Taj Banjara acquired by Auro Realty in ₹315-crore deal
HYDERABAD: The iconic Taj Banjara hotel in Banjara Hills has been acquired by Auro Realty, the real estate arm of Aurobindo Group, from Hotel Banjara Ltd in a deal valued at ₹315 crore.
The 3.4-acre property overlooking Banjara Lake on Road No. 1 was among Hyderabad’s earliest five-star hotels and was once popular with Tollywood stars. The hotel had been closed since 2023 following the expiry of its lease.
Hotel owned by Agarwal family for four decades
Anuj Agarwal, joint managing director of Hotel Banjara Ltd, confirmed the transaction. He said the property had been with his family for nearly 40 years after his uncle, RS Agarwal, decided to buy it when a flight diversion to Hyderabad led to an unscheduled stay at the lake-facing hotel. RS Agarwal had close links with the ITC Group.
The hotel was managed by the ITC Group until 1986, after which operations shifted to Taj GVK Hotels, a joint venture between Indian Hotels Company Ltd and the GVK Group. Taj GVK ran the hotel for almost four decades before the lease ended in 2023.
GHMC sealed hotel in February 2025 over unpaid dues
The GHMC sealed the defunct property in February 2025 over non-payment of property tax dues of over ₹1.4 crore for a two-year period.
Sources said multiple national and local developers, including Prestige Group and Pranava Group, had shown interest in the land parcel before Auro Realty closed the deal in late October.
Auro Realty is expected to develop a premium high-rise or a mixed-use project on the site.
