What’s your weekday breakfast like? And weekend?
Weekday — fruit and oatmeal

Weekend — idli or scrambled eggs

Your current set of wheels?
BMW 7 Series

In the car is it sleep or cell for you?
Cell for urgent calls, else music on iPhone and eyes shut

Favourite champagne?
Bollinger

Your sleeping ritual?
Read good book, in bed by 10 pm

Massage or workout to de-stress?
Neither, go out sailing

Designs that have caught your eye recently?
Japanese shoes

French suspenders

Your IT tools?
iPhone, IBM laptop

Favourite fashion designer?
Sorry, not really into brands

Favourite spirit?
Single malt scotch or Grey Goose vodka

Belgian beers

Favourite wine?
Merlots

Best gift received?
24-volume set of Asterix comics

Best gift given?
State-of-the-art computer lab for kids to two schools

Favourite cuisine?
Mexican, but the non-Indian variety

What food items do you like to shop for? Why?
Cheeses, because they have such variety and subtle variations to choose from!

Newspaper/TV channels and websites you prefer?
I’m not really a big consumer of the media

Where do you like to sit when being driven? Up front with driver or back seat like sahib?
Up front

On a plane do you prefer to network, sleep or catch up on films and reading?
Sleep or read, no more networking please!

Fancy coffee or masala tea?
Coffee

Can you cook? What?
Rice, akuri — that’s it unfortunately!

Do you fill customer feedback forms? Why?
Yes, unless I feel convinced that there will be no action taken

Are you a beach or mountain person?
Water and mountains, no beach

God for you is...
Justice, sensitivity and care for others, straight talking

Favourite café?
Theobroma, Colaba Causeway

Favourite restaurant?
India Jones

Workday lunch is...
Soup, fruits, uttapam or thali at nearby restaurant.

What’s your workout regime?
Swimming, home exercise bike, early morning walk with my dog

Your ideal holiday?
Badruts Hotel in St Moritz in December

Maldives resort, Chill Out

Trans-Siberian railway trip

At parties do you like to talk turkey or PC?
Turkey

A few of your goddesses are?
Don’t worship any goddesses really, of any kind, to be frank

Alpha males you know?
Phaneesh Murthy (iGate)

Luis Miguel Gilprez (Telefonica)

Your favourite motto?
Write history, don’t read it

Arvind Rao, CEO and Co-founder, OnMobile Systems