Way back in 1978, the Hiranandani Group had a capital of Rs 25,000 and projects amounting to 7,000 sq feet. Then they created their eponymous township in Powai in the ’80s and became a household name. Today, they are a construction behemoth. “Twenty seven years ago, no one thought we could make a township in the quarry land (in Powai) and (with) no access to road,” Niranjan Hiranandani, the company’s dapper, 64-year-old co-founder (with brother Surendra), tells ETPanache at his three-storey apartment on the 28th floor of Odyssey, Powai. “Today, you have 35,000 people living here. The group has grown.”
But controversy is never far from the company’s marble hallways, so to speak. Among other things, Hiranandani is in a legal tussle involving his own brood. His daughter Priya had filed arbitration proceedings against him and her brother Darshan over the operations of HIRCO, Hiranandani’s former business with his daughter. Excerpts from the interview in which Hiranandani took questions on the chin.
Of late, there has only been bad news surrounding the business and the family. Has it affected the brand?
Anything negative will affect the brand. But I believe that life is positives and negatives. As long as my good karma takes over the bad karma, it is fine.
What is the status of the dispute over the employees’ provident fund?
They (CBI) said I have taken Rs168 crore of PF money, but their salaries were lower than that (the amount of PF claimed). It (the figure) was an arithmetical mistake. It’s an irrelevant case.
Where has your legal battle with your daughter Priya reached?
We are finishing the arbitration and it will be over soon. The final award hasn’t come out, but it will get over by the year-end. It will cover all the healthy differences that we had.
How is your relationship with Priya?
My wife Kamal met my grandsons (Priya’s sons) in London two weeks ago, so it continues. I couldn’t go due to work otherwise I would have definitely seen my grand-children. On phone, we talk at least once a week. Personally, there is no issue, but for the outside world it is big.
Where is your focus right now: family issues or business growth?
Good and bad things come in business and family. You can’ t make everyone happy. I can’t make my daughter completely happy, I couldn’t make my father completely happy, but I know that I have done more good to them than bad. That balance is important for me. I also look after 17 colleges in Mumbai, ten schools and two hospitals. Almost 25 per cent of my working time since 25 years has been in non-profit.
How do you balance being the patriarch of the group and the family?
You have to give enough independence to each per son. If I give anything to my daughter I give it to her completely. If I give some part of the work to my brother, he owns it completely. We have a ‘Yours’, ‘Mine’ and ‘Ours’ organisation in the same building. ‘Yours’ is Surendra and his family. ‘Mine’ is my business and ‘Ours’ is I and Surendra together, which is the main company. You have that together and yet you run things separately.
The woman who claimed to be raped by two policemen, said it was at your instance. Your reaction?
You can’t destroy evidence of rape; I am nowhere related to it (laughs). If I am doing 500 things, there is always going to be some allegation against me.
Source: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/panache/legal-battle-to-end-soon-niranjan-hiranandani/articleshow/37612586.cms
