By Moody Marty | Opening Doorz Editorial | December 19, 2025
The Man Who Made a Machine Look Sexy
The name Tata Sierra brings to my mind John Abraham.
Strong, rugged, proportionately built, with an intense, sexy gaze. That’s what John is. With a lop-sided grin that adds to the allure.
And pray, why do I think of John Abraham when I see and read about Tata Sierra, and its new avatar?
There’s a back story.
However, first, let me explain how John and I connected in the mid-1990s.
John was just starting in the modelling scene. I watched him in a bunch of shows walking the ramp. He was earnest. He was making his mark then. He had a proportionate physique, then too.
During the 1998 Soccer World Cup, which was held in France, I had interviewed him for a special sports column in the Times of India. As a soccer buff, we wanted his views on the game, the players and who would win. He participated earnestly.
Prior to that, as he was starting out, I had interviewed him for a column Model Talk, which I had started in the West Side Plus, a supplement with the Times of India. Most top models, then, went through that ‘sought-after column’ before they could make it to Bombay Times. That was the way it worked with me.
John and I sporadically kept in touch, but soon lost touch. I don’t know why. But I am still in touch with all the female models and actresses who started out during that time. The only male model who I have kept in touch with from then till today is Craig Scott.
John was also the first face of Provogue. The brand that was in-your-face and all over. You could not miss the Provogue ads in the newspapers. You could not miss the hoardings all over the city. And the Provogue parties… those were the days.
Nikhil Chaturvedi, the director of Provogue, became a close acquaintance.
One night, driving with Nikhil in his Mercedes after a party, it was 1998 I guess, Nikhil had to meet John. Till then, John and I had only spoken over the phone.
Since we were at Juhu Gully, John told Nikhil he would come there as he was in the vicinity. It was a quick business conversation between John and Nikhil.
John came driving in his Tata Sierra. Looking rugged. The car looked good on him. Or rather, John looked good in the car. It was white in colour, if I remember right. As for Provogue, they had cast their Model right. As for John, he knew the ‘price’ he would be paid for being splashed all over the city. His business mind was sharp even back then!
We said “hello’ in person for the first time. After that, I met him for the launch of Tanaz Basrur’s book, ‘The Art of Successful Event Management’. I played a small part in the production of book. That was in 2006.
With the Tata Sierra making waves in its new avatar, I wondered why John was not chosen to be its brand ambassador. He is the perfect fit to be associated with a vehicle he drove passionately and was proud of: Tough. Rugged. Dynamic. Proportionate with an intense, sexy gaze.
Tata Abraham. Or should I say, John Sierra!
Talent, Trials and the Politics of Patience
Dear Sarfaraz Khan
I feel for you. I can almost measure the frustration you are going through. Nay, slice through it. It’s so dark. Intense. Brutal. And so unfair.
To be dropped like a hot potato (no pun intended) after a brilliant start without a decent run in the Indian team reeks of stupidity of the highest level. But then again, no one is stupid enough to bin talent.
I watched your entry into the Indian team. Despite your limited success given the limited chances, your talent is evident. You are constantly snubbed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). I am now convinced that there are forces within the team, a little higher up, who don’t like your spirit and the talent you possess.
They want you to grovel.
Stay calm. Your time will come. Just like it came after a long wait earlier in 2024.
The current atmosphere in the team is one of suffocation. No player feels safe. Look at Sanju Samson. The coach is the problem. The Indian cricketing world knows. Ravi Shastri knows. He has made direct comments against the current Indian coach.
Once Gautam Gambhir goes, and the time is not far away, things will change for Indian cricket and for you. Talent will be given a chance. Favouritism and one-upmanship will be a thing of the past. India needs a mature coach.
But you hang in there. Don’t doubt your talent. You are not only talented, but blessed abundantly. You are being tested. Your patience. Your skills. Your temperament. A perfect time for you to rise above the dirty politics of Indian cricket. You have nothing to prove to anyone as far as your cricketing skills are concerned. Those in the know of Indian cricket know your abilities and how far you will go.
Your spirit disturbs the demons in them. Nothing wrong with them. It’s just you and the powerful, dazzling, inner light you possess.
For a talent like you to be bought for 85 lakhs is unnerving. All the same, you have shown your gratitude by saying: “Thank you so much, CSK, for giving me new life. I will make sure CSK will lift the 2026 title.”
That’s humility. The Bible says, “humility precedes honour.” I love that spirit of yours.
IPL is, anyway, a circus, but a necessary one for cricketers. Don’t lose your focus as a Test player by going for the slogs to please the gallery and prove a point.
Create your own brand.
You will go places. Like I said earlier, you are being tested by God. His greatest soldiers face the toughest battles. And that includes walking through the furnace of humiliation.
I know you are headed to be one of India’s top cricketers. Of that I have no doubt.
More importantly, your Heavenly Father knows your capabilities. Like Daniel (again in the Bible), you will come out of the fiery furnace unscathed and emerge the personality he is shaping you to be.
As I said, don’t risk your strokes. But yes, “Sabko paani pilana.” I mean, “thanda karna,” with your play.
All the best with CSK.
[Moody Marty: Sometimes funny, sometimes informative, always downright forthright!]
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