Why Private Equity Real Estate Is Fading In India — And How Rajan Gupta Is Still Making It Work

Private equity in Indian real estate is no longer the crowded arena it once was. A decade ago, global funds and domestic institutions were aggressively deploying capital across residential and commercial developments. Today, the field has narrowed signific. Several players have exited, while others have pivoted toward structured credit or passive capital strategies.

According to industry leaders, the shift is less about capital availability and more about execution capability.

Indian real estate remains one of the most operationally complex asset classes in the country. Regulatory sequencing, land aggregation, contractor discipline, cost control, and sales velocity directly determine outcomes. Financial structuring alone cannot offset weak execution.

Rajan Gupta, Executive Director, Canonicus Capital, believes this is where traditional private equity models have faced limitations.

“The Indian market does not reward passive capital,” Rajan Gupta explains. “It rewards operators who remain accountable until project completion.”

An alumnus of the Indian School of Business (Class of 2016), Rajan Gupta brings nearly two decades of real estate leadership across Unitech, Omaxe, Godrej Properties, and M3M. Over the course of his career, Rajan Gupta has raised over USD 1 billion in capital, delivered more than 5 million square feet of development, and acquired over 2,000 acres of land. Rajan Gupta has also served on the boards of landmark projects such as Lehman India (Santacruz) and Trump Towers NCR.

Drawing on these experiences, Rajan Gupta has institutionalised what he describes as the Canonicus Method — a structured, execution-led investment framework tailored to the Indian real estate environment.

When asked how the Canonicus Method differs from traditional private equity models, Rajan Gupta outlines four defining pillars.

Completion-Backed Underwriting:

Projects are evaluated on a full cost-to-completion basis, ensuring capital clarity from inception to delivery and minimising the risk of mid-cycle funding gaps.

Embedded Operational Governance:

Rather than functioning as an external capital provider, Canonicus remains actively involved across approvals, design, construction oversight, procurement, and sales monitoring — enabling early risk identification and timely intervention.

Capital-Efficiency Architecture:

Capital deployment is sequenced in alignment with construction milestones, regulatory triggers, and sales absorption to reduce drag and improve return visibility.

Multi-Stakeholder Alignment:

The framework is structured to align incentives across landowners, developers, customers, and investors, reinforcing accountability and delivery credibility.

Supporting this approach is a team curated by Rajan Gupta with over 80 years of cumulative NCR real estate experience. The team’s operational depth spans land acquisition, statutory approvals, engineering oversight, and project delivery — positioning Canonicus Capital as an active development partner rather than a passive financier.

The firm’s recent oversubscribed ₹200 crore private equity fund closure reflects investor appetite for execution-led platforms in an increasingly selective market.

As private equity participation in Indian real estate consolidates, the industry appears to be favouring models that combine institutional discipline with operational expertise. In that context, the operator-led approach articulated by Rajan Gupta signals a broader shift — from capital-centric investing to accountability-driven development.

About Spokesperson:

Rajan Gupta, Executive Director, Canonicus Capital. ISB alumnus (Class of 2016) with ~20 years of real estate leadership across Unitech, Omaxe, Godrej Properties, and M3M. He has raised USD 1B+ in capital, served on boards including Lehman India (Santacruz) and Trump Towers NCR, and delivered 5M+ sq ft across 2,000 acres.

The above information is the author's own; Outlook India is not involved in the creation of this article.