The iconic 40-seater Lockheed Martin Constellation took off from the Mumbai (then Bombay) airport for London, on the warm summer afternoon of June 8, 1948—just 10 months after India’s independence—carrying 35 people, including ‘maharajas’, ‘nawabs’ and J.R.D. Tata. It was India’s maiden international flight, and for JRD it was a moment of pride (Air India was owned by the Tata Group). He went on to build the country’s largest salt-to-steel conglomerate, touching almost every household in the second most populous country.