- Lightrock welcomes Manoj Kohli as a Senior Advisor, Gaurav Malhotra as Partner, and Aayush Parwal as well as Himanshu Kashyap as Principals.
- These appointments follow Lightrock’s opening of a second India office in Mumbai and bolster efforts to scale up the group's India operations into a strategic hub.
- Lightrock has deployed nearly USD $1 billion into more than 45 purpose-driven Indian companies, including Porter, Aye Finance, SolarSquare, and Kauvery Hospitals.
19 August 2025, Mumbai & London: Lightrock, the global investment platform committed to building a sustainable future, today announces the addition of four new colleagues to strengthen its platform in India and advance its strategic expansion. These appointments follow Lightrock's announcement of Samir Abhyankar as the new Head of India, the opening of a second India office in Mumbai, and efforts to scale up the group’s India operations into a strategic hub for regional capital deployment and value creation.
The appointments – Manoj Kohli as Senior Advisor, Gaurav Malhotra as Partner, and Aayush Parwal and Himanshu Kashyap as Principals – bring extensive sectoral, strategic, and investing expertise to Lightrock’s growing platform in India.
To date, Lightrock-advised private market investment funds have deployed nearly USD $1 billion into more than 45 Indian companies operating across its core impact themes: People, Planet, and Productivity. Lightrock’s portfolio in India includes logistics specialist Porter, MSME lender Aye Finance, rooftop solar company SolarSquare, and healthcare provider Kauvery Hospitals.
Manoj Kohli has been appointed as Senior Advisor to Lightrock, with specific responsibility for providing strategic counsel to the leadership and supporting the scaling up of the platform’s India presence. Manoj is a veteran financial services and technology business leader, having most recently served as Head of India for SoftBank Group, where he was responsible for investments in Indian companies through the SoftBank Vision Fund. Prior to that, he was the Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director for Asia and Africa at Bharti Airtel, where he is credited with scaling the business into a global telecom leader.
Gaurav Malhotra joins from British International Investment (BII), where he led the Financial Services (FS) Equity team globally as well as the FS Debt team in South Asia. He managed a portfolio valued at over USD $800 million, overseeing a team of investment professionals across London, Mumbai, and Bangalore. He also has a decade of financial services consulting experience while at the Boston Consulting Group in India, working with a wide range of FS companies on diverse topics from new business setup and investment diligence to long term strategy and transformation.
Himanshu Kashyap joins from Apollo Global Management, where he focused on investment opportunities in the financial services, industrials, technology, and consumer sectors. Prior to that, he held positions at Investcorp and British International Investments. He began his career as a Project Manager in the energy sector before transitioning to investment banking roles at JP Morgan and Haitong Securities.
Aayush Parwal recently joined from Eversource Capital, where he was an Executive Director focusing on investments across climate transition themes including clean energy, climate finance, energy efficiency, and circular economy. Prior to that, he was an Investment Manager in the Corporate Finance Group at Piramal Capital. He began his career as an Equity Research Analyst, holding roles at both CLSA India and Evalueserve.
While Lightrock welcomes these four new colleagues, it also announces the departure of partners Saleem Asaria and Kushal Agrawal, who are leaving to pursue new opportunities. Both have made important contributions to establishing Lightrock’s presence and portfolio in India. They will remain advisors for a period to continue their support for the platform after concluding their roles as partners.
Samir Abhyankar, Partner & Head of India at Lightrock, commented: “I am delighted to welcome our new colleagues to the Lightrock platform. Their expertise, experience, and vision will be pivotal in further advancing our expansion efforts, enabling us to capitalise on the vast opportunities in India by helping a new generation of entrepreneurs scale to global heights.”
Pal Erik Sjatil, Managing Partner & CEO of Lightrock, commented: “India continues to be one of the most promising markets for investment, and these appointments, along with our strategic plans to strengthen our presence, underscore our confidence in the country's innovators. I extend a warm welcome to our new colleagues and look forward to their collaboration with entrepreneurs to foster impactful economic growth in India and across the wider region.”