Syed Irfanuddin – The Opulent Simpleton

In the narrow bylanes of Kumharwadi, a bustling Muslim-populated locality in Hyderabad’s old city, the walk up to Irfan’s residence is filled with bystanders, scores of labours loading groceries and essential supplies in pickup trucks, and transport vehicles. It is the third phase of the lockdown, stores are closed and workers at the RR Charitable Trust are piling tons of groceries in shell-pink gunny bags. Another person stops them and makes way as the car approaches Irfan’s residence. They are nodding in salutation, offering Salam – the Islamic greetings, as we approach the attention-demanding tall gates of their employer’s residence.

Once upon a Candid Conversation…

As the car stops, a man hurriedly but graciously opens the door to welcome us to a home that sets itself apart from the locality by its grandeur and cosmopolitan appeal. It is very unlike the many residences in the area. Behind the golden doors of the RR residence, defying the imposing grandeur of gold-themed intricate interiors, a person with boyish charm introduces himself as Syed Irfanuddin, the third son of Mr. Syed Hameeduddin, founder and Chairman of RR Group of Companies. Irfan inherits the unassuming simpleton charm of his father and in no way comes as the Director of a lofty business empire that grew from modest beginnings and soon became a household name in Hyderabad and beyond.

The foundations began with his father, a man with humble beginnings whose longest journey would have otherwise been from rags to manufacturing R.R. Pan Masala. R.R. is short for Red Rose, a name chosen by his father for the group of companies and all its products when he laid its bedrock in 1980 with the inception of RR Pan Masala. However, grit, perseverance, and hard work pushed it much beyond. From making Pan Masala to managing a Real Estate business, from manufacturing edible spices to managing a chain of luxurious function halls, R.R. Group of Companies has come a long way since 1980.

Irfan is camera-shy, and slim in appearance and despite the devastating effects of the lockdown on the group’s manifold businesses, he smiles saying everything is okay. He asserts his faith in God. He is inculcating the ability to face crises, to handle unprecedented business and real-life situations due to lockdown, and despite all the innocence oozing out of his boyish persona, he is svelte in handling business affairs, something apparent from his perspective of looking at things, and effortless sway over many people working at his companies. Even as we begin the interview, Irfan is interrupted by calls from different localities, seeking groceries, and financial assistance. He says “there are thousands of people who need help, and we are only doing whatever little we can to help”. It might not be sufficient, but it will help them with supplies until the lockdown is over.

The relief operations however are not exclusive to lockdown, at RR Charitable Trust, the group’s social welfare division, they are a routine activity. His father is one of the prominently known persons in Hyderabad when it comes to charitable endeavours, including providing monthly groceries to several educational institutions, Madrassas, Imams, and their families, not to mention anyone who comes knocking on their doors at the factory or the residence, a trait Irfan seems to have inherited by nature.

He is also reposeful in maintaining a calm composure in crisis as we talk about the mammoth losses the group’s function halls business will espouse due to lockdown restrictions. “Perhaps till the end of November, our function halls might not perform optimally, but we will open them up in accordance with government instructions. We are ensuring the staff present locally is remunerated.”

The Red Rose Function Palace run by the group is one of the city’s most favourite wedding destination, and literally lives up to the name with its majestic build, intricately done interiors that make it beguiling in appearance, and infuse a royal charm. More than 100 people work at this convention centre in different shifts, and they too are being provided ready-made food and relief kits to survive the lockdown. He doesn’t have an approximation on the measure of relief materials distributed by the group since the first day of lockdown nearly two months ago but adds over 100 localities were identified for this purpose in Hyderabad alone. Some districts of Telangana and parts of Karnataka state were also included in the list of beneficiary zones. Initially, the relief activity began with the distribution of cooked food, made at the ‘Roti Ghar’ a lofty multi-storied apartment with a commercial-scale kitchen, a trained chef, a warehouse stacked ceiling-high with rice bags, groceries, containers of edible oil, dates, and other supplies. The facility had at least 60 people working in different sections like food cooking, packing, supervising, organizing and housekeeping when we walked in unannounced.

“Just five days into lockdown, we began realizing people would be running out of supplies, that’s when we started distributing groceries and ration kits”, he says pointing to a truck parked in the Roti Ghar’s portico where the material was being loaded for distribution. He sporadically glances at his phone as it beeps, sometimes to acknowledge confirmed deliveries, often to respond to requests for assistance with medical treatment, school fees, monthly rent, etc on his Instagram. Explaining the activities, he details the group’s other businesses which also include an acronymous construction management company WIIZ Realtor, named after brothers Waqar, Imran, Irfan, and Zeeshan.

Another subsidiary WIIZ Infra LED manufactures and supplies LED lighting solutions for residential, and commercial use and already has a presence in UAE, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Egypt, Qatar and Kuwait, while the company RR Masala manufactures blended, powdered, and whole spices that are ubiquitously available at almost every other grocery store in Hyderabad. Red Rose Group also operates JAFLED, a lights and electricals venture of Red Rose Group India in UAE. The group’s subsidiary WIIZ Health Tech LLP manufactures medical and surgical equipment including operation tables, surgical chairs, ophthalmic equipment including eye examination and correction devices, LED Vision Charts, motorized tables, and also distributes Volk lenses in India. The demand for some of their products have shot up in lockdown with the increase in number of medical emergencies and use of disposable products including gowns and masks during the Corona Virus pandemic. Some of these products are supplied to hospitals and healthcare centres locally, other products are exported. In real estate, the company is currently completing a construction project in Jalpally area.

Irfan modestly mentions the many projects undertaken by the group including residential complexes, commercial constructions and gated communities. “Almost all our projects are funded entirely by our companies. We only make them available for sale when they are ready-to-occupy, and this includes the Jalpally gated community project. This is a unique trait, and it bolsters trust of our customers in the group since we are not collecting money in advance from them for construction and the chance of people losing money to a fraud is zilch as they only pay when the project is complete.” The group has also partnered recently with Aditya constructions to build villas and apartments in Shaikpet and Toli Chowki, two of the new city’s real estate hotspots with prime value. When asked, he says Pan Masala and real estate are the most thriving businesses of the group. He’s quick to clarify “Pan Masala” business is open and allowed by the government while Zarda (tobacco) is banned. Ironically, the word ‘Tobacco’ is part of the company’s official moniker “Unique Tobacco Products” for Pan Masala business. It has been so since it was first registered by Irfan’s father over three decades ago.

The group stopped producing tobacco after certain government restrictions. It still continues to manufacture Tobacco at one of its factories in Bidar city of the neighbouring Karnataka state, where tobacco production is allowed by the government. Some of the R.R. Group products are also exported to Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia, Dubai and other gulf countries. But with lockdown, their factories were obliged to working at 30% labour capacity inline with the government’s instruction for industrial establishments. Irfan confidently says “these setbacks are temporary. It’s just a passing phase and a great learning experience. My biggest learnings come from my father”, he says, after having joined the business formally more than 10 years ago at an age when most youngsters are just out of college, Irfan chose to be helping hands to his father. “Papa has entrusted us to manage the businesses, but nothing goes by without his knowledge, and all of us (brothers) discuss our work agenda with him everyday before leaving for work in the morning, and update him on the progress on reaching back home in the evening. All of us have our own set of roles and responsibilities, each of us have been asked to manage a particular business of the group”, he adds.

At 33, Irfan has travelled considerably, mostly in pursuit of understanding the businesses in international markets most recently to London, Turkey, Australia, Singapore, Malaysia, Dubai and Saudi Arabia. He says travelling exposure has widened his approach to his own businesses. “Developed countries use advanced technologies, and there’s always something to learn from them and see if we can improvise on something similar back home.” Travelling is also his hobby. Hanging out with his friends whenever he can is his favorite pass time. He loves swimming, and going on long drives in his Mercedes AMG S63, a premium luxury sports car with a 5.5 litre and 7-speed sports transmission, he usually keeps at a farmhouse purchased in 2016.

Occasionally, he swaps his cars with his brothers who own a BMW X5, a Volvo XC60 and a Range Rover Velar among other cars. He is prompt in acknowledging the efforts of his brothers, and fervently admits that the success of their businesses couldn’t have been without the love and unflinching support of his brothers, who closely coordinate with each other on different business and personal matters. For his just-out-of-teens persona, it does come as a surprise that he’s the father of three daughters, the eldest being just over three years old, and the youngest barely a year old. Irfan’s wife is a homemaker.

He loves spending quality time with them, unwinding after long hours that begin with a trip to factory, inspection of real estate projects, and supervising charitable works before calling it a day. Being the son of a man who founded a majestic empire from very humble beginnings, Irfan is humble and unpretentious, genteel but customary yet adept in handling business affairs. He seems in every way reflective of his father’s simpleton character and philanthropic traits that have been winning hearts of Hyderabadis for decades. And youngsters like Irfan, with a strong business hold, social understanding of things, and a benevolent heart can make a constructive difference in not only developing but empowering society.