Meet The Property Tycoons Nadia Zaal and Kabir Mulchandani

Once a Mumbai boy, the former electronics baron (Akai TV and baron electronics) and his wife give us an exclusive glimpse into their beachfront mansion on Nurai Island a breathtaking property off the coast of Abu Dhabi Kabir Mulchandani.

- Kavita Srinivasan

An exterior view of Nadia and Kabir’s home, one of 23 villas designed by international architecture firm AW2, on the 4.3 million square foot Nurai island in Abu Dhabi. Above inset: Nadia wears a Donna Karan dress and sandals while Kabir wears a Paul & Joe shirt with jeans and shoes, from their personal collections.

To say that 42-year-old Kabir Mulchandani has had an eventful life would be an understatement. Born to privilege and blessed with smarts, he attended the prestigious American boarding school, Phillips Exeter Academy, going on to the Ivy League institution, Stanford. However, his seemingly idyllic life took a dramatic turn when he was forced to leave college because his entrepreneur parents could no longer afford his tuition. Undeterred, he rebuilt his family’s electronics business empire, with Bush, their firm, becoming the largest seller of TVs in India by 1998. His success story in the UAE had its share of similar vicissitudes; he was charged with fraud after experiencing dizzying success and was even taken into custody for 140 days. Following his complete exoneration of all charges in 2010, Kabir’s powerful return to the upper echelons of the real estate scene has earned him respect, riches and most importantly, a humility that is hard to find amongst the mega-wealthy.