Members of the Tata family and a few top executives, including Thachat Viswanath Narendran of Tata Steel Ltd., are emerging as candidates to lead 158-year-old Tata Sons, according to people familiar with the matter.The search began after Natarajan Chandrasekaran announced that he would step down as chairman of Tata Sons when his term expires in February, triggering a sudden shift in leadership at one of India’s best-known business groups.The sources, who asked not to be named as the discussions are confidential, said that in addition to Narendran, the early list includes CEOs of group companies such as Praveer Sinha of Tata Power Co., Shailesh Chandra of Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles Ltd. and Ramakrishnan Mukundan of Tata Chemicals Ltd. Members of patriarch Noel Tata’s family have also attracted attention, particularly Neville, his only son, who is 32.According to the sources, Noel, chairman of Tata Trusts, a group of 13 charities that own the group’s holding company, will have a say in choosing the next leader. They said Noel favours insiders who have demonstrated their commitment and expertise and believes that industry specialists, rather than bankers, should lead Tata enterprises.Considering his skills and experience, Narendran, 61, CEO and managing director of Tata Steel, is a strong contender to lead Tata Sons. He joined Tata Steel in 1988 and advanced through the company’s internal leadership programme, Tata Administrative Services, which was modelled on the national civil service.According to the sources, he has overseen Tata Steel’s rapid growth and strengthened its balance sheet. He is also one of the two CEOs with whom Noel frequently interacts.Noel also seeks guidance from Sinha, another executive who gives him visibility into the ongoing succession discussions.In addition to the group’s operational leaders, the names of members of the founding family are being discussed following their recent appointment as trustees of the Tata Trusts. According to the sources, Noel would seek to promote his daughter Maya or son Neville to the top position rather than pursuing the position himself.