South Asian Heritage Month runs from 18th July to 17th August. Below, Mash Halai, Managing Director at John Rowan and Partners (JRP), shares what his background means to him and how it’s shaped his approach to work.
Incredible amounts of effort go into creating and maintaining a positive culture at JRP. We’re well represented at every level by a broad range of talent. Having lots of different perspectives throughout the business translates into better results for our customers. But it also means there are plenty of stories spread across our diverse teams.
During South Asian Heritage Month, we celebrate how being part of this diaspora makes us who we are. In particular, my thoughts turn to the efforts and sacrifices of those who came before me. Without them, I know I wouldn’t be doing what I’m doing today, leading talented people to great successes. Here’s my story…
Construction is in my DNA… sort of
Back in India, my family are all either in construction or farming. My dad’s done both, he still co-owns my grandfather’s farm alongside his siblings. But long before that, he came to the UK in 1970, worked in the cotton mills of Bolton before ending up plying his skills as a carpenter in London a few years later. My grandfather himself was also a plasterer – I’ve often joked that I could probably build a house with just our immediate family!
Young as I was, two things still really stick out from this period. First was just how hard my dad worked. He was exactly what you think of when you picture a new arrival here, eager to prove himself, a real grafter. He was up at five in the morning, at work by seven, not home until six or seven in the evening. This was seven days a week more often than not.
We were provided for, but ‘family time’ often meant watching TV quietly (usually Carry On or Benny Hill) while dad caught up on sleep in the armchair. He was shattered! From an early age, I knew I wanted to do more with my own family when that time came. It pushed me to build on what he’d given us.
The second thing that sticks out is perhaps a bit less glamorous. We bought a new house in NW London, and it needed renovation (to put it mildly). Everyone had to pitch in, full family project. I was digging foundations, mixing cement, painting, decorating, you name it.
I don’t mind telling you that I hated every minute of it. Construction might be in my blood, but the big lesson here was that I’m happy to graft but, clearly not built for the frontlines. Being a bit too young to know what a quantity surveyor was, I had to look for inspiration elsewhere. One good thing about big Indian families (50 on my dad’s side alone) is there are always plenty of examples to follow. My uncles were also entrepreneurial men. Some ran their own businesses, while another was an engineer whose job took him to the other side of the world.
Combined with my dad’s sheer work ethic, my uncles showed me what can be achieved if you apply yourself differently. While I never loved exams, I did slowly realise I had a head for numbers. One day, a friend (funnily enough, his dad was a carpenter too) told me about a quantity surveying course he was taking. The rest, as they say, is history.
Looking to the future with greater optimism
Fast-forward to today, and reflecting on family and heritage feels very different. I grew up in relatively humble surroundings, but they were luxury compared to the poverty I remember seeing when I visited India for the first time in 1983. Whole families living and working on the streets right outside Mumbai Airport.
Thankfully, I’ve watched from afar as India starts moving past that. Today, it’s the fifth largest economy on Earth, bigger even than the UK – hard work and entrepreneurial spirit has been the key. I’m rooting for an India that my kids and grandkids will be proud to visit, or even live.
There’s a connection I feel with the place; it’s a kind of spiritual connection. I wouldn’t say I’m religious, not well behaved enough for that, but I pray when it’s right for me. I’ve got a temple space in my home, prayer beads, the works. Spirituality is definitely something I’ve embraced more as I’ve got older. Once you’ve got kids of your own, you crave balance more than anything.
Find out more about Bellrock's culture”‘Balance’ is a great theme to finish on. Throughout my life, I’ve balanced lessons learned from my family with the reality of owning and running a successful business, in a changing world. As the world keeps on changing, faster and faster, it can be hard to find that calm mental space where positive things happen. For me at least, the answers often lie in my roots (it’s definitely not watching Spurs or playing golf!).
Mash Halai, Managing Director at John Rowan and Partners
