From Rs 4.25 Lakh To Rs 500 Crore: How Jeetendra Turned A ‘Bad Luck’ Bungalow Into A Real Estate Empire

One of Bollywood's highest-paid actors, Jeetendra has successfully reinvented himself as a real estate developer with a number of completed projects. It's interesting to note that his journey into real estate investing started decades ago with a distressed sale by Bharat Bhushan, one of the biggest stars of 1950s Hindi cinema. For barely Rs 4.25 lakh, Bhushan, best known for movies like Baiju Bawra, sold his expansive Pali Hill mansion to Jeetendra. However, the actor later died in poverty.

The property where the bungalow formerly stood is now valued at around Rs 450 crore. Ironically, after a series of box office setbacks, Jeetendra walked out of the house shortly after purchasing it because he thought it had brought him bad luck as well.

Jeetendra remembered how the opportunity came to him out of the blue.

"There was this huge star in those days who had done films like Baiju Bawra," he stated in an interview with The Reality Drive. "He made me an offer to purchase his home in Pali Hill. When I told my father about it, he suggested, 'Let's also buy a bungalow.' We had led a fairly lower-middle-class life up to that point. Eight people shared a room in a chawl in Girgaum, where I used to live in a 20-by-10-foot room."

The Actor Paid Rs 4.25 Lakh For The Property

The actor claimed to have paid Rs 4.25 lakh for the 3,450-square-foot property.

“I ultimately paid Rs 4.25 lakh for the property. The fact that a 3,450-square-foot plot was included at the same price was even more surprising. We moved there, but all of a sudden, four of my films failed. I told my father, 'Bharat Bhushan fled from here, so I believe it's my turn. My career will end before it has really started if this continues.' We moved out after my father gave his approval,” he said.

A Property That Turned Into A Successful Investment

Even though he thought the bungalow was unlucky, it eventually became one of his most successful investments. Later, Jeetendra was approached for redeveloping the bungalow, and he agreed

"I was asked about redeveloping the bungalow. I agreed. You won't believe it, but after it was demolished, I was paid Rs 11.5 lakh for the Burma teak wood that was used to build it. I made Rs 11.5 lakh from the wood alone after purchasing the entire property for Rs 4.25 lakh," Jeetendra said."

In other words, before he even started making money from the land, Jeetendra had already made more than three times his initial investment.

How The Investment Sparked Jeetendra's Real Estate Journey

According to Jeetendra, this was the pivotal moment that ignited his passion for real estate. 

"I later transformed the land into Gautam Apartments. I was in a rush, so I sold the apartments for Rs 85 per square foot. I was concerned that no one would purchase them in the future. Today, flats there sell for around Rs 85,000 per square foot," said his son, actor Tusshar Kapoor.

"The land alone on which the building stands is worth nearly Rs 450 crore," Jeetendra stated.

The property's worth has increased significantly over the years, even though the agreement produced respectable returns back then. The land itself is estimated to be worth around Rs 450 crore, and the units in Gautam Apartments are currently valued at several crores each, making the entire property worth well above Rs 500 crore.