MUMBAI: Simone Tata (nee Dunoyer), a Swiss national who married into the Tatas and built India’s most enduring cosmetics brand, passed away in Mumbai Friday at 95.Lakme, a Tata venture born of an unusual request by then PM Nehru, who noticed that Indian women relied heavily on imported cosmetics, draining precious foreign exchange, was named after the French opera Lakme, (itself referencing Lakshmi, the Hindu goddess). Simone became its driving force, marketing it in a way that directly questioned the taboo around makeup.Simone, who grew up in Geneva, had recalled growing up absorbing lessons on presenting oneself with care. Talking to Vogue in 2017, she recalled her first brush with the transformative power of cosmetics before a piano recital. A self-described tomboy, she was surprised when her mother dusted her face with cream, blush, and powder. “I was transformed,” she said. That moment sparked a lifelong fascination with beauty.Trent-setter Simone was force behind WestsideSimone, who grew up in Geneva, Switzerland, had recalled absorbing lessons on presenting oneself with care. Beauty and grooming were woven into daily life. In a 2017 interview with Vogue, she spoke about her first brush with the transformative power of cosmetics before a piano recital. A self-described tomboy, she was surprised when her mother dusted her face with cream, blush, and powder. “I was transformed,” she had said. That moment sparked a lifelong fascination with beauty.Simone’s life changed course when she met Tata Group stalwart Naval Tata in Geneva. At the time, she worked for Air India — then under the Tata umbrella — and Naval often visited the city as a board member of the International Labour Organization. In 1953, at age 23, she visited India for the first time during a summer holiday. Despite a 26-year age difference and Naval’s previous marriage to Soonoo Commisariat, their bond deepened. The two married in 1955, and though Simone retained her Swiss passport, she embraced Mumbai as her home.
Becoming part of the Tata family also meant being stepmother to Naval’s sons, Jimmy and Ratan, the latter of whom would go on to become one of India’s most admired business leaders. In Horizons, a publication by Tata Trusts, she remembered Ratan returning home during a school break from the US wearing a Frank Sinatra–style straw hat — “a gangly Parsee youth disguised as an American star”. A year into her marriage, Simone and Naval welcomed their son, Noel, now chairman of Tata Trusts.Her entry into business came in 1961, influenced partly by her husband’s interests but more so by her own growing professional curiosity. She joined Lakme and began marketing it in a way that resonated with modern Indian women.Advertiser and screenwriter Kamlesh Pandey once recounted a turning point in the brand’s journey. His agency, Rediffusion, had proposed a stark black-and-white campaign that questioned the social taboo around makeup with the line: “Is it bad to look good?” Simone initially detested the concept — accustomed as she was to colourful, glamorous visuals. “But our account supervisor Vishwanathan went on selling it. She could not take it anymore and exploded,’ Mr Vishwanathan, I do not like to see your face!’ ‘It doesn’t matter if you do not like to see my face, Mrs Tata,’ countered Vishwanathan fearlessly, “But this is the campaign you are going to buy!” And she bought the campaign, which went on to win several awards…,” wrote Pandey for exchange4media in Sept. It was one of many decisions that showed Simone’s willingness to adapt, experiment, and trust disruptive ideas.In 1996, Tata Group sold Lakme to HUL as part of a restructuring effort. Simone channelled the sale proceeds to acquire British retail chain Littlewoods, laying the foundation for the group’s entry into fashion retail. Littlewoods was soon rebranded as Westside, which is now one of India’s most successful department store formats. Over the decades, Simone oversaw the group’s consumer businesses including Lakme and Trent (which operates Westside) — and served on the boards of Tata Industries and the Sir Ratan Tata Institute. She eventually retired in 2006. “She was a gracious lady and an outstanding entrepreneur,” said former Tata Group director Ishaat Hussain.After retirement, Simone remained out of the public eye. She appeared occasionally — at the reopening of the renovated Westside flagship in 2019; at the funeral of her son’s brother-in-law and former Tata Group chairman Cyrus Mistry in 2022; and at Ratan’s funeral in 2024. Simone passed away at Mumbai’s Breach Candy Hospital. A funeral mass will be held on Saturday at the Cathedral of the Holy Name in Colaba, a church Simone regularly attended.
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