What Raymond's Vijaypat Singhania Told NDTV About 'The Complete Man' Tagline

One of the most iconic and timeless taglines in Indian advertising's history is 'Raymond: The Complete Man'. The tagline, conceived in a post-liberalisation India, marked a break from menswear commercials that projected a macho image.

The 'Raymond Man' was sensitive, responsible, and emotional. He played with his infant baby, honoured his childhood teacher and let a child pin a flower onto his wedding suit. As cable TV beamed across Indian homes and more and more women joined the workforce, values underwent a sea change; responsibilities now needed to be shared. And against this backdrop, the 'Raymond Man' appealed to the masses, making it a huge advertising success story and one of India's longest-surviving taglines.

As the Raymond group, adventure lovers and his admirers mourn Vijaypat Singhania, NDTV looks back at the Walk the Talk episode in which the Padma Bhushan recipient spoke about this iconic slogan, his hot air balloon flight that won a Guinness World record, his love for his granddaughter, and many other subjects.

When veteran journalist Shekhar Gupta asked him about 'The Complete Man' tagline, Singhania replied, "Well, when it was coined, I don't think it had the kind of deep meaning that it has today in my mind. It was really designed to show that clothes form part of the man. And it was like a cliche used to show that you're a complete man if you wear Raymond's clothing."

The slogan, he said, grew on him. "It became much more philosophical to me that the complete man is one who is an ideal person in society, who does what is expected of him, who is the right kind of guy. Of course, there are lots of wrong guys who may wear Raymond's suitings...," he said.

"I like to believe that Raymond conducts its business in an ideal manner, as I would like to do. I like to believe its products are as respected as I would want them to be. And I like to believe, in totality, Raymond is better than the best. Now, I may be arrogant in saying that, but that's my belief," he said.

Passion For Flying

Singhania, then 67, spoke about his passion for flying. "I've always had a passion for flying from a very young age, and it turned into an obsession. I think the only difference is that passion may have rationale, obsession doesn't," he said.

Singhania holds the Guinness World Record for the highest hot air balloon flight. On November 26, 2005, a hot-air balloon he was in soared to nearly 69,000 feet.

Speaking about the many challenges during the flight, including snags that could have turned awry, he replied, "I was more worried about the success of the mission rather than a life-threatening situation. I don't believe I went through any life-threatening situation."

Near-Death Experiences

Speaking about his most dangerous flight, Singhania said, "My most dangerous was when I was over the Mediterranean Sea, and I had forgotten to switch on and change my fuel tank. And my engine coughed. And I think my quick reaction in changing the fuel tank and re-pumping the engine made the engine come back to life. Otherwise, if it had stopped, there was no way I could start it in mid-flight... I said, Oh God, I don't want to land in the Mediterranean Sea and be eaten by sharks. I was pretty sure I would be able to float on top till I was rescued. I don't know how long that would have been. It could have been several hours. That's why I was carrying a small bottle of shark repellent."

He also spoke about an incident where he almost got shot down during a flight. "I was shot at in my Dakota by a drunk Air Force officer who was firing at a bird, and my aircraft came behind the trees. It cut my propeller. But fortunately, I was maybe less than two minutes from touchdown. It was a .303 bullet, service bullet. Civilians can't have that. And yet no action was taken," he said.

On His Grand-Daughter

The interview also touched upon a personal subject: Singhania's relationship with his granddaughter Ananya. Ananya is the daughter of Singhania's elder son, Madhupati, who broke ties with Singhania and his younger son Gautam, who gave up his rights over the family business and moved to Singapore.

Asked about not seeing his granddaughter often, Singhania replied, "That's one of those things in life that happens to all of us. She was my first grandchild. And I think more than being a granddaughter, she became part of my soul, which she still is, irrespective of what happened. And things happen in life. Times change."

On Running A Newspaper

Singhania briefly ran a newspaper, The Indian Post. Asked if he considered it a mistake, he said, "I still don't believe it was a mistake... the sheer strength of my opponents killed it."

His rivals, Singhania said, threatened newspaper vendors that if they picked up copies of The Indian Post, they would not get their copies. "They had no choice... So they stopped carrying mine."

Singhania trashed claims that he got into trouble with the Rajiv Gandhi government due to articles published in the newspaper.

"I never interfered in editorial freedom. I never told them what to write, what not to write. In fact, I remember some stories printed so strongly against Rajiv Gandhi. And I think they were right in printing what they did. When I met Rajiv Gandhi, I felt that he was a very charming man. Though unfortunately not so effective in management. Because he depended a lot on people... some of them are not so dependable. We all go wrong," he said.