Mr Ankit Aditya Pradhan: The Youthification Of Business Landscape

We live in a world in flux. Rapid changes characterise our lives. The tectonic shift in technological progress coupled with disruption in the business landscape is shaping societies in ways unimaginable in the past.  

A man who is leading the changes in Indian society from the front is Mr Ankit Aditya Pradhan – one of the winners of this year's prestigious 40 Under 40 award in real estate. Realty Plus, a magazine of high credibility and authenticity, chose Mr Pradhan for the honour because of his contribution to making real estate a more inclusive industry.  

The value of the award can be gauged from the fact that last year's winners included Snehil Gautam, Chief Growth & Marketing Officer: Housing.com, PropTiger.com & Makaan.com and Nayan Raheja, Promoter, Raheja Developers Limited. 

 A fundamental realignment of priorities in the highly developed countries of the West and developing countries in the global south is reimagining societies and their intrinsic values. Realty Assistant is doing to real estate in India – primarily north India – what Uber did to transportation worldwide. Putting a number to Uber's achievement is not always possible. How would you calculate the value of finding a cab in the small hours of the night when no other mode of transportation is available? Similarly, how do you calculate the value of a service that puts power in the hands of its clients? Realty Assistant, under the unique leadership of Mr Ankit Aditya Pradhan, has put clients at the centre of business operations. Putting a number to the empowerment of hitherto hapless customers will be a travesty of logic.  

Recognition of Mr Pradhan’s Leadership: Shaping Future, Winning Awards 

Gone are the days when people could be neatly bracketed into elite and non-elite classes. The status quo is now a passe. The undercurrent of aspiration has created a new aspirational class that refuses to waltz to the pipe of the powerful. Welcome to the third decade of the twenty-first century: a decade with something for anyone with merit! Meritocracy has today replaced mediocrity. Mr Pradhan is the new metaphor for the rise of meritocracy in the country.  

His fearless but sensitive leadership has brought him recognition from reputed entities and publications such as Economic Times, Entrepreneur Today, Realty Plus, et al. Recently, he won the prestigious 40Under40 award for infusing the real estate industry with new energy and enthusiasm.  

40 Under 40 

Mr Ankit Aditya Pradhan – Founder & Managing Director- Viraaj Ventures, a conglomerate of a dozen companies offering products and services representing different industries – is the flag bearer of the ascent of meritocracy in India. Coming from a salaried professional background, he shaped his future with nothing more than imagination and audacity: Imagination to break out from the old course; audacity not to be daunted by roadblocks. After all, a leader is one who has the capacity and ability to turn disadvantages into strengths.  

The coveted 40Under40 award was a recognition of his deep experience, expertise, and empathy. He has empathy for his employees, whom he calls the building blocks of his dreams, and his clients, whom he refers to as the real owner of his company. A man's character is defined by his outlook. The outlook of Mr Pradhan is a sublimation of his passion for making his clients the centre of his business model. 

35 Under 35   

Mr Ankit Aditya Pradhan was honoured by the American business magazine, Entrepreneur Today with 35Under35 Award. 35 Under 35 is a prize constituted by the magazine, acknowledging the contributions of industry leaders. Luminaries such as Mary Kom, a celebrated Indian sportswoman, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Indian Cricketer, and Raghav Chaddha, a prominent Aam Aadmi Party leader, have graced the cover pages of the magazine. It is a magazine exclusively dedicated to offering C-suite executives with the latest news on corporate developments, technological innovation, and other relevant business news.  

ET Leadership Excellence Awards – North - 2022 

Economic Times Leadership Excellence Award, held in 2022, is another feather in Mr Pradhan’s cap. The Economic Times devised a unique scientific methodology for deciding the final winners list of individuals and businesses. The ET Leadership excellence Award recognises leadership skills.  

Asia One Greatest Brands & Leaders  

Asia One, one of the top-ranked business news magazines, recognized Mr Pradhan’s immeasurable contribution to the industry by felicitating him with the “Greatest Brands & Leaders Asia & GCC 20-21 Awards”. 

Indian Achievers’ Forum Award 

Indian Achievers’ Award, given by Indian Achievers’ Forum, is one of the most sought-after awards in the industry. Mr Ankit Aditya Pradhan won the Entrepreneur of the Year Award, 2020, cementing his reputation as one of the pathbreakers in the industry. Past winners of the awards have been well-known personalities such as Ms Kiran Bedi, India’s first woman IPS officer, Ms Shahnaz Husain -- Founder, Chairperson, and MD –The Shahnaz Husain Group in India, et al.  

Many awards have gone to the company, Realty Assistant, too: 

Excellence & Star Performer Award 

In an event held in Lucknow, Capital of Uttar Pradesh, 2021-22, excellence and Star Performer Award by DLF, one of the biggest real estate companies of the world, went to realty Assistant.  

Best Real Estate Company 

In 2023, Franchise India, “world’s highest visited franchise website network”, awarded Realty Assistant the 14th estate award in the Best Real Estate company category. 

Gold Star Channel Partner 

The Gaurs, one of the most renowned real estate developers with a legacy of more than 25 years, acknowledged indispensable services of Realty Assistant by awarding it Gold Star Channel Partner in 2023.  

Realty Assistant and the Dawn of a New Era   

Realty Assistant, a real estate service provider, is Mr Pradhan's answer to the old order in the property market. His vision was to position the company as a one-stop place for people. The company offers a comprehensive range of services: from deal finalisation to help move to a new home to addressing issues after sales. The vast range of services and a proactive approach to real estate disrupted the old ways and created a new paradigm for a new world. The achievement of the Realty Assistant was made possible by Mr Pradhan's intuitive understanding of people's needs and his emphasis on leveraging the talent of the younger generation, whom he calls UI – Unmatched Intelligence! At a time when the world has taken fancy to AI – Artificial Intelligence – Mr Pradhan believes AI can be a complementary force, but the youth will create new possibilities.   

When Mr Pradhan set out to realise his ambition, there were many naysayers. But he had a fire in his belly to challenge the status quo in his industry and refashion it in the image of his vision. His vision was simple: to make the industry more inclusive and give ordinary people agency that had been sacrificed at the altar of corporates' unhinged commitment to profit maximisation. There is nothing wrong with profit maximisation. What is wrong is sacrificing people's interests and exploiting them to satisfy the interest of a few tsars of the corporate world. The motto of Realty Assistant is clear: "Love thy clients". And the results have taken everyone by surprise. A long journey with clarity of purpose and commitment to change has begun.   

A Lodestar is Born   

Mr Pradhan never wished to be a star. He set out to be a lodestar, showing the path to the younger generation. His unique approach to business and his work turned him into an icon for Millennials and Generation Alpha. The strength of Mr Ankit Pradhan lies in his sensitivity to the new generations. His understanding of the issues that affect the youth enables him to leverage their talent. His rise as a youth leader has a subtext: his struggle. He has built his dream step by step and is fully aware of what goes into the making of success.   

He has the innate talent to put himself in the shoes of others and understand their issues. His approach has won him many laurels. He is recognised as a pathbreaker entrepreneur by reputed publications such as ET, an authority par excellence in the financial world; won 35Under35 award, constituted under the aegis of Entrepreneur Today, for his leadership skills and steering his company at a time of economic upheaval; Mr Pradhan was one of the few winners of Asia One Business magazine's prestigious 'Young Asian Entrepreneurs 2020-21'. The award recognised his innovative style of leadership and astute business acumen. Property Management Firm of the Year 2020 by REMAX India, 'the world's largest real estate franchise brand,' went to Realty Assistant, one of the companies under Viraaj Ventures', under the leadership of Mr Ankit Aditya Pradhan. These laurels are validation of Mr Pradhan's vision and the approach he takes to fructify his dreams.  

Miles to Go… 

 Realising one's dream is relatively easier than maintaining consistency. It is the consistent delivery of results that sets a lodestar from a star. Mr Ankit Aditya Pradhan is conscious of the constant praise and awards he is receiving. Still, he is determined not to let prizes deviate him from his primary focus: differentiating his company from the rest by bringing a human angle to his business operations and a commitment to collaborate with youth to produce unique results. "A rising tide lifts all boats", says Mr Pradhan. "It is", adds Mr Pradhan, "crucial to maintain the momentum without losing sight of the shore". He was the change industry yearned for. Today, he has proved that one can become a constant with the right mindset and clarity of thoughts. He is the anchorage providing stability in times of instability. He has come to represent the constant in the midst of change. The more things change, the more he stays the same!