Page 152 of 12 Years
‘Treat this office as your own,’ Mudit said to the due-diligence team. ‘And let us know how we can help with the process.’
‘To start off, this is a list of documents we’ll need,’ Jensen said. He handed a document to Mudit, who passed it to Farhan from our finance team.
‘No problem,’ Farhan said, ‘we’ll start preparing them right away.’
‘I think the teams can take it from here,’ I said and stood up. ‘I’m not really needed here anymore.’
Payal looked up at me.
Neeraj stood up as well. ‘That’s right. We should let our more capable colleagues take over,’ he said. ‘But Saket, I’m here in Dubai tonight. Are you free for dinner? Just you and me?’
I hated schmoozing with clients. I would rather Mudit did it. Besides, I’d been planning to meet Tania and, finally, Paulina.
Mudit gestured with his eyes for me to accept. He was right—I could sit through one boring dinner for the sake of four billion dollars.
‘Sure, Neeraj,’ I said. ‘Let’s meet at the Arts Club. Eight o’ clock.’
The Arts Club in Dubai is in the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), near downtown. The posh members-only club originated in London, but the Dubai branch is even swankier and trendier. Set over five floors, which are all connected by a glass elevator that runs along a four-storey-tall chandelier, it’s one of the most beautiful dining and drinking spots in Dubai. Every evening, the club is full of beautiful and rich people.
I had booked a table at Rohen, the fine-dining Japanese restaurant at the club.
‘I’m vegetarian, actually,’ Neeraj said as he flipped through the menu, which read like a list of marine life.
‘Oh,’ I said. ‘I’m so sorry. I should’ve checked before making the reservation.’
‘It’s okay. I should’ve told you. Never mind, there are some vegetarian dishes,’ he said.
I ordered vegetable tempura and an avocado roll for Neeraj.
‘This is like our bajji or pakodas,’ Neeraj said when the tempura was served.
‘Exactly,’ I said, and I wondered if I should’ve taken him to Bikanervala in Karama instead.
I had ordered codfish for myself. I was in the middle of a cut, which meant no rice at dinner. Going out is no fun while one’s in calorie-deficit mode, particularly with a boring client.
‘Looks like the due-diligence team has hit the ground running,’ Neeraj said.
‘Yes, everyone came prepared. Impressive,’ I said.
‘May I make a request?’ Neeraj said. ‘Something that’ll make the due diligence go smoother and faster.’
‘Anything for that,’ I said. ‘I’d really like us to conclude it soon.’
‘The person who’s finally going to sign off on the due diligence is Payal Jain. Our MD, and the principal on CloudX.’
‘Is that right?’ I said, my ears perking up at the mention of her name.
‘You know her?’
I took a few moments to respond. ‘She was there at the meeting today, right? On her laptop.’
‘Yes. She’s smart and dedicated. If she feels confident that they’ve done all their checks, we can wrap this up faster.’
‘Okay, what I can do to help?’
‘Could you give her some time? Maybe meet her for lunch? Explain your vision for SecurityNet and where you think thegrowth areas are. She needs to hear it from you to justify the high valuation.’
‘I have to do it?’
