A young engineer's attempt to protect stray dogs unexpectedly leads him into the orbit of Ratan Tata, where a practical idea grows into an extraordinary friendship.

I Came Upon a Lighthouse is a short memoir of mentorship, friendship and personal growth, published in 2021. Its opening is refreshingly concrete: Shantanu Naidu develops reflective collars to make stray dogs visible to motorists at night, and that work brings him to Tata's attention. The memoir then follows the relationship that grows from that encounter, alongside Naidu's own education, ambitions and uncertainties.

The book's greatest strength is its pace. Naidu keeps chapters brief and moves quickly between episodes, giving the memoir an easy, almost conversational momentum. The straightforward narration suits the material, particularly because the emotional centre is the friendship rather than a dramatic career transformation. There is little need for manufactured tension when the appeal lies in watching an unusual relationship develop naturally.

The trade-off is depth. Naidu often gives us a charming glimpse where a fuller memoir might have given us a sustained scene. His account of Tata is affectionate and intimate, but the portrait remains deliberately selective. The book promises a view of the person behind the public figure, and it delivers that, though mostly through small moments rather than complicated revelations.

Against contemporary Indian memoirs such as Three Thousand Stitches, this is considerably lighter and more personal. It also has less interest in building a broad social argument. Its ambitions are modest, and that is largely to its credit.

The ending works because Naidu never tries to inflate the friendship into a grand life lesson. The warmth comes from the relationship itself. Occasionally slight, sometimes almost too eager to charm, the memoir nevertheless has an appealing sincerity.

It is a quick, affectionate read that understands the value of leaving some things beautifully uncomplicated.