Company overview

Since its inception in 2003, Omkar Realtors & Developers has created opulent spaces that have epitomized the pinnacle of luxury. Backed by a strong legacy that spans over five decades, Omkar is managed by second generation entrepreneurs who have carved a niche for themselves in the world of real estate. The board combines a seasoned team of professionals with expertise in real estate, infrastructure, steel manufacturing, oil exploration, shipping and construction. Combining the core values of integrity, inclusion, equality and excellence with a steadfast financial perspective and revolutionary vision, Omkar has gained enormous admiration from all the stakeholders in the world of real estate. Today, Omkar Realtors & Developers is equipped to transform the landscape of Mumbai with projects that extend over an area of more than 20 million sq.ft. in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) with a specific focus on the island city and the suburbs over a five year horizon. At Omkar, every individual strives to achieve operational excellence to create a paradigm shift in consumer expectations from real estate developers. The company believes that product and design innovation is a seamless process that creates a roadmap for excellence.

Future Plans
Omkar Realtors & Developers Pvt. Ltd. is working towards changing the skyline of Mumbai by setting benchmarks in providing quality infrastructure and aiding urban development. The Company is targeting the development of 20 million square feet of residential, commercial and retail projects over a five-year horizon. This high growth trajectory will continue to decrease the demand - supply disparity in the real-estate market in India's biggest metropolitan city. In sync with the company's vision, all projects provide a combination of exceptional design, state-of-theart technology, world class facilities and amenities.

At the core of Omkar's CSR philosophy is the conviction that 'the only way to truly help someone is to free them of the need for any further help'. All initiatives at Omkar are governed by a framework of business ethics that builds trust and respect with all stakeholders. Omkar is committed to act with diligence and maintain a humane approach with the end objective of the upliftment of society.

Some of Omkar's initiatives include medical care (free eye check-up / health check-up camps / medical emergency assistance), supporting socio-religious festivals, and other important social activities such as the distribution of spectacles, textbooks and notebooks to the needful. The company derives a lot of pride and satisfaction in the rehabilitation aspect of its business, which has enabled it to permanently impact the lives of more than 25,000 families living in Mumbais slums. Real estate developer, Omkar Realtors and Developers, is eyeing a Rs 1,000 crore turnover in the financial year FY 12, a top company official said. The company is planning to develop 20 million square feet of area in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) and would be launching nearly nine projects within the next six months. "We are currently working on 10 million square feet of area in various parts of the city. We have made the necessary financial arrangements and would launch the projects within the next six months. These projects are expected to be completed in two years. Thus, we are eyeing a turnover of Rs 1,000 crore by FY 12," the company's Managing Director, Babulal Varma, told PTI here. The company had recorded a turnover of Rs 262 crore in FY 10. "For FY 11, we are looking at a Rs 350 crore revenue. But once our projects are completed in the next two years, we expect the turnover to cross Rs 1,000 crore in FY 12," he said. Omkar Realtors is developing both residential as well as commercial projects in Malad, Goregaon, Andheri, Kurla, Chmebur, Kalina, Wadala, Antop Hill, Lower Parel, Bhoiwada, Dadar, Worli and Mahalaxmi. While the residential projects are focused at redevelopment, the commercial projects target small and medium enterprises, self employed individuals, boutique financial institutions and consulting firms. "We are developing few commercial projects, but we plan to focus on redevelopment projects. In a megapolis like Mumbai where real estate is premium, redevelopment is the best possible option for builders, developers as well as buyers," Babulal said. The Maharashtra Government too offers FSI of 4 for developers who undertake redevelopment projects. Generally, the FSI of 1 is used for rehabilitation, while the remaining FSI of 3 is the saleable component, which the developer can sell in the open market. "For redevelopment projects, builders get higher FSI of upto 4, compared with 1.33 in the Island city and 1 in suburbs. This is one of the major factors that is driving builders to take up redeveloped projects. We use this facility to provide best of the facilities to the people of Mumbai," he added.

all she wanted was a different set of tiles to be used in her new house, remembers Babulal Varma, managing director at Omkar Realtors. It was as simple as that. It was 2003 and Varma had learned his first lesson in Mumbais redevelopment business. Now, a decade later, he is the undisputed king of Mumbais redevelopment industry, ahead of rivals HDIL and Ackruti. He has already developed 2.5 million square feet in Mumbai and is on track to construct another 20 million by 2016. He has got to where he has because he listens to the slum dwellers. In 2003, Varma had bought rights to redevelop a chawl (a lower middle class housing set-up with shared verandas and bathrooms). This was in up-and-coming Parelan area in central Mumbai. However, soon, he was close to abandoning it. An old lady had refused to vacate. At a loss for what to do, Varma did what any young entrepreneur would doact straight from the gut. He rode up to the chawl in his Hyundai Santro and spent an evening at the ladys house. They had dinner. He reasoned with her, cajoled her, tried to make her see his point of view. In the end, it emerged that all she wanted was a different set of tiles to be used in her new house. Varma promised her the tiles and she moved out the next day. On paper, slum clearance is a great business. Get 70 percent of the residents to agree and a builder gets the rights to build free housing for the group. In exchange, he receives rights to sell an equivalent amount of residential or commercial space at market rates. With margins upwards of 20 percent, in perennially land-starved Mumbai, this is an opportunity that many should be clamouring for. Except that no one is. None of the major developers are losing sleep over not being in this business. HDIL and Ackruti, two well-known Mumbai real estate names, had plans to make slum redevelopment a big part of their portfolio. However, over the years, theyve realised that this is more trouble than it is worth because of the politics and the red tape. Its not that Varma was not aware of the risk. Instead, unlike other developers in this business who often rely on threats and intimidation to deal with resistant residents, his sole aim was to resolve the issue and move on. It is an approach that has made him the king of slum

redevelopment in the countrys commercial capital. Omkars slum clearance model is unique in this industry, says Ramesh Jogani, managing director of IndiaREIT. He adds that it is the only company that does it so systematically. Whats surprising is the speed with which the enterprise has grown. Last financial year it clocked in Rs 270 crore in sales. At present, the company is redeveloping 10 million square feet of real estate in Mumbai. Given the citys turbo-charged property prices it is a portfolio worth anywhere between Rs 15,00020,000 crore. The Initial Journey Until 2003, Varma was into the contracting business. Originally from Rajasthan, his family had been in the construction business for the last three generations. With a glint in his eye, hell tell you how a majority of the havelis across Rajasthan were made by his family. Varma admits he wasnt a good student. As a result, he was married off immediately after he graduated and put to work in the family business. By now, the family had moved to Gujarat and made frequent trips to Maharashtra to work in the industrial areas north of Mumbai. But the scale of their operations frustrated the ambitious Varma. From where he was, he couldnt see himself becoming a contractor for big, turnkey projects. That was where scale lay. Fortunately, his frequent visits to Mumbai had given him ample time to understand its real estate market. And he saw an opportunity in the redevelopment business. At that time, Varma was working as a contractor for a steel mill at Wada, north of Mumbai. Its owner Kamal Kishore Gupta had cash to spare. I was wary of investing it in the steel business where small mills were being edged out by their larger rivals, Gupta says. The two decided to partner on a Rs 5 crore loan that Gupta made and Omkar was formed. (The two families each have a 50 percent stake in the company.) When he bought rights to redevelop the chawl in Parel, he worked unlike any other developer. I have visited each house a dozen times and eaten with all the residents at least once, he says. If there was a problem Id make sure it was solved as soon as possible. My number one aim was to complete the project on time. Government processes were another key area where he realised that developers need to spend a disproportionate amount of time. So, after spending time at the chawl, he made sure he visited Mantralaya, the state government headquarters, everyday. I would accost people to show me their plans to understand how they got certain permissions, he says. He would then try and get the same for his projects. In the evenings, he would sit with his architects and work on ways to see how his drawings could be modified to get more space for the apartments he was constructing. On weekends, he would study court judgements and look for legal remedies to his problem