One November afternoon in 2003, an Indian businessman named Sanjiv Mehta walked into the tony East India Club on St James’s Square , Central London, to meet a “powerful” director of the East India Company (EIC). Mehta, whose trading company distributed the products of the Tatas Nestle and Unilever across Europe and the MENA region, had come by to secure handling rights for the wares of EIC.Mehta was keen to get the mandate as the “resurrected East India Company” dealt in special teas and exotics – a missing piece in his expansive trading network. That apart, he longed for an association with EIC, besotted by its immeasurable antiquarian value. The idea, that an Indian sitting across the table and doing business with a British company that ruled nearly half the world for over 250 years, pleased him immensely.East India Company was established by English merchants 400 years ago and ruled India between 1611 and 1858 after which the British crown took over the administration. At its height, the company controlled 50% of the world trade, but its fortunes had since dwindled. Its wares, which once encompassed a cornucopia of goods such as spices silks and porcelain, had atrophied to mostly tea and coffee.Ten minutes into the talks, Mehta realised the EIC management was not keen to run the business for long. He sensed the managers were contemplating to sell the business. Mehta moved his chair closer to the Englishman, pulled out a paper napkin from the centre of the table and jotted down his price for the company. The Englishman stared at the napkin for a few seconds and nodded in agreement. He was actually so pleased with Mehta’s offer that he insisted on picking up the tab for the afternoon tea they had ordered. “I bought the first 21% shares of East India Company in 20 minutes,” says Mehta. Twenty minutes. That was all it took for an Indian to set off the process of buying a 400-year-old English company.So far so good. The only problem is doubts continue to swirl about whether Mehta bought the real McCoy. Or did he just purchase rights to use the name and insignias of the company? We will get there in a moment, but what is certain is Mehta saw an opportunity and seized it with both hands.The deal was actually surreal — much like the television commercial of Rajnigandha pan masala released in 2004. Set in London, the advertisement features an Indian tycoon stopping his car in front of an impressive building — supposedly the headquarters of EIC — and telling his colleague he wants to buy ‘that’ company: ‘They ruled us for 200 years; now it’s our turn to rule them,’ the tycoon says. In many ways, Mehta exudes the haughtiness of the tycoon in the ad.“It was a very emotional decision for me… I wanted to buy the company that ruled us. I wanted to own the company that owned half the world,” asserts Mehta.Mehta would not reveal how much he invested, but sources peg the value of the deal at around $10 million.Mehta, 54, who was born into a family of traditional gem traders from Mumbai, says the company did not cost much and insists the value is much more than what was actually paid. “EIC is one brand that has an amazing recall value around the world. Obviously, the sellers did not know the value of what they were selling,” says Mehta.Mehta bought the company by partnering Anand Mahindra, the chairman of the Rs 87,500-crore (MCap) automaker Mahindra and Gulf-based retail tycoon Yusuffali MA. Apart from commercial interests such as tapping into the brand equity of EIC and opening high-end retail outlets across top commonwealth cities, Mehta says he and his partners took extreme pride in owning the historic trading company. By 2005, Mehta had acquired shares of all the 38 stakeholders.The deal allowed Mehta the right to use the name (The East India Company), the chop marks of EIC, the court of arms, replication rights to all EIC exhibits kept in museums across the world and reprinting rights of all EIC documents including old navigation maps, records and library material preserved by EIC. Apart from these, Mehta also bagged the coffee and tea businesses of EIC, commenced by the 38 shareholders in the mid-1980s.Despite Mehta’s assertions that he snapped up a historic company, sceptics abound. Tirthankar Roy, professor of economic history at The London School of Economics, does not think Mehta bought the same EIC that once ruled India. “The old EIC was disbanded in 1874,” he contests. “And when a company is liquidated, it ceases to own anything at all.” A peek into history is required to make sense of the conflicting versions.By 1858, when the British crown decided to take over the reins of India from EIC, the company’s fortunes were already on the wane.The industrial revolution and the resultant rise of laissez-faire economic ideology had diluted its trading prowess. EIC was nationalised in the aftermath of the Indian Sepoy Mutiny – its assets, administrative powers and other possessions were attached to the Crown. In 1874, EIC was formally dissolved; the equity shareholders of the Company were compensated by giving government bonds.For the next 100 years, EIC only existed in the mildewed scrolls of the British monarchy. By some accounts, EIC continued to present financial statements, meeting minutes and invoices to the Crown until the 1920s — many of which can still be perused in the ‘EIC section’ of the British Library. Not much is known about EIC beyond that period.In the early 1980s, a band of “blue-blooded Londoners” decided to resurrect EIC. Upon receiving the Queen’s permission, they started building businesses —mainly tea and coffee — centred around the brand name ‘East India Company.’ They steadily expanded across Europe, the erstwhile USSR and the US.Roy, who has written a book titled ‘The East India Company: The world’s most powerful corporation’, says the connection between Mehta’s business and the old company is no more than symbolic. “The new company is simply using the name to market itself."Business historian Raman Mahadevan agrees. “There is undeniably a lot of symbolic value in this deal. But beyond that, this company cannot be compared with the old EIC.” It would be safe to say that Mehta bought the resurrected EIC. Mehta himself stops short of equating his company with the old EIC. “We’re not trying to replicate the old EIC here; we’re only trying to get inspired by it.”Future CourseTo be sure, some of the new EIC’s activities manifest the mandate of the old one. Mehta’s EIC deals with exotic goods —special teas, spices and fine food, mock-up replicas, gold coins — as well publishing, hotels and fine dining restaurants, and even branded real estate. EIC manufactures 280 different varieties of teas and 100 varieties of chocolates at its processing centres across the UK. Some products are premium — a 50 gm packet of its white tea Golden Tips costs roughly `7000.“Our primary focus is to open EIC exclusive retail stores in the major cities of Commonwealth countries, to tap into the immense brand equity of EIC,” explains Mehta’s partner Yusuffali, chairman of LULU Group.The new owners have been busy expanding the business. EIC publishing vertical has published seven books. The bullion business involves minting gold coins (mohurs and guineas) with old EIC’s hallmark. The company expects these to be sold to coin collectors and other buyers of gold.“We’re trying to build a lifestyle brand here… this could be the first of its kind from Commonwealth countries,” says Mehta. The company will open villa hotels in UAE and Scotland next year. EIC has opened a fine dining restaurant in London; four more outlets – specialising in Commonwealth cuisine - are being planned in the Gulf emirates in 2017. EIC will also foray into leather and fashion accessories eventually.Mehta says EIC is a luxury brand today. “But we don’t want to be just rare, we want to sell our products and services with an authentic story backing it.”