GRI InstituteAgility Over Plans: How Brookfield Navigates India’s Complex Real Estate Market
An investor's guide to India with Brookfield's Ankur Gupta: Risk management, adapting business plans, and the impact of AI
October 14, 2025Real Estate
Written by Jorge Aguinaga
In a candid fireside chat at India GRI 2025, Ankur Gupta, Managing Partner of Real Estate at Brookfield India, offered a rare look into the strategic thinking that has guided one of the world's largest investors in the country.
Moderated by Lata Pillai of JLL India, the conversation moved beyond macro-level optimism to explore the nuanced realities of investing in India, from the firm’s initial foray into the market to its views on technology, housing, and the very definition of success.
The core message was one of dynamic adaptation: the original blueprint for India has completely changed, proving that a willingness to evolve is paramount.
Investors make decisions that change the course of their business - these decisions to invest must be made based on risk underwriting and not on the plan alone. (GRI Institute)
The decision was based on the firm’s expertise in taking a company private, not on a deep understanding of the local real estate dynamics. This approach highlights a key philosophy: maintaining a business plan that is constantly in "edit mode," allowing for changes while keeping track of the original starting point to understand what has shifted.
This agility meant that while the firm initially sought partnerships, it opted for controlling positions when it found that the market was offering investor-manager relationships rather than true joint decision-making partnerships.
For many large, global pools of capital, the decision to invest is not based on an attractive business plan alone, but on a rigorous underwriting of the associated risks.
From this viewpoint, India presents a complex picture. Factors like currency fluctuations, interest rate regimes, and market illiquidity can make the country seem unattractive on an absolute basis when compared to other markets.
Consequently, India’s most compelling story for many foreign investors is as a tool for diversification and a place to build scale, rather than a straightforward high-return market.
The pertinent question is not whether offices will exist, but what they will look like. He speculated that in the future, offices might be measured not just in square footage but in a combination of space and technological capacity.
On the residential front, he made a strong case for "housing for all" rather than "home ownership for all," arguing that a functioning, organised rental market is essential. He pointed out the high friction costs for both tenants and owners in the current unorganised system and criticised the discrimination present in the rental market, noting that access to housing is still unfortunately often impacted by factors such as religious discrimination.
The solution, he suggested, is an open-source system where tenancy is based on objective criteria such as credit checks, not personal identity.
Therefore, to stop making mistakes is to stop taking risks and to stop growing. The key is to avoid repeating the same mistakes and to remain agile in a market that is firmly in a "build-out mode," where collaboration and long-term value creation are the ultimate goals.
In a candid fireside chat at India GRI 2025, Ankur Gupta, Managing Partner of Real Estate at Brookfield India, offered a rare look into the strategic thinking that has guided one of the world's largest investors in the country.
Moderated by Lata Pillai of JLL India, the conversation moved beyond macro-level optimism to explore the nuanced realities of investing in India, from the firm’s initial foray into the market to its views on technology, housing, and the very definition of success.
The core message was one of dynamic adaptation: the original blueprint for India has completely changed, proving that a willingness to evolve is paramount.
Investors make decisions that change the course of their business - these decisions to invest must be made based on risk underwriting and not on the plan alone. (GRI Institute)An Evolving Strategy
Reflecting on Brookfield's acquisition-led entry into India around 2014, Gupta explained that the initial strategy was unscripted and driven by a specific skillset rather than a grand market thesis.The decision was based on the firm’s expertise in taking a company private, not on a deep understanding of the local real estate dynamics. This approach highlights a key philosophy: maintaining a business plan that is constantly in "edit mode," allowing for changes while keeping track of the original starting point to understand what has shifted.
This agility meant that while the firm initially sought partnerships, it opted for controlling positions when it found that the market was offering investor-manager relationships rather than true joint decision-making partnerships.
A Diversification Play
When engaging with global investors, Gupta noted that the conversation is rarely about setting anyone straight on misconceptions. Instead, it is about understanding their perspective.For many large, global pools of capital, the decision to invest is not based on an attractive business plan alone, but on a rigorous underwriting of the associated risks.
From this viewpoint, India presents a complex picture. Factors like currency fluctuations, interest rate regimes, and market illiquidity can make the country seem unattractive on an absolute basis when compared to other markets.
Consequently, India’s most compelling story for many foreign investors is as a tool for diversification and a place to build scale, rather than a straightforward high-return market.
On Technology and Housing
Addressing the impact of technology and AI on the office sector, Gupta expressed not worry but excitement. He argued that technology has been displacing jobs for decades, and the current wave will simply reshape what an office is.The pertinent question is not whether offices will exist, but what they will look like. He speculated that in the future, offices might be measured not just in square footage but in a combination of space and technological capacity.
On the residential front, he made a strong case for "housing for all" rather than "home ownership for all," arguing that a functioning, organised rental market is essential. He pointed out the high friction costs for both tenants and owners in the current unorganised system and criticised the discrimination present in the rental market, noting that access to housing is still unfortunately often impacted by factors such as religious discrimination.
The solution, he suggested, is an open-source system where tenancy is based on objective criteria such as credit checks, not personal identity.
A Philosophy of Growth
Looking ahead, the definition of success for Brookfield in India is not tied to rigid targets. Instead, it will be measured by a willingness to keep making small, earnest mistakes. This philosophy stems from the inherent nature of the business: buying an asset with limited information from a seller who has full information is a fundamental risk.Therefore, to stop making mistakes is to stop taking risks and to stop growing. The key is to avoid repeating the same mistakes and to remain agile in a market that is firmly in a "build-out mode," where collaboration and long-term value creation are the ultimate goals.