Iconic Malabar Hill bungalow, Jatia House, put on the block

The magnificent property, Jatia House, situated in the regal locality of Malabar Hill, one of the most sought-after residential location in India, is set for sale through a bidding process.

Owners Shyam K Jatia and Arun K Jatia have appointed international property consultants Jones Lang Lasalle Property Consultants (JLL) to assist them in sale/auction. It was bought by the Jatias in 1972 from Meher Cawasji Vakeel.

Nishant Kabra, associate director, JLL India, told dna: "Yes, we have been mandated to sell Jatia House. However, I would not be able to provide any additional information.

"The valuation of the bungalow has been proposed between Rs 400 crore and Rs 500 crore," sources told dna.

According to sources, the property is being sold and transferred through a two-stage bid process. In the first stage, the buyers need to submit sealed bids by August 31. In the second stage, the short-listed bidders will be invited to participate in the auction process, tentatively set for September 7.

With a total land area of 2,926 sq m and a built-up area of approx 25,000 sq ft, the property is still home to some of the most powerful and wealthy in India. From the first floor onwards, one has an undeterred sea view, which keeps getting better as one gets higher onto the terrace.

"The property is fully owned by Chem Mach Pvt Ltd, a company owned by Yashvardhan Jatia, father of Arun and Shyam Jatia. The tenants will either be surrendering their tenancies or transferring them in favour of the nominees of the prospective buyers if desired," said sources.

Both the brothers and their families reside in the property now. Arun Jatia has been leading the M P Jatia group of companies, with Pudumjee Pulp and Paper Mills Ltd, the flagship company of its group, established as tissue paper brand called Greenlime.

Some of the other group companies include Pudumjee Industries Ltd, Pudumjee Hygiene Products Ltd, Thacker & Co.

It will be a matter of months, perhaps, before a developer, industrialist or High Networth Individual (HNI) snaps up this property. However, this is not the first heritage deal.

In 2014, Mehrangir, the iconic bungalow of Homi J Bhabha, father of India's atomic energy programme, was brought by Pheroza Godrej, wife of Jamshyd Godrej and MD and chairperson of Godrej & Boyce, for Rs 372 crore.

Glamis Villa, a bungalow on Bhulabhai Desai Road off Breach Candy, was sold to M P Aggarwal, chairman of Sajjan India Ltd, for Rs 180 crore in 2013.

In 2012, steel magnate Sajjan Jindal acquired Maheshwari Mansion, a sea-facing three-storey bungalow at Napean Sea road in south Mumbai. Jindal paid around Rs 500 crore for the property. The building was controlled by a trust run by the Maheshwari family.

Same year, Gulita, the Worli property of Hindustan Unilever, was reportedly sold to Ajay Piramal of Piramal Realty for Rs 475 crore.

Bishopsgate, a five-storey residential building co-owned by Standard Chartered and the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Ltd (HSBC) in upscale Breach Candy, was sold for Rs 272 crore to Peninsula Land, an Ashok Piramal Group company in 2011.

Villa Nirmala, the over six-decade-old property in one of Mumbai's exclusive enclaves, Carmichael Road, was jointly bought by Ashok Piramal's Peninsula Land and developer Khemchand Kothari in 2010. The property was spread over an area of half an acre and there were plans to demolish it to make way for a skyscraper.