New Delhi, Dec. 27 -- A well-known Hindi proverb-honhar birwan ke hote chikne paat-suggests that the signs of future success are visible early. It sums up the early years of Dhirajlal Hirachand Ambani-Dhirubhai-one of India's greatest industrial empire builders, whose youth too shimmered with portents.

Ambani passed away in July 2002, leaving behind a giant conglomerate whose market capitalization today exceeds $250 billion and a legacy that continues to shape Indian business.

While the details of his professional life are household lore now, repeated across newspapers, magazines, and films, it's his early life, vividly captured in Dhirubhai Ambani: The Man I Knew by Kokilaben, that provides fascinating clues to his career. Restless, ru...