Staying the course: Meet Gurpratap S Boparai, MD, Skoda Auto VW India

As he steers his company through a tricky market and works for road safety, Boparai shares his life's journey with Pavan Lall

“Now, that’s not a fair que­s­tion,” grins Gur­pratap S Boparai, the mana­g­ing director of Skoda Auto Volks­wagen India, the firm that drives the global auto giant’s port­folio of cars in the subcontinent. I’m push­ing the soft-spoken auto veteran to pick favourites. “If you’re truly a car lover, then you can’t just love one car,” he says with a slow drawl. I agree, and accept the non-answer.

I’m meeting Boparai for lunch at his office in Andheri. We have ordered in from Trident in Bandra Kurla Complex rather than go out since he’s mostly shuttling between Mumbai and Pune, and this