Sharing an anecdote about the rising appeal of India’s temple towns as real estate investment destinations, Abhinandan Lodha, founder and CMD of The House of Abhinandan Lodha, has recalled how Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan personally reached out to him to purchase land in Ayodhya, one of the country’s fastest-emerging spiritual and investment hubs.
he was in Australia when he received a call around 3 am there.
“There were couple of missed calls and later I got a message saying, ‘This is Amitabh Bachchan, please call back when convenient.’ I literally stood up and called him back. He told me ‘Abhinandan ji, main UP se hoon aur mujhe Ayodhya ji mein land leni hai (I am a native of Uttar Pradesh and I want to buy land in the holy town of Ayodhya). I told him, we will do it for you,” Lodha said at the Hindustan Times’ India Next Real Estate Summit 2026.
Bachchan first asked him about the price, he said. “I replied, ‘How can I talk pricing with you?’ He said he wanted to buy 15,000 sq ft and I told him it may be around ₹15 crore, and the very next day he sent me ₹15 crore,” said.
Temple towns to emerge as the next frontier for senior living
Growing cultural tourism around temple towns in India could soon give rise to senior living communities around spiritual destinations and become a major growth opportunity, Lodha said.
Vatican City receives around 10 million visitors a year, while Ayodhya attracts nearly 250 million visitors, he underlined. “When this kind of footfall comes into a destination, economic growth naturally takes place. The local economy begins to participate, and we begin to see a real estate boom. The moment land becomes attractive, fewer people want to sell it. This is not a temporary phenomenon; it is long-term value creation,” Lodha said at the HT Real Estate Summit.
Amitabh Bachchan’s real estate portfolio in Ayodhya and Alibaug
In March 2026, Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan expanded his real estate footprint in Ayodhya, home to the Ram Mandir, by purchasing a 2.67-acre land parcel for ₹35 crore from The House of Abhinandan Lodha (HoABL), the company had said. This is Bachchan’s third investment in Ayodhya and purchase with HoABL
The land parcel is located near HoABL’s 75-acre ‘The Sarayu’ project.
Commenting on the development, Abhinandan Lodha, had then said that “Bachchan’s investment reflects a shared belief in land as an intergenerational asset that preserves value over the long term.”
“At HoABL, we view land not merely as wealth but as a legacy. In Ayodhya, this legacy assumes a profound meaning, a ‘virasat’ where faith and inheritance come together. Supported by sustained infrastructure development and public investment, Ayodhya is emerging as a compelling destination for long-term land ownership and enduring value creation,” he had said.
In May 2025, the veteran actor bought a 25,000 sq ft plot adjacent to The Sarayu for nearly ₹40 crore. Earlier, in 2024, he purchased a 10,000 sq ft plot in The Sarayu, HoABL’s flagship seven-star mixed-use enclave in Ayodhya, for ₹14.5 crore.
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Apart from Ayodhya, also invested in HoABL’s ‘Sol de Alibaug’ project, where he bought a 10,000 sq ft land parcel for ₹10 crore, further diversifying his luxury real estate portfolio. The project has also attracted investments from Bollywood actors Kriti Sanon and Kartik Aaryan.
HoABL said that over 65% of its customers across projects are CEOs and CXOs from leading BFSI, pharmaceutical, and multinational companies, as well as Bollywood personalities.
According to a report by Liases Foras titled ‘Ayodhya – A Rising Global Spiritual Capital,’ the city’s real estate market is undergoing a significant transformation, driven by rising land values and increasing interest in both spiritual tourism and long-term investment. The report notes that land prices in Ayodhya have grown at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 19%, with projections suggesting this could reach 25% by 2035.
Over the past five years, has been fueled by large-scale infrastructure projects, including the expansion of the international airport, improved road and rail connectivity, and the construction of the Ram Mandir. The report noted that land values in key areas, such as the Sarayu riverfront and the Ram Mandir corridor, have appreciated by more than 4.5 times between 2020 and 2025.
Founded in 2020 by Abhinandan Lodha, The House of Abhinandan Lodha (HoABL) is a branded land developer. The company has sold over 13 million sq. ft. of developed land within five years and currently has around 25 million sq. ft. under active development across five states in the country.
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