Dr Homi Bhabha explaining the TIFR building model to Prime Minister Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru. To the left of Dr Bhabha is JRD Tata and his wife Thelma Tata is standing beside Pandit Nehru. Courtesy: TATA
22 October 2026

TIFR and the Tata Trust

BY

The tussle between the directors on the Tata Sons’ board has drawn attention to the company’s largest shareholder: the Tata Trusts. The Trusts hold a 66% stake in Tata Sons and have pushed back against diluting it through a public listing. A look at the vision for and establishment of the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research in Bombay, supported by the Trusts, underscores the pioneering philanthropy the Tatas always practised.