A day in the life of Niranjan Hiranandani: work and back home

Cinematographer: Shaina Anand

Duration: 00:37:01; Aspect Ratio: 1.778:1; Hue: 31.087; Saturation: 0.076; Lightness: 0.282; Volume: 0.088; Cuts per Minute: 6.211; Words per Minute: 73.104

Niranjan Hiranandani, MD of Hiranadani construction at work in his Headquarters in Powai. Post-lunch he spends his day in a series of meetings. At about 3:30, we go with him in his mini-bus around Hiranandani gardens and up to the go-karting hill. Riddhima and Sanjay, talk with him about 'planning' and architecture amongst other things. Back in the office, he is back in a few close door meetings. The office is empty by 6:30. He is amongst the last to leave.

Niranjan Hiranandani discusses work in his office with an employee. Camera zooms in as another employee enters the cabin.
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Niranjan Hiranandani busy discussing work with an employee in his cabin.
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Niranjan Hiranandani is seen busy in a phone conversation as the door to his cabin closes.
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Niranjan Hiranandani and an employee are seen having a telephone conference over his Blackberry phone.
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Inside Niranjan Hiranandani's cabin. He and an employee are seen having a telephone conference over his Blackberry phone. Camera zooms in on his phone.
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Niranjan Hiranandani in a playful conversation with a little girl. Camera person follows him.
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In conversation with Niranjan Hiranandani in a mini-bus, driving along the Hiranandani Gardens. Discussing the architectural style.
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SA: ...on what they are doing. Sanjay: No on thesis projects... NH: You have some questions, on Powai?

Riddhima: No. For example, when... What inspired this sort of architectural style? Was that, did you guys have a role to play or was that completely Hafeez Contractor's...? NH: No, we wanted something which was endurable, (sic) because we were looking at different sorts of architecture, and we realised that this project was going to last a long period of time during construction, delivering, and different phases of projects would come in maybe 15 years later after the first building came.

TV_NH

architecture

NH: So normally what would happen is the first building would look dated by the time the 15th year came up. So we wanted such kind of architecture which would never get dated, even if it was hundred years old. And we finally landed up with this.

In conversation with Niranjan Hiranandani in a mini-bus, driving along the Hiranandani Gardens. Discussing the architectural style.
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In conversation with Niranjan Hiranandani in a mini-bus, driving along the Hiranandani Gardens. Discuss the beginning of the Powai development.
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Sanjay: Sir, when did the Powai development start? NH: Started in 1987. Gudi Padwa of '87. Sanjay: And, I mean... SA: It's that recent? NH: 20 years.

powai development

PPF

NH: You know what is the most amazing thing about things... I was attending a conference, and a very young student was there, and he came up to me and said, Mr. Hiranandani, I'm your admirer because most people create history, you have created geography.
geography

In conversation with Niranjan Hiranandani in a mini-bus, driving along the Hiranandani Gardens. Niranjan is narrating an experience.
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NH: And at that point of time I was wondering what he was talking about and then I realized that what he said was true, and in the whole, by virtue of living or lives, create history. I mean, it's your story. You rarely get an opportunity to create a geography of a place, which is what Powai is all about, and now Thane and new places. It's quite an interesting...

In conversation with Niranjan Hiranandani in a mini-bus, driving along the Hiranandani Gardens.. Discussing newer developments. The bus is arriving at the the go-carting area
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SA: So what are newer developments? NH: No, we are doing other developments. We are now... SA: Because, I mean, Powai is synonymous than... NH: We are just now in Chennai. We are doing two major projects there. One is 120 acres, another is 350 acres.

NH: See the Go-karting, Now is the time to film it.
Riddhima: That's where, like when I came here first for this... for Go-karting. When I was in the seventh, eight standard.

In a casual conversation with Niranjan Hiranandani in a mini-bus. The bus arrives at the go-carting area of the Hiranandani estate
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SA: And I came to the discotheque in Hyper, during my first trip. No actually my first trip was just after the Hiranandani had come up. These two friends had flats here, and moved from Bandra to Powai. I was still in school, 1990 they moved.

Riddhima: Did you study.... What is your background?
NH: HR (?).
SA: Yes, actually that...
NH: Is this where you want to turn back?
SA: Nice view in the turn. So we are seeing the whole estate.
NH: Want to get down for few minutes.

In conversation with Niranjan Hiranandani in a mini-bus. The bus arrives at the go-carting area of the Hiranandani estate.
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Person: Normal karting, Sir.
NH: Oh normal karting. Start so early.
Person: Yes sir.
NH: Alright. I didn't realise that, I though it started later...
Person: 3:15...
NH: How are things? what's happening?
SA: Summer holidays so children are coming early.
NH: This is now the peak season? Oh I haven't been on the track for quite....

Along with Niranjan Hiranandani at the go-carting race-course of the Hiranandani estate.
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SA: Say again. Since our film is on mobility and transport.
NH: Sure, why not.

Sanjay: Was this... I know it did serve like, the go-karting, the mini golf and things like that, did serve as the great marketing platform for Powai, for like it brought me here, it brought a lot of my friends here, we went back told our parents, like wow there's this lovely place on the edge of town, and I think, compared to New Bombay which was started with so much hype but didn't attract the crowd at all. Would you say that there was the marketing strategy that made this a lot more successful, or...?

In conversation with Niranjan Hiranandani at the go-carting race-course of the Hiranandani estate. Discussing marketing strategy of the Hiranandani estate.
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TV_NH

NH: You must first understand that the product is always the king. Marketing is only a corollary to most of the products. So the first thing you have to understand very clearly is that you're going to see a product which is definitely different. Second thing is that it was the first large mixed used township in India of its size. Before this project there was no large mixed used... SO there were residential projects like any other place, Malabar hill, or whatever it is, to Vile Parle scheme, or it was commercial like Ballard Estate, or Nariman point, but nobody had dared putting residential, commercial, retail, entertainment and everything, and put it together and really make it work.

Previous
According to MMRDA sources, the tripartite agreement between the Government of Maharastra, MMRDA and Hiranandani developers was only meant for the construction of residential homes. However, the developer went ahead and developed 1.19 lakh sq m of commercial built-up space. The commercial buildings include a hotel, a hospital and a shopping complex.

The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) has recommended that builder Niranjan Hiranandani should pay a penalty of nearly Rs 2,000 crore for alleged violations in a two-decade-old agreement pertaining to the Powai Area Development Scheme. The penalty of Rs 1,993 crore was arrived at by taking into consideration three kinds of alleged violations by Hiranandani. The first violation, according to the MMRDA report, was the differential areas of the flats. While permission was granted for only 40 and 80 sq m flats, the developer constructed sprawling apartments measuring 200 to 400 sq m. The penalty proposed on this violation itself has been pegged at Rs 946 crore by MMRDA. The authority has recommended a further penalty of Rs 597 crore on the developer for constructing commercial complexes when no such permission was given under the agreement.

However, it's learnt that Hiranandani will challenge all three violation charges.

Complete article: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Mumbai/Hiranandani_faces__Rs_2000cr_fine/articleshow/4072968.cms
Next

In conversation with Niranjan Hiranandani at the go-carting race-course of the Hiranandani estate. He explains the reason for the success of the Hiranandani real estate business.
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NH: So we were definitely challenged by the fact that we thought the mixed used township would work in the country, and we set up the first large one, and the country is just exploded by copying our example. So we have now thousands and thousand of examples of what we have done. We created the first clubhouse in India of its size, we created the first school within a residential complex of its size and quality, we put up the first large hospital in such a complex, we put the first super market in India, in any township in India, over here, we set up the first go-karting track in India, in any private township.

NH: So we created not one first, but a hundred firsts. So all that brought about something which made a difference to Powai as a township as differentiated from any other township in India whether New Bombay or any other place. So I would say the differentiable was not one thing or a marketing thing or cutting (?), or something like that. You know I have 100 acres of Gardens and forest in Powai. That's why. So you just go from garden to garden, and the back of this hill we have 40 acres of forest. Taken government land and just forested.

Previous
The Maharashtra Pollution Control Board vide their notice dated ---- asked Hiranandani buiders to stop their work since the construction activities at their Powai Gardens project were being carried out in violation of the Environment (Protection) Act. Though violators must be booked under criminal procedure and are awarded jail sentence of minimum 5 years Niranjan Hiranandani is still at large.
Next

Sanjay: And these are public gardens?
NH: It's open for anybody, hardly any people go, but it's there. So the idea basically being that we've created 100. We have the largest...

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NH: It was not just one element which really made this successful, but probably a composition of hundreds of elements which really made Powai the differentiating factor. And secondly, it was all about quality, so if you look at any one product, whether you look at the go-karting track as you see it here, or you look at the school, or you look at the hospital, or you look at any of the products that you see, each individual product is high quality.

Riddhima: And what led you to not only looking at development or developing real estate but also this sort of developing real estate like this. I mean, you come from a medical background.

NH: Well I think I wanted to look at a place which would be like I would find it ideal to live in. I mean, some place where you would have the best school, where you would have the best gardens, which you would have the best playing fields, the best go-karting track, the best video game parlour, we have the best one in India. So you know, Pune, Video game centre was the best in India at that time. So what we really, actually got about to do was to put in components of great user power. And I think it worked. Ultimately at the end of the day it worked. So if you look at the quality of the go-karting track, the quality of our game centre, it's quite different.

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(inaudible)

In conversation with Niranjan Hiranandani at the go-carting race-course of the Hiranandani estate. Discussing the background of the real estate businessman.
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NH: But that's a passion.

Riddhima: And coming out of a not like a real estate family, you know where it sort of runs, how does like the kids like I want to be a real estate, how did you get started into this?

NH: We'll I was in textiles business, so real estate was an off-shoot. But over a period of time something grows on you much more then somebody else, like person grows on you more then some other person, why that person and not someone else. So it's a... I don't think there's any good reason for saying why did I become a real estate, but I think the wonderful fact is that we were able to get most things right, and it may not have been the first time but we've got most of the things right over a period of time. And that was the big thing which we had. That was interesting.

Previous
It is only because people like Niranjan Hiranandani were on the committee that formulated the Slum Rehabilitation Scheme that land - a prime natural resource - was converted into a marketable commodity. Consequently, the real estate brigade jumped on to it to enhance their profits while rendering thousands of slum dwellers homeless. Shri S.S. Tinaikar, former Municipal Commissioner of Mumbai has in a public hearing report on SRS described the scheme as "of the builders, by the builders, for the builders".

For more information: http://www.altlawforum.org/Resources/Cities%20as%20a%20Legal%20Arena/Mumbai_demolition/Mum_slum_policy

Hindustan Times covered this scheme in a long series and called it the "Great Slum Robbery" which was about unprecedented profits at the cost of housing for the poor and a loss to the city of its prime natural resource base i.e. land.
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PPF
TV_NH

SA: Other city based interests?

Afzalpurkar Committee

NH: Basically I was part of the committee for slum redevelopment, the Afzalpurkar committee, which actually decided how redevelopment should take place.

I sat on advising the location of fly-overs in Mumbai.

All these opportunities I was advisor to the government of India on National housing policy.

So all these things made a lot of difference because of my various interests in various aspects of social and community projects.

It was quite an interesting thing.

Sanjay and Riddhima in conversation with Niranjan Hiranandani at the go-carting race-course of the Hiranandani estate. Discussing the importance of flyovers in Mumbai city.
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Sanjay: How important are those fly-overs to the development of Powai and has there been, as the roads have gotten better, has there been more of... NH: Anything which helps Mumbai helps me because at the end of the day anything which actually hypes up the city is good for any developer.

NH: So if you say that the fly-over at Dadar is going to help Powai, the answer is yes, because if I'm travelling from Dadar to Powai it helps. But in reality it's difficult to say what really helps and what doesn't help. So if you can make a great city then you can make, you have a great... IIT is just across Powai, does it help? The answer is yes. So everything really helps, anything which is good really helps. The passion for requiring to do redevelopment or to do infrastructure in the city is inborn or developed over a period of time, I think that it's a combination of both.

Sanjay and Riddhima in conversation with Niranjan Hiranandani at the go-carting race-course of the Hiranandani estate.
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Sanjay: And what is your opinion on this basic infrastructure demands of the city? Do you think the city is going to be able to keep up with kind of, like, high rise (?), like the basic, kind of like water, electricity...
NH: Any product which is given to a customer should be created in surplus. So if you want to buy a watch, you should have a variety of 10 watches, if you want to buy a motorcycle, you should have 10 varieties of motorcycle, if you want to buy a car, you should have 5 varieties of cars, if you want to travel by an airline, you should have three alternatives, If you want to buy a mobile phone, you should have 10 mobile phones, you should have three service providers. That's the best way to get good products done.

archive-city

NH: Similarly, in housing or infrastructure, you should have surplus of water, surplus schools, surplus of colleges, surpluses of commercial space, retail space, malls, entertainment, hospitals, all these have... While we are still catering for shortages, which is the pre '91 era, in the housing sector, in the infrastructural sector, we've still not moved to the next level. That's important for us to know, that's the most important thing in our country that we have to create the differentiator in the infrastructure of the city.

In conversation with Niranjan Hiranandani in a mini-bus, leaving the go-carting race-course of the Hiranandani estate.
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SA: Sir, that was great. Full expands around.
NH: Ya this is a good location to (?) (?).
SA: So what's your take on inflationary real estate market, because it's becoming a bit...
TV_NH

NH: I was just saying that would you need to do is to create surpluses. The day you create surpluses in any sector whether it's inflationary or otherwise, you'll be able to solve your problems. Mainly you're only catering to shortages, for just how much supply is required, you'll never create a great market.

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NH: You want to buy clothes, you should be able to buy a t-shirt, you should be able to buy a shirt, you should be able to buy a salwar top, you should be able to buy different sort of clothes in enough quantities and varieties, to be able to make it a good market. Similarly, you should have branded clothes, you should have unbranded clothes, all the things.

NH: Similarly in housing, you should have housing, it should be rental, it should be with serviced apartments, it should be housing with very little amenities, it should be housing with all amenities. So it's all about all that.

Sanjay and Riddhima in conversation with Niranjan Hiranandani in a mini-bus, traveling along the Hiranandani estate. Discussing the economic sections that the Hiranandani housing business caters to.
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Riddhima: Do you see your housing catering to what section? NH: We started always with the middle class. When I started, we started with 500 Rupees a foot, today it's 14,000 rupees a foot.

As per information available on the website of Hiranandani Gardens and brochures issued by the builders, the complex consisted of 42 residential and 23 commercial buildings with no flat less than the size of 1800 sq. ft. This exceeds the limit provided by 4925 sq. ft. Further, the price quoted by them for a flat of the area of 2125 sq. ft is to the tune of Rs. 4 crores!

An inquiry initiated by the MMRDA commissioner with the help of the civic administration last year revealed that out of the 5.74 lakh sq m of built-up area that was allowed on this land, the developer had used just 15% for low-income housing.

News article at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Mumbai/Hiranandani_faces__Rs_2000cr_fine/articleshow/4072968.cms

Riddhima: So does that remain middle class any more? NH: But that happens everywhere, because when I went into Thane it was 1000 Rupees a foot, today it's 5000 Rupees a foot.

SA: And low cost housing? NH: Ours was middle, lower middle class housing. So at the end of the day you make a great product in any place for the middle class or ordinary middle class, it's moves up the value chain, over a period of time.

Sanjay and Riddhima in conversation with Niranjan Hiranandani in a mini-bus, traveling along the Hiranandani estate.
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Riddhima: And you said you were involved in the Akruti scheme, but you are not looking in to getting into them directly? NH: No we did a joint venture to take up (a kind of project???) near Koyna.

SRA

Riddhima in conversation with Niranjan Hiranandani in a mini-bus, traveling along the Hiranandani estate. Discussing why low cost housing is difficult.
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Previous
On 19th Nov 1986, a Tripartite agreement was signed between the Government of Maharastra, MMRDA and Hiranandani developers under which prime land of tune of 230 acres at Powai was leased to Hiranandani at Rupees 40 per acre for 80 years in order that they develop it for small units for the poor and middle class. In order to make this possible, laws and rules were twisted, misquoted and violated to ensure pecuniary benefits to the private parties who were handed over public resources at throw away prices. The land was not only given away at such a low rate, but exemptions from the provisions of the Urban Land Ceiling (Regulation) Act were also granted with the proviso that the Developer would construct 50 % of the flats / apartments not exceeding the size of 40 sq m (430 sq ft) and the other 50 % not exceeding 80 sq m (860 sq ft).

It is ironical that Mr. Niranjan Hiranandani is lamenting the fact that "You don't get affordable land for low cost housing…". Is 40 paisa per acre unaffordable for him??

In this context, on 26 December 2007 slum dwellers of Mandala in Mankhurd gave a cheque of Rs.2000 made out to the then Chief Minister Shri Vilasrao Deshmukh to Urban Development Minister Shri Rajesh Tope to lease 50 acres of land at 100 times the amount at which land was made available to Mr. Hiranandani for a self-development housing project – but their project still awaits the go-ahead of the government.
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SA: But you wouldn't get into wide-scale low cost housing and SRA?
affordable land
Where is the Land?
ULCRA

We are keen. We had in fact announced a company to make low cost housing.

We couldn't take it off, because it's a question of acquisition of land.

We don't get affordable land for low cost housing.

Until you don't get land there is no point in talking about low cost housing.

Riddhima: And do you see that changing with this Urban Land Ceiling Act?
NH: We've been waiting for the scrapping of the Urban Land Ceiling Act for a long time. But till it doesn't happen we wont be able to get the benefits of it. It takes a long time, after scrapping, for the benefits to come out.

Previous
In 1976, the Urban Land Ceiling and Regulation Act was passed to prevent the concentration of urban land in the hands of a few persons and to bring about an equitable distribution of urban land to serve the common good. That the Act was never implemented in its true spirit and its non-implementation served the interests of the land mafia consisting of land holders-bureaucrats-developers are known facts. The Act very clearly held that holding of land beyond the permissible limit of 500 sq. mts by an individual was a clear violation of the Act and the land beyond the limit was to be acquired by the State and used for housing the weaker sections of society - but this was never done. As per the government's own estimates, there is more than 22,000 acres of surplus land in the State.

In Mumbai, only a handful of individuals own more than 15,000 acres of land in absolute violation of the law of the land. The National Commission on Urbanisation in 1987 reported that 91 individuals in Mumbai owned 55 per cent of the vacant land. When lakhs of people are forced to stay in inhuman slum conditions, even a 10 by 10 foot hut is a luxury for many, this holding of hundreds of acres of land by a few individuals should not have been tolerated and allowed. The list of a few such urban zamindars is as below:

S. No. Name of Land holder Land in Possession
01. Godrej & Boyce 2500 acres
02. F.E Dinshaw Trust 800 acres
03. Bairamjee Jeejibhoy 600 acres
04. Essel World 650 acres
05. Amir Park & Amusements 300 acres
06. N K Bhesanim Trust 315 acres
07. K.J Somaiya Trust 175 acres
08. Bhiwandiwala Hormasji 935 acres
09. Ghashiram Ramdaya 885 acres
10. Gaman India Ltd. 240 acres
11. Larsen & Toubro 165 acres
12. Mahendra & Mahendra 140 acres

again from beginning

Riddhima: An eastern water front has also been on (inaudible)
NH: Exactly. You need it very badly.
Sanjay: Is there something that you're looking at the Eastern Water front?
NH: Not me. It's the city that needs it.
Riddhima: The transport as well as for the lands, What is you data?
SA: What about the mill lands? what's your take on it?

NH: It's great I think. It's a wonderful thing that you are getting so much housing irrespective of the pricing, that actually, ultimately so much housing is getting created and somebody is buying it. So at the end of the day, remember, as long as somebody is buying it but then it... In that respect, even slums there's nothing wrong because people are living there. So if government can provide affordable housing what can people do, they have to live wherever they can, authorised or unauthorised.

The 10 by 10 ft shelter of the poor is considered an encroachment and thus illegal, while Mumbai as in other cities, has abundant constructions which are carried out by the elite and the powerful, by violating and disregarding every law of the land. Be it India's tallest 60 storied towers being constructed under a slum rehabilitation project over an access road meant for slum dwellers, where cost of each flat is in the range of 10 to 40 crores or one of the largest shopping malls of Mumbai- Atria, which is constructed over land reserved for building houses for the dis-housed, the story is the same. These illegalities are not only ignored but tolerated and approved, whilst, on the other hand, bulldozing of hutments of the poor get frantic support of the media and some sections of society who are trying to turn Mumbai into Shanghai by actually "shanghaing" the public! The People's Struggles have been exposing all this and much more and the fight continues.

The evictions are supported by declaring slums as illegal encroachments and shortage of financial resources is the official reason behind non-provision of affordable housing. This has been challenged and questioned by the Movement. As per the available data, the allocated budget for the year 2006-'07 for the Urban Development Department was Rs.1173 crores. Till January 2007, they had spent only 96 crores. Then how is one to accept the excuse that funds are not available, especially keeping in mind that people are being forced to stay out in the open in all kinds of weather and children remain without food and education? Similarly, a handful of land holders together own more than 15,000 acres of land when as per the Urban Land Ceiling Act 1976, no single land holding can exceed the statutory limit of 500 sq.mts. Why is action not being taken against the abovementioned defaulters and the excess land acquired distributed amongst the landless? Are the provisions of the Land Acquisition to be carried out selectively, only in favour of the corporates , SEZs or mega projects ? People have been raising this question time and again and are reluctantly understanding the nature of the system which is class –based, and operates in contradiction to the values and principles enshrined in our Constitution.

SA: But for example, in the mill thing... finally when they sold... bone of contention was... change in green space. NH: I don't think it's about green space. Mill lands were never green space. What they said is that you need to make some green spaces out of that. SA: Allocate that much percent.

NH: Which is fine. I mean, you can always create... But remember first, you must get your housing correct. If you don't have a house, then you talk about green spaces. First you have to get people homes. How can you talk about green spaces when 66 percent of your population, of your city, lives in slums.

Riddhima in conversation with Niranjan Hiranandani in a mini-bus, traveling along the Hiranandani estate..
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Riddhima: Today's paper said that quota for how much percent of green space needs to be taken out of industrial land has increased. Is that a loss to the low cost housing market then.
NH: I don't think it's a loss to any cost housing. What is a loss is that you are not creating macro ideas, you're still looking at micro ideas of individual mills, how they will be used, individual industrial plots. What you need to do is create, maybe an island in the sea, maybe an airport in the sea, or something drastic.
Riddhima: Like Hafeez Contractor's (?)

NH: You really need to do something at the macro level. There's no point in talking about doing small and one industry building doing something or not. I think what we really need is a great project, and then it'll make a great change.
SA: You always stick with Hafeez?
NH: No. Hafeez is a favourite, but we have other architect....

In conversation with Niranjan Hiranandani in a mini-bus, traveling along the Hiranandani estate..
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Shaina – Sanjay, whatever you do, do not, bang into his car!......that will not be nice!
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Tailing Niranjan Hiranandani's chauffeur driven BMW car. This is when the camera person realizes that they are not behind N. Hiranandani's car.
Sanjay – we missed him.....
Shaina – means? Oh this is not him?
Sanjay – this is not him Shaina...
Shaina – Oh s***!
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