<B>VENKATARAMA HARIHARAN</B>

Like many Indians, V. Hariharan dreamt of the paradise beaches of Mauritius through Bollywood. The CFO of Mahanagar Telephone, a leading name in the ICT world, has the soul of a builder. Devoted to his work, he left his country in 2004 to set up the Indian company in Mauritius. A man of action, he visibly means every word he says.

Good natured, discreet and courteous, the chief financial officer of Mahanagar Telephone (Mauritius) Ltd, Venkatarama Hariharan, speaks with a calm authority. He evidently has a long experience of work and life as he has also been at the forefront of ICT development in the Subcontinent, even if he does not look like an old man...

The student who graduated in commerce in 1973 from Madurai University clearly had the soul of a builder. He was at the forefront of the upheavals which eventually led his native country, India, to the status of world giant in Information and Communication Technologies (ICT). Just after his studies, he joined the Indian Post and Telegraphs in Delhi. Remaining in the finance department, he was among the original staff of Mahanagar Tele-phone Nigam Ltd (Delhi and Mumbai) created in April 1986.

It ws also in April, but 18 years later, that Hariharan arrived in Mauritius. Mahanagar had then become the N° 1 Internet Service Provider in Delhi and Mumbai. And a long time had passed since he had been able to master, through an intensive course, the A to Z of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT).

In a truly Indian way, Hariharan was always fond of movies, and it was through Bollywood that he discovered the white sandy beaches of our distant paradise. He also knew from what he had learnt at school where, on leaving the Deccan mainland, the Indian sailor could find the key of the Ocean that was also called Indian, and the star that would reflect it in the skies, so he could not but feel that Mauritius would welcome him.

Hariharan did not actually sail to Mauritius but, after a short airflight, he reached a “nice country”, with “nice beaches”, temples to revere gods, “nice people” of different origins, a “nice town” called Quatre-Bornes, where he ultimately chose to live with his wife and his daughter. So he was able to “feel at home” here too.

After some time, Hariharan gives more of himself, smiling about his tentative Creole, telling of his strong liking for travel “during holidays” and how happy he is to have his daughter studying at the Mahatma Gandhi Institute.

So has Hariharan found his paradise on earth? At least, it is solidly linked with India, and not only by the airlines that enable him to come and go from time to time. Our destinies are not only linked by the past. “Mauritius will go far in information technology”. From an Indian elder brother, this comment, spoken from the heart, is more than a token of shared success. After all, the motto of Mahanagar is “Bringing people together anywhere, anytime.”