Building on BAS

She's all of 30, but her focus for the past six years has been on living spaces for people twice her age: Tara Singh Vachani runs Antara Senior Living, part of India's $2.1 billion (fiscal 2016 revenues) Max Group. "For six years, Antara has been my path," says Tara, the youngest of billionaire Max founder Analjit Singh's three children. "I've not looked right, left, up or down." The commitment is shared: She and her husband, Sahil Vachani, are both in group-company management.

Early to the senior-living segment in India, Antara caters to the well-heeled, well-traveled, 55-and-older Indian. The elderly population in India is expected to hit 300 million by 2050-up from 100 million in 2012.

In scenic Dehradun in northern India, Antara has put $80 million toward 200 residential units spread over 14 acres with lush greenery and views of the famous Mussoorie Hills. The unit within Max India (a listed group entity that's in health care and health insurance) looks to develop such communities across the country.

Antara offers "lifestyle with life care"-a -a gamut of services from housekeeping to plumbing to a health and wellness center. The bespoke homes have features like antiskid tiles, handrails and grab bars; large front doors to accommodate wheelchairs; and lowered kitchen sinks and work surfaces. "Tara has led the creation of a new vertical and a whole program and strategy around senior living," says Singh.

In January 2016, Tara was appointed to Max India's board-the youngest to hold that position and the only Singh offspring to have such a listed-company seat. She joined the group in 2008 but wanted to chart a path outside of the mainstream businesses (see box, p. 31).

Working within a traded company has been no cakewalk-what with cost and time overruns to account for. (Antara was inaugurated in mid-April.) "The board grilled me," Tara admits. "Tough questions, tough pushing and tough realignments."