The Maverick Effect: The Inside Story of India's IT Revolution

by Harish Mehta

'The customs officer told me that I needed to leave samples of what I was exporting with him. I was forced to leave the floppy disk of the software with him. The diligent officer immediately planted a stapler pin through the floppy disk and attached it to the form, thereby destroying the media and rendering it unreadable. For the longest time, everybody's understanding of software differed immensely. This confusion continued into the 1980s, and it was getting challenging to grow the business. The more I met young software entrepreneurs, the more I realized that my frustration was not unique. Something had to be done.'

In the mid-1970s, a young, twenty-something man living an American dream threw away a lucrative job as a database manager and came back to India. At that time, India had no IT industry to speak of; computers were a novelty, and the nation was trapped in socio-economic backwardness and a labyrinthine License Raj.

As young Harish Mehta struggled to find his stride, he realized that India's nascent and fragmented IT industry acutely needed a unified voice that could speak to the government, change laws and harness the country's potential. In an unlikely alliance of headstrong and competing young professionals, he united other IT entrepreneurs to envision a world-beating association that would revolutionize Indian IT: NASSCOM.

The Maverick Effect is the extraordinary story of this band of dreamers who joined hands to transform a nation while also changing the lens through which the world looked at India. Valued at a staggering $200 billion today, the Indian

IT industry directly employs more than four million people. It is the largest forex earner and has helped millions of Indians beat poverty and rise to the middle-income group. Honest, open and inspiring, Harish Mehta's journey proves that no vision is impossible if unrelenting, kindred spirits unite.

Genres: Business, Nonfiction

348 pages, Hardcover

Published March 20, 2022

Reviews

[Bharath · Rating 5 out of 5]

Harish Mehta is a known name for his involvement with NASSCOM (a not-for-profit industry body representing Indian IT and BPM) as also the company he founded - Onward. This book is part autobiographical on his life and professional career, the challenges he faced & overcame, and especially his involvement with NASSCOM over the years. I found the book honest and inspiring. It was also nostalgic reading about the trajectory the industry I have been in since many years has taken.

The book has forewords from NR Narayana Murthy (one of the founders of Infosys) and N Chandrasekaran (Chairman of the Tata Group and previous CEO of TCS) – both iconic figures in the IT industry. Harish writes that his motivation for the book was because there has not been any publication so far covering the NASSCOM story and the role it has played in the growth of the technology industry in India. He describes his own personal story – he was doing well professionally in the US but felt a cultural disconnect and was unable to form close friendships despite his best attempts. He returned to India and was keen to start something of his own. His first thought was following his dad’s footsteps in film distribution but realized he was not cut out for it. He then turned to what he was most comfortable with – technology. He was part of the leadership team at Hinditron and also worked with several other prominent technology leaders such as FC Kohli, Narayana Murthy, Ashank Desai and others to start NASSCOM. NASSCOM played a key role in working with the government to setup frameworks & regulations to spur the growth of the industry.

NASSCOM required competitors to work together for the larger good. The constitution was kept simple with a President and a Chairperson. Harish Mehta was the first elected Chairman and Devang Mehta was the President for a 10-year period. Devang Mehta brought great visibility to NASSCOM and was passionate about doing something good for the country and the industry. He passed away very tragically at a young age. However, NASSCOM was able to continue with other capable leaders. Harish Mehta also faced personal setbacks including the passing away of his son and then being asked to exit Hinditron. He, however, found the inner strength to stay focused and started Onward Technologies while continuing to contribute to NASSCOM.

A lot of the content on how NASSCOM came about makes for fascinating reading. There was scepticism initially on the need for such a body as well as what it could achieve. However, the impact NASSCOM created was far-reaching. There is also a chapter on the contribution Devang Mehta made, though his flamboyance did attract some criticism. In one instance he came on an elephant to stomp on pirated discs! The last section has Harish Mehta’s views on what still remains to be done.

If you are part of the technology sector in India, there is a lot you will identify with and enjoy reading. It is also a worthwhile read otherwise, as there are many lessons other industries can draw from these experiences.

My rating: 4.5 / 5.

[BOOKSTHATSTAY · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Little did I realize at that time that the modest building in south Mumbai, from where my journey in software began, was to become the epicenter of a revolutionary incubation and an unlikely alliance would emerge that was going to change the way the world perceives the country we call home." - @harishmehta.official , The Maverick Effect

The Maverick Effect is an extraordinary and inspirational story of India's IT revolution. This book is for all those who have a dream and are actively pursuing it despite all the challenges and hurdles. It is full of wisdom and inside stories of all the dreamers, like Harish Mehta, FC Kohli, N. Chandra, N.Murthy, & many more revolutionaries, who have successfully shaped India's Information Technology sector and have made it a more than $200 billion industry today.

More importantly, this is the story of Nasscom and its founding members, who overcame a multitude of challenges to build, unify, and strengthen India's IT industry.

In the mid-1970s, when computers were still a novelty in India, Mr. Mehta, who was already living the great American dream, left his lucrative job and came back to India. He had a dream and a plan, but how often do things go as per our plan?!

The toughest decisions are made when we are walking on the road less traveled, or as in this case, the road that is still under construction. From assembling Nasscom to formulating its constitution, to set up an executive council, every step had its own challenges. Mr. Mehta overcame all these challenges while also dealing with a personal loss.

Filled with wisdom & so many valuable lessons, this book is bound to inspire!

One of my favorite quotes from this book is-

"We at Nasscom are like the Sunflower. The way the flower is guided by the movement of the Sun, we took energy from our vision of building for India. And when it was dark outside, just like the disk florets of the flower retain the saffron color, we kept our heads high and continued to reach for the sky."
This book is truly an inspirational read and a must-read for all the dreamers & go-getters out there!☺️

[AArush Ahuja · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Maverick Effect is an intimate and well-written account of Harish's journey and the creation and proliferation of NASSCOM whose work I am a benefactor of myself.

The book really puts in the picture of the decades of work done by NASSCOM to make software understood and accepted across regions, industries and governments.

It's a must read to understand the growth of the software ecosystem in India and the perspective of an industry body and it's ethos to push for the nation's growth while the industry went from millions of rupees to hundreds of billions of dollars it is today.

[Siddhant Kataria · Rating 3 out of 5]

Most of the time, the new inventions are ridiculed as crazy subjects, and the person offering them is titled as crazy. Knowing this, did you ever wonder how India treated the IT industry during its inception? The Maverick Effect by Harish Mehta discusses this inside story of India’s IT revolution.

After independence, India was recovering from exploitation and was striving for a position in the world. Riots and many other developments led to unstable growth. Meanwhile, the software industry was booming, and if the cards were played right in India, the industry was ready to offer ample opportunities to the Indians. But how did traditional politicians, bureaucrats, businesspersons, etc. trust this new technology?

NASSCOM, an association, was established to recognize the software industry as capable of earning forex for the nation, but this wasn’t easy as the hierarchy considered this association a threat. This story discusses the role of NASSCOM in assisting the politicians and the bureaucrats in understanding the benefits of the software service industry. It also discusses how this association brought the competitors together to fight for a great cause; this helped India be recognized globally. The journey wasn’t easy, but it was possible because the association believed in its vision.

This nonfiction follows first-person narration and is divided into various chapters. You may find it a bit repetitive, but it was the need of the hour. However, the repetitiveness has been managed well by the author's mature writing style. Also, the use of phrases and vocabulary is precise. One person, Harish Mehta, brought the marvels together for a vision, and that vision (association) fought for the good of all; thus, the title seems justified. In my humble opinion, the chapter 'Transformation 2.0' needed to be elucidated for better comprehension. Nevertheless, this story is inspiring and worth reading.

You may follow www.instagram.com/b00kscom .

[Likhitha Baggu · Rating 4 out of 5]

The word "Maverick" means a person who thinks independently and acts unconventionally. When a team of mavericks work together, they could not only achieve the goal but also could change the fortunes of the country. "The Maverick Effect" is a book that chronicles one such change brought by the pioneers of the software industry, which has put India on a global stage.

This book is written by Harish Mehta, who is the founding member and the first elected Chairman of the National Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM). In "The Maverick Effect", he tells about his professional life- NASSCOM, the rise of the software industry and its contribution to the nation & his personal life- returning to India, trying out different jobs and businesses and finally, deciding to put all his efforts in the software industry.

Mostly, this book concentrates on NASSCOM and the Mavericks who faced innumerable challenges such as explaining the intangible nature of software services to politicians and government officials, organising the software companies into one unified organization etc. This book also highlights the importance of collaboration between competitors and the author's take on atma nirbharata is unique and thought-provoking. My favourite chapter from this book is "Transformation 2.0" and it must be read by everyone.

"Maverick Effect" is a must-read book for IT professionals and entrepreneurs. General readers can also read this book as it is beautifully written in a storytelling format that could be easily grasped.

[Harsh Agrawal]

The Maverick Effect: The Inside Story of India's IT Revolution.
Author: Harish Mehta
Published by HarperBusiness(An Imprint of HarperCollins)
Genre: Memoir
MRP: Rs. 699/-

A Maverick is a person who does not behave or think like everyone else, but who has independent, unusual opinions. The Maverick effect tells the tale of NASSCOM (National Association of Software and Service Companies) and the "Mavericks" that came together in its journey. Its also a professional memoir of the author, who is one of the co-founders and chairmen of NASSCOM. These "Mavericks" all belonged to different companies and were for all intense and purposes, rivals.

NASSCOM, founded in 1988, is a not-for-profit organization, that played a key role in the growth of Indian Software Services and BPM Industries primarily, and indirectly in many other areas such as Bandwith for every citizen, Intellectual Property Rights, raising India Inc's stature globally, among others. The author discusses the challenges he (amongst others) had to face while setting up the multi-billion dollar industry.

The book has not one but two forwards written by men for whom I have the utmost respect. Mr. NR Narayan Murthy and Mr. N Chandrasekaran, both prominent members of NASSCOM. This gives the book, a major bump in credibility. (Not that it required any in the first place, given the author). One of the key reasons for writing the book, the author says, is to educate people about the contributions of NASSCOM and the Indian IT Industry towards changing the fortunes of the country.

The book is a blend of the author's professional (and some bits of personal) life, NAASCOM's journey, and the key people that helped in it. The author was living a (comparatively) comfortable life in the US, but he decided to return to India and (quite dramatically) cut his Green Card into two. He tried several professions, even working with his father in his film distribution business, to ultimately going back to working in the IT industry, but in India. After denying lucrative jobs at DoE and TCS, he joined Hinditron. The author was fascinated with Software at a time when people did not know what software was and associated electronics only with the hardware. Intangible things were(are) pretty hard to explain. To quote the author, in the '70s ......(Indians) belonged to Adam's third category. (Refer: https://www.forbes.com/sites/sap/2014...)

Given this, the author and his contemporaries found it extremely difficult to deal with the world, especially the Government, which did not understand software at all. The author suggested forming an association to work with the government on its regulations and bring a shift in their thinking and approach. This is how NASSCOM was founded. It was not a new idea, of course, even in the IT Industry there were several different associations, but none focused exclusively on software. These associations also were initially bitter towards NASSCOM and it is one of the hurdles that the author talks about in the book.

The author talks about some key Mavericks without whom NASSCOM, and perhaps even the Software and BPM Industry of India, would not be where they are. Some of these include the Late Dewang Mehta, the first president of NASSCOM, who was the face of the company and had an incredible work ethic among other things. The author also points out the not-so-impressive characteristics of the man in the book. In fact, he is the only one to get a dedicated chapter(s). Other Mavericks include Mr. N. Vitthal from the Department of Electronics of the GoI, who helped them in several critical manners.

Of course, the author also does not shy away from naming some of the "villains" of the story. Which are quite big names, might I add. The author talks about several things like the pillars by which NASSCOM operates, the different crises they had to face, and how they overcame each such as the Bandwidth issue. (Today we take the internet for granted, but in those days, a 64 kbps link used to cost up to Rs. 20,00,000 per year pre-inflation!) , A chapter is dedicated to how they helped India grow in stature.

The book is an impressive account of his and NASSCOM's journey that must be read. A layman can read it easily though I did have to google up a few terms. Otherwise, the book is so Gen-Z friendly that it even describes what the unit "kb" is in the footnotes. The footnotes do get irritating after a time. There are some things in the footnotes, that might as well be a part of the actual text. I did not see the point. The author does come from a privileged background. While that's not a bad thing, after all, people did work hard for that privilege, it would be nice to see the author acknowledge this. I personally found it a tad bit difficult to digest that an organisation this big, did not suffer from internal politics throughout its history. Also, some other things like maybe the author gave NASSCOM a little much credit for things like the rise of Indians globally, as if they were the only ones who were responsible and other organisations/people had nothing to do with it. It might be true, but undigestable to me. Other organisations like MAIT are also villainized in places.

Despite my criticisms, i think the book is a must-read, especially for people who want to know about the Software and BPM(BPO) revolution in the country.

The best buy link for the book(Affiliate Link) : https://amzn.to/3vuyPn4 (If you purchase from the link, we get a small kickback at no additional cost to you)

[Aastha Anand · Rating 4 out of 5]

For a developing nation like India, there are hardly any industries in the third category of greatness. But the IT industry and, most definitely, the BPO industry firmly belong to the second category. In fact, it had to toil significantly to get its due, let alone to find greatness. It was "a thing' long before it got recognized as a legit industry.


The Maverick Effect is Harishbhai’s attempt at immortalising the story of this group, the individual members, each a maverick, and how NASSCOM evolved over the years to become a significant movement that has since contributed significantly to the country. NASSCOM had a vision for India's fledgling tech industry. In bringing it to fruition, the lives of millions were improved and the destiny of our country was transformed.


One of the most important roles any great leader plays is that of an anchor. They don't just steer a boat—they keep it firmly grounded while they push it forward. In the case of Harishbhai, he's been that pivotal anchor for NASSCOM and the Indian IT industry through this journey - a journey that has seen its fair share of highs and lows.


The Maverick Effect is the extraordinary story of this band of dreamers who joined hands to transform a nation while also changing the lens through which the world looked at India. Valued at a staggering $200 billion today, It is the largest forex earner and has helped millions of Indians beat poverty and rise to the middle-income group. Honest, open and inspiring, Harish Mehta's journey proves that no vision is impossible if unrelenting, kindred spirits unite, how to deal with difficult situations, build audacious goals and yet stay true to purpose in Harishbhai's unique style. It is written in an engaging and inspiring way. It's a must-read for anyone who leads or wants to lead; anyone who is at the helm of a business or initiative; anyone with a dream.

[Salil Lavgankar · Rating 4 out of 5]

NASSCOM as an organization has also been in the periphery of the people working in IT sector, and not in the mainstream domain as an enabler of the IT industry and its contribution towards its growth. This book by Harish Mehta comes as an eye-opener to the role of NASSCOM and it is definitely a worthy read.

The book seamlessly integrated both the tracks- the personal career of the author through the nascent and the establishment of the IT industry and the genesis of NASSCOM as an enabler/catalyst for the growth of the IT service industry distinct from the products and indeed at a time when software got spelled as softwear in an national newspaper.

The intent, need and formation of NASSCOM is well-captured and the fact that many people believed in this common association even though they may be competitors individually. The part played by NASSCOM in establishment of STPI, contribution to anti-piracy, in branding efforts for Indian IT Industry and managing the Satyam crisis which could have dented the entire IT industry needed to be made known and has been told by the author in a very engaging, compelling and fascinating matter.

The author manages to bring out his own vision and thoughts while covering the history and growth of NASSCOM and provides great inspiration. The book is a definite must- read for all people interested in the development of the Indian IT industry!

[Akshay Pathade · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wanted to read how it happens in the real world that -
• Ruthless compititer preferred cooperate and collebrate for the larger cause.
• how entire ecosystem can be developed from scratch, based on higher purpose, values and on meritoricracy.
• How collective will and wisdom can overcome any adversity thrown at us as.
• How one individual can live purpose driven Life without becoming nostalgia about his past successes
• want to understand how India's hundreds of year's of economic downfall has been stopped.
• to finally, what lies ahead for India as an aspiring nation with opportunity to make impact on billion plus life. Using technology, scientific mindset and going beyond just making living as a catalyst to make change.
This one book answer's it all. Simply a just read if you want to understand how software of India software industry is designed and built by NASSCOM.

[Abhishek Soni · Rating 4 out of 5]

For someone who had little knowledge about the IT boom, I got a good overview of this through the book by Harish Mehta. This book gives a beginner-level understanding of how the IT industry developed from almost nothing to such a huge industry in India in three decades. It was quite interesting to see how an association can play such an important role in the development of any industry. My appreciation towards various associations have increased after reading this.
The tone and language of the book is quite simple and it has instances where I felt inspired. However, the book does not follow any chronological order and stories move from across the time which makes it slightly difficult to follow.
Someone from the IT industry would be able to relate to it much more than I could.

[sahiba · Rating 5 out of 5]

A truly exceptional, motivating, and effortlessly comprehensible book!

Through its clever and relatable insights, this book offers a glimpse into the efforts required to build an organization like NASSCOM during a time when software was a foreign concept, competitors rarely collaborated, and India's image was burdened by colonial-era stereotypes that hindered its IT potential.

Above all, this book serves as an inspiring testament to the power of perseverance in the face of adversity. Rather than succumbing to difficulties, continue your journey, putting one foot after another, or as the author likes to put it "march onwards."

[swathi · Rating 1 out of 5]

Worst book ever

Have read over 60 books in Kindle, by far this is the biggest disappointment. It's a magazine material especially second half,blown up as a book . Founder is obsessed with his child NASSCOM. You won't learn anything new,it's a waste of time.Dont buy this over rated misleading titled book. Save your time it's precious.

[Navdeep Pundhir · Rating 1 out of 5]

The quintessential hanger-on's book to lay claim to the greatness possessed by the people he happens to know! I'm certain the author's only claim to stardom is that he knows the who's who of the IT industry which is reflected in the number of references spread all over the cover- front and back. The content of this book could have well been a long article that saved everyone time and money.

[Dinesh Gajjar · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent book

This is a good book to read. It gives glimpses of the IT revolution that has happened in India. The book is dwelling among personal, professional and national level events. It gives some level of idea the challenge the IT industry faced in the beginning and as it grew. It also emphasizes an important role played by NASSCOM. Good book overall.

[Sanjay Krishna · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Enthusiastic skepticism is a partner of boundless optimism and not an enemy. It unlocks the potential in every idea."

[anil · Rating 4 out of 5]

I took a long while completing this.
It was tedious at places and exciting at other.
Overall a good backstory of nasscom.

[Aditya Kapur · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great read to understand Policy Advocacy and innumerable facets to a self evolving phenomenon called Information Technology.

[Anuj Rekhy · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great book on understanding the role of NASSCOM in development of IT Giant India.