Indian shareholders prefer snacks over activism

Rina Chandran, a Reuters reporter, gives us an insight of what goes on at shareholder meetings in Mumbai:

July is the season for shareholder meetings, an annual rite of passage for Indian companies, with directors, shareholders and reporters trooping into large, badly-lit auditoriums to hear the chairman speak glowingly of the achievements of the past year, and a litany of woes from shareholders.

As a reporter who has covered many of these meetings of some of India’s largest companies, I have quickly learned that shareholders’ questions have little to do with family squabbles, succession policy, ill-advised acquisitions, or unflattering media reports.

Instead, they usually range from pleas for factory visits and bigger dividends to the quality of the snack served at the meeting. A few will ask about the cost of printing the annual report, and offer up suggestions for new advertising campaigns or congratulatory verse on the company.

Rare is the instance when shareholders pose tough questions, let alone dissent.

To read the rest check out Reuters very good “India: A billion aspirations blog”