Our Team – VIXAR

Amit Deshmukh

Chief Financial Officer

Amit Deshmukh is the Chief Financial Officer of Ascentios Advisors.

Amit was previously the CFO for the Yes Bank AMC and HSBC India’s AMC. Across his career in the Indian financial services industry, Amit has also worked with Bhartia AXA, Fidelity India, Standard Chartered Bank, and Kotak Securities.

Amit is a qualified Chartered Accountant and Cost Accountant by training.

Adesh Kumar

Head ESG

Adesh is Vice President and leads ESG monitoring and compliance efforts at VIXAR. He has been with the Firm since 2023.

Adesh worked with CBRE-ExxonMobil between 2020 and 2023, where he managed risks for the operations & projects across ExxonMobil sites in India. He also advised on matters related to statutory compliances, environmental strategy, corporate governance and outsourcing operations.

Prior to CBRE, Adesh worked with GE Healthcare across manufacturing, supply chain sourcing, and sales & services divisions.

Adesh has conducted more than 90 comprehensive audits in environmental, health and safety, labour, and supply chain security, across the oil & gas, power, healthcare, and consulting sectors in India.

Adesh holds an undergraduate degree in Biotechnology Engineering from MSRIT Bangalore and a graduate degree in Environmental Engineering from NITK Surathkal.

Rohith Rangan

Investment Advisory Team

Rohith is an Analyst and member of the VIXAR investment advisory team. She has been with the Firm since 2024.

Rohith worked with Bain & Company, where he worked on commercial due diligence, market scans and value creation projects across sectors including consumer goods (F&B), pharma and electricals.

Rohith is an all-India rank holding Chartered Accountant, having also completed his MDP at IIM Lucknow.

Gaurav Arora

Investment Advisory Team

Gaurav is an Analyst and member of the VIXAR investment advisory team. She has been with the Firm since 2024.

Gaurav worked in the Investment Team of IARC (Blackstone backed ARC) between 2023 and 2024. At IARC, he worked in the distressed investment space in retail lending and roads/infra sector.

Gaurav is a qualified Chartered Accountant, a graduate from Shri Ram College of Commerce (SRCC), and holds a deferred admit from IIM Ahmedabad.

Pratima Garg

Investment Advisory Team

Pratima is an Analyst and member of the VIXAR investment advisory team. She has been with the Firm since 2024.

Pratima worked with Kotak Alternate Asset Managers between 2022 and 2023, where she was part of the investments team in their commercial real estate fund. Prior to Kotak, Pratima worked with Vedanta Resources’ forex and commodity hedging division between 2021 and 2022.

Pratima is an all-India rank holding Chartered Accountant, and holds an undergraduate degree in commerce from Delhi University.

Parshva Mehta

Investment Advisory Team

Parshva is an Analyst and member of the VIXAR investment advisory team. He has been with the Firm since 2024.

Parshva was part of the investment team with Creador Private Equity and Multiples PE. Parshva began his career at Enam Investments, a well renowned family office in their public markets investment team

Parshva is a qualified Chartered Accountant, and holds an undergraduate degree in commerce from Mumbai University.

Ashik Siroya

Investment Advisory Team

Ashik is a SVP and member of the VIXAR investment advisory team. He has been with the Firm since 2024.

Ashik was an Investment Director at CVC Capital Partners India and was part of the Financial Services sector coverage team. Before CVC, Ashik co-led the Financial Services vertical at Arpwood Capital, a boutique M&A advisory firm, from 2016 to 2024. In this role, he advised on several large-ticket M&A transactions, including the merger of Fincare SFB with AU SFB, HDFC with HDFC Bank, Gruh Finance with Bandhan Bank, as well as the acquisitions of DHFL by Piramal Capital (under IBC), Fortis by IHH, Marsh India by MMC, and Ashirvad Pipes by Aliaxis.

Earlier in his career, Ashik worked at Reliance Industries, Jamnagar Refining unit from 2012 to 2014.

Ashik holds an undergraduate degree in Mechanical Engineering from NIT Nagpur and a graduate degree in Management from IIM Calcutta.

Vishal Thakkar

Investment Advisory Team

Vishal is a Director and member of the VIXAR investment advisory team. He has been with the Firm since 2016.

Vishal worked with the Boston Consulting Group between 2014 and 2016, where he advised clients in the financial services and IT services industries on growth strategy, performance improvement, and post-merger integration.

Prior to BCG, Vishal worked with Nomura Securities’ fixed income division between 2010 and 2012.

Vishal holds an undergraduate degree in Electronics and Telecommunication from VESIT Mumbai, where he ranked first in his department and a graduate degree in Management from IIM Calcutta, where he ranked fifth in his cohort.

Manoj Dengla

Investment Advisory Team

Manoj is a Partner and member of the VIXAR investment advisory team. He has been with the Firm since 2017.

Manoj was a Director at The Carlyle Group between 2005 and 2017. He set up Carlyle’s India franchise, and led their investments in HDFC, India Infoline, PNB Housing Finance, and SBI Cards. Manoj also helped set up the renewable energy investing franchise at Goldman Sachs’ Special Situations Group between 2004 and 2005, where he led investments into SunEdison and Horizon Wind.

Prior to joining Goldman Sachs, Manoj worked with ICICI Bank’s leveraged finance and structured finance division and Hindustan Unilever.

Manoj is an all-India rank holding Chartered Accountant, and holds graduate degrees in Management from IIM Ahmedabad and Harvard Business School, where he graduated with High Distinction as a Baker Scholar.

Amol Jain

Investment Advisory Team

Amol is a Partner and member of the VIXAR investment advisory team. He has been with the Firm since its establishment in 2014.

Amol was a Managing Director with the Texas Pacific Group between 2005 and 2014 and helped build the TPG India franchise. At TPG, he led investments into Shriram Transport, Shriram City Union Finance, and Vishal Retail, which was the first distressed buyout transaction executed by a financial sponsor in India.

Prior to joining TPG, Amol worked at DSP Merrill Lynch between 1999 and 2005, where he led the Financial Sponsors group and oversaw marquee private equity transactions including ICICI Ventures’ investment in Tata Infomedia and TPG’s investment in Matrix Labs. Amol began his career at IL&FS in 1996.

Amol holds an undergraduate degree in Electrical Engineering from IIT Bombay and a graduate degree in Management from IIM Ahmedabad.

Rajeev Gupta

Investment Advisory Team

Rajeev chairs the VIXAR Investment Committee. He has been with the Firm since its establishment in 2014.

Rajeev was the founding country head for The Carlyle Group’s India franchise between 2005 and 2015 and led their investment into HDFC. Between 1990 and 2005, Rajeev also set up and led the M&A franchise at DSP Merrill Lynch. Under his leadership, DSP Merrill Lynch was consistently ranked as the #1 M&A advisor in India.

Prior to joining DSP Merrill Lynch, Rajeev held senior leadership roles at the Indian subsidiary of St. Gobain and Cosmo Ferrites, where he was Chief Executive Officer.

Rajeev holds an undergraduate degree in Mechanical Engineering from IIT-BHU and a graduate degree in Management from IIM Ahmedabad.

Manoj Jain

Director of Ascentios Advisors

Manoj is a Whole-Time Director of Ascentios Advisors, investment manager to funds sponsored by VIXAR.

Manoj is a seasoned IT professional with close to 20 years in Microsoft India, where he worked on global products like Windows, Windows Server, Azure, Bing while leading diverse teams. As a technology and innovation leader, he has multiple patents in his name across various technologies.

Manoj has done two startups – one in EdTech and another in FinTech. Manoj is currently consulting folks solve technology problems.

Manoj holds an undergraduate degree in Computer Science Engineering and a graduate degree in Management from IIM Ahmedabad.

Kazi Arif Uz Zaman

Director of Ascentios Advisors

Kazi is a Whole-Time Director of Ascentios Advisors, investment manager to funds sponsored by VIXAR.

Kazi is a partner at GestAlt Network, a Bangalore-based investment partnership deploying proprietary capital.
He has over 22 years of experience in private equity and investment banking.

Prior to co-founding GestAlt Network in 2017, he served as Managing Director at Everstone Capital, where he worked for over 9 years and prior to that as Associate Director at ICICI Venture.

Prior to his private equity stint, Kazi worked with ANZ Grindlays Bank / ANZ Investment Bank in their for about 9 years.

Kazi holds an undergraduate degree in Electrical Engineering from IIT Kharagpur and a graduate degree in Management from IIM Ahmedabad. He has been a CFA (US) charterholder since 2001 and was a founder director of the CFA India Society.

Achal Khanna

Director of Ascentios Advisors

Achal is a Whole-Time Director of Ascentios Advisors, investment manager to funds sponsored by VIXAR.

Achal is the CEO for SHRM India and the Business Head for Asia Pacific and MENA. She joined SHRM 6 years ago as COO for SHRM-India, was promoted to CEO-SHRM India and now manages the Global business development role also. She is responsible for leading the India operations of SHRM, as well as Asia Pacific, Middle-East and North Africa. In her current role she is responsible for building SHRM brand, expanding its business and developing professional relationships with government agencies, and other HR and business associations in the region.

Prior to joining SHRM, she was Managing Director for Kelly India operations and successfully put them on a high growth path in India. Before that she was Vice President for GE, managing business development & operations for two important GE Businesses NBC and Consumer Industrial, across India, China, Hungary & Mexico. In her earlier role as Country Manager for Polaroid India, she managed the entire India operations including their Software development center. She has earlier worked with Dupont, ITC and Cosmo Group handling key global business development and operation roles.

Achal holds a Bachelor’s degree in Economics and a Master’s Degree in English Literature and Business Management.

Daignostix

Daignostix provides remote teleradiology services to healthcare delivery providers based primarily in the United States. The company is bootstrapped and was founded by a first-generation entrepreneur couple, Dr. Arjun Kalyanpur and Dr. Sunita Maheshwari—Yale-trained, American board-certified doctors.

With a wide portfolio of services and capabilities to read multiple modalities such as prelims, finals and electives, and a global pool of ABR radiologists, Daignostix is able to offer a “true 24/7/365” & high quality services to a wide range of customers with varying requirements across multiple time zones.

In 2025, VIXAR acquired controlling stake in company to support next phase of growth.

Sector : Healthcare
Status : Invested
Year of Investment : 2025
Website : www.daignostix.com

Sewa Grih Rin Ltd

Sewa Grih Rin Ltd (SGRL) is an affordable housing finance company promoted by SEWA (Self Employed Women’s Association) in 2015, with a mission to improve housing access for low-income and underserved families in urban and peri-urban areas. The company has a unique focus on enabling property ownership in the informal sector, who typically lack access to formal credit. It plays a critical role in formalizing financial inclusion for this segment.

As of June 2025, SGRL operates through a network of 75 branches across 8 states including Delhi, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Maharashtra, Gujarat, and Haryana, with an AUM of ~INR 1,100 Cr.

In 2024, VIXAR acquired a controlling stake in SGRL to support its next phase of growth, strengthen governance, and expand access to affordable housing in the informal sector.

Sector : Financial Services
Status : Invested
Year of Investment : 2024
Website : www.sgrlimited.in

Sterling Hospitals

Sterling Hospitals, one of Gujarat’s leading healthcare providers, operates a network of 4 multi-specialty hospitals and 2 oncology centres across major cities in the state. Established with a focus on delivering high-quality tertiary services, Sterling has earned a strong reputation for clinical excellence and patient care. The group offers a wide range of specialized services including cardiology, oncology, neurology, and critical care.

In 2022, VIXAR acquired a controlling stake in the Company to enhance infrastructure, strengthen clinical capabilities, and improve the quality of governance.

Sector : Healthcare
Status : Invested
Year of Investment : 2022
Website : www.sterlinghospitals.com

SBFC Finance

SBFC Finance provides financing to small business owners who have little or no formal credit history are underserved by traditional banks. SBFC uses a “PhyGital” model which uses technology and authentic in-person service to support this under-served part of market.

VIXAR invested in SBFC in 2017 to fund the acquisition of retail loan portfolio of Karvy Financial Services which had a network of 65 branches and 800+ employees, and support company’s growth ambitions.

VIXAR partially exited the investment in 2023 through an IPO sale and fully in 2024 through on-market block sales.

Sector : Financial Services
Status : Exited
Year of Investment : 2017
Year of Exit : 2024
Website : www.sbfc.com

Senvion
Wind Energy Solutions

Senvion SA is a global manufacturer of onshore and offshore wind turbines, headquartered in Germany. The company provided wind energy solutions across key global markets, including Europe, India, and Australia, and was known for its engineering capabilities, modular turbine design, and service offerings across the full turbine lifecycle

In 2015, VIXAR, in partnership with Centerbridge Partners, acquired Senvion in a slump-sale transaction from Suzlon Energy.

Sector : Industrials
Status : Exited
Year of Investment : 2015
Year of Exit : 2016

IREP Credit Capital Private Limited

IREP Credit Capital Private Limited (IREP) is NBFC that specializes in providing financing to small business owners who have little or no formal credit history and are underserved by traditional banks. IREP uses a “PhyGital” model which uses technology and authentic in-person service to support this under-served part of market.

VIXAR acquired IREP in 2025 to fund the growth and scaleup of business with a network of 90+ branches across Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Karnataka with 800+ employees.

Sector : Financial Services
Status :Invested
Year of Investment : 2025
Website : www.irepglobal.com

Anil Kaul

Operating Advisor

Anil is a member of the VIXAR operating advisory team and is involved in managing businesses in the financial services sector. He has been with the Firm since 2024.

Anil has extensive experience in the financial services industry and advises private equity funds, CXOs and serves as an Independent Board Director.

He is presently on the Board of Directors of Satin Credit Network Limited, 360 ONE Asset Management Ltd. and Hiranandani Financial Services as an Independent Director as well as a Non-Executive Director on the board of LIC Housing Finance.

He was the Managing Director for Tata Capital Housing Finance Ltd, and a Senior General Manager at ICICI Bank, where he was the Business Head For Rural & Inclusive Banking, Government Banking and Retail Institutions. Prior to ICICI Bank, he held senior roles as Jt. Managing Director of Capital First Ltd and Retail Head of ICICI Securities Ltd.