A Few Thoughts
Celebrating the 150th Birth Anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi - the Father of our Nation is a great way to recall the principles of this noble man, in this chaotic and materialistic world, especially to Millennials & Generations X - Z. I wonder what may have been the status of our country if the Mahatma had not succeeded in securing independence through his non-violence movement. India as a country did not exist before 1947. It was just a collection of hundreds of princely states within a geographical region. What a daunting task it must have been for Gandhi & his band of leaders to bring all the diverse, multicultural states under one umbrella. What is noteworthy is that our country is growing from strength to strength on its journey (to become the 3rd largest economy in the world) by trying to overcome the economic & political challenges one can expect with an over 1.2 billion population. We have a visionary leader in Prime Minister Narendra Modi and he needs all the good wishes to steer the country towards the right path, to eliminate poverty and to give the vast population of India a decent quality of life.
Diwali, the Festival of Lights, is indeed a festival to celebrate the victory of Good over Evil. This is aptly demonstrated by the elimination of the ISIS leader, thanks to the relentless American efforts. What a contrast between a violent leader and a leader who is an epitome of non-violence!
After Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s resounding election victory, one expected the growth of the Indian economy to go northwards at a faster rate. Unfortunately, that is not the case. It appears that the laws of economics are stronger than the wishes of the population. To me, it seems like a cyclical slowdown affecting the economy, and it appears like a 10-year business cycle. Our country did witness economic slowdown / recession, particularly for the real estate sector, during the years 1988-1991, 1998-2001, 2008-2011 and now. The current recessionary cycle for real estate started quite early in 2016-2017 due to DeMo, the introduction of RERA & GST. The slowdown has taken a huge toll with few large and most one-time, small-medium sized developers exiting the real estate sector. The complexity of doing business has vastly increased due to regulatory changes and challenges. It is seriously, not for the weak-hearted.
Thankfully Brigade, with its diverse portfolio, but more importantly due to following its core corporate values, is managing not only to survive but also to grow. Recessionary & slowdown times create a lot of opportunities for the wise and people with money. This is the time for smart people to make investments but after a proper study of the pros & cons. There are many good real estate projects worthy of investment in our portfolio. While preparing to launch new projects in Chennai & Hyderabad, our focus has been to complete many ongoing commercial & residential projects, apart from launching the next phase of large projects in Bengaluru.
I am delighted to mention that the Indian Music Experience was formally launched with an outstanding music event by Padma Bhushan Ustad Zakir Hussain on the 27th of July 2019. I am elated with the continued appreciation for the concept & content of IME by all those who have visited the museum. It has encouraged the team to work harder and innovate more.
I am also very happy to have signed an MoU with the reputed St. John’s Hospital to set up a ‘Not for Profit’ Health Centre to start with, and a Hospital subsequently for the benefit of the neighbourhood at our large residential project - Brigade Meadows, in Bengaluru South.
Season’s Greetings & Best Wishes for 2020