Signature in stone via @tatacompanies

Bombay House, the corporate headquarters of the Tata group, stands tall among the heritage buildings of Mumbai and has been an intrinsic part of the cityscape. It has been, and still is, the most visible and magnificent symbol of a group that has played a leadership role in the national business arena. The building was designed by George Wittet, who also conceptualised the glorious Prince of Wales Museum, the Gateway of India and the Victoria Terminus buildings. Construction was completed in July 1924 and many Tata companies found a home here. Bombay House became the headquarters of the Tata group in the 1960s: a magnificent edifice befitting the stature of the largest and the most respected corporate house in the country.

The busts of the Founder Jamsetji Tata and former Tata Sons chairman JRD Tata, and the crest of the Tata group, designed by the Founder himself, adorn the foyer of the building. The crest bears the legend, Humata, Hukhta, Hvarshta, which means good thoughts, good words and good deeds. These words, originally from the Avesta language, have been incorporated into the crest from the Zoroastrian credo. The four-storeyed Bombay House houses the corporate offices of Tata Steel, Tata Motors, Tata Power, Tata Chemicals and Trent, besides the group promoter companies, Tata Sons and Tata Industries, and some departments of Tata Services. The Sir Dorabji Tata Trust and the Sir Ratan Tata Trust also run their highly esteemed nation-building activities from their premises here.

Over the years, this nerve centre of the Tata group has evolved in as many ways as the group has. Typewriters have given way to computers and open counters have vanished, leaving in their place well-appointed offices that spell elegance and class. A landmark in the commercial quarter of south Mumbai, Bombay House symbolises a group that is steadily establishing its imprint across the world.

This is an edited version of a photo feature that first appeared in Tata Review October 2007.

Signature in stone

The nerve centre of the Tata group and a heritage structure, Bombay House stands tall among the high-rises in Mumbai