‘How we live today determines our path for our future’: Raj N, Founder, Zaggle
The Proust Questionnaire is a questionnaire about one’s personality. It has its origins in a parlour game popularised by Marcel Proust, the French essayist, who believed that, in answering these questions, an individual reveals his or her true nature.
Raj N is the Founder and Chairman of Zaggle, a payments and data company that has offices across 10 cities. It is geared towards building a network agnostic payment system and customer experience. Recently, he launched a book titled “Made in Hyderabad,” based on the entrepreneurial journey of 25 entrepreneurs from Hyderabad.
Raj is a graduate from Delhi University, who pursued another MBA from NYU and went on to work in PwC as a consultant.
In 2001, he founded ’eYantra’ - a corporate merchandising platform — and is a key contributor to the Indian startup ecosystem with over 29 investments so far.
As a serial entrepreneur, Raj has built and sold businesses in financial services, prepaid internet retail, loyalty, merchandising, reward and recognition, open banking, and expense management.
With over 22 years of work experience, working in India and the US, he is seen as the go-to guy by his peers and friends for business ideation, design, and execution needs. He is an active angel investor and mentor and has invested in over 25 companies. Over the years, he has won multiple awards like CNBC Young Turks in 2006, Entrepreneur of the Year in 2008, and Marketer of the Year in 2015.
Here are his responses to our Proust questionnaire…
What is your idea of perfect happiness?
Achieving Moksha.
What is your greatest fear?
Being left dependent on others.
What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?
Overdoing pulling someone's leg.
What is the trait you most deplore in others?
Dishonesty and deceit.
Which living person do you most admire?
Aishwarya Rai.
What is your greatest extravagance?
My Lamborghini URUS.
What is your current state of mind?
Restless.
What do you consider the most overrated virtue?
Intelligence.
On what occasion do you lie?
When disinterested.
What do you most dislike about your appearance?
Nothing, except that I would like a little more hair, slightly lesser weight, and become a little taller.
Which living person do you most despise?
Just too many to answer.
What is the quality you most like in a man?
Humility and brains.
Which words or phrases do you most overuse?
You know.
What or who is the greatest love of your life?
Being on the sea in a boat and time stops.
Which talent would you most like to have?
Singing.
If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?
Start appreciating the world the way it is.
What do you consider your greatest achievement?
Being an entrepreneur.
If you were to die and come back as a person or a thing, what would it be?
Same as I am today.
Where would you most like to live?
On a farm next to the beach.
What is your most treasured possession?
My daughter.
What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery?
Self-pity.
What is your favourite occupation?
Business.
What is your most marked characteristic?
Bring intuitively sharp.
What do you most value in your friends?
Loyalty and love for me.
Who are your favourite writers?
Ghalib, Zafar, and Osho.
Who is your hero of fiction?
Superman.
Which historical figure do you most identify with?
Confucius.
Who are your heroes in real life?
Dad, Tiger Woods, Salma Hayek, Steve Jobs, Warren Buffet, and Rajnikanth.
What is your favourite name?
Norbert Phillips.
What is it that you most dislike?
People who are lazy.
What is your greatest regret?
No regrets at all.
How would you like to die?
In silence and at peace.
What is your favourite journey?
The journey of entrepreneurship.
What is your motto?
How we live today determines our path for our future.
Edited by Suman Singh