The Patni name, once synonymous with India’s early IT outsourcing revolution, is stepping back into the arena of building businesses from the ground up—this time in pharmaceuticals. 

Amit Patni, the eldest son of Gajendra Patni and nephew of Narendra Patni and Ashok Patni, has launched Raay Neo Pharma, signalling a decisive shift from financial investments to operational entrepreneurship.

“After turning 60, I didn’t want to retire,” says Amit Patni. “We realised we were missing an operating company that could be built for the next generations.”

The move is interesting, given the family’s legacy. Narendra Patni founded Patni Computer Systems along with his two brothers and father in the 1970s, helping lay the foundation of India’s IT outsourcing industry. The company served as an early training ground for future Infosys founders—N. R. Narayana Murthy, Nandan Nilekani, S. Gopalakrishnan, and S.D. Shibulal. Patni Computers itself became a symbol of India’s offshore delivery model, growing rapidly with clients like General Electric and scaling to over 18,000 employees. The company’s eventual sale marked the end of an era. In 2011, it was acquired by the US-based iGate Corporation in a $1.5-billion deal, before being folded into Capgemini in 2015 for $4.04 billion.

Reasons to focus on pharma

Unlike many legacy business families that expand through acquisitions, Patni is taking the greenfield route.  

“We have developed about 100 SKUs of a complete range of branded generic medicines in cardiology, diabetes, respiratory, gastro and CNS specialities in the past few months, and soon will add sports medicine. Our main focus will be on branded generics, nutraceuticals, and general wellness products,” Amit Patni, founder director of RAAY Global Investments, the single-family office of the Amit Patni Group, tells Fortune India.

He says Raay Neo Pharma has invested in a large sales force and has around 300 medical representatives in the field covering 11 states. The company will soon launch pan-India on a large-scale basis and will add another 10 states in the next six months, taking the total count of medical representatives to around 400-420. In the initial phase, medicines will be manufactured by top contract manufacturers in the field. Discussions are on to in-license branded medicines and export to unregulated markets.

“I turned 60 recently and I thought of what I should do in the next 10 years. We are doing well as a family office, everything is nice and comfortable, but we realised that we are missing out on an operating company,  that we need to build for the next generations,” reasons Amit Patni on starting a pharma company. 

Raay Neo Pharma is headed by three directors—Amit Patni, his daughter Aakriti Patni, a media and entertainment professional and investor,  and Ritu Dhariwal, Chief Financial Officer and Company Secretary at Nirvana Venture Advisors. “We have hired many senior-level professionals from top companies to lead Raay Neo Pharma,” says Amit Patni. 

Amit, an MBA from Babson College, Boston, USA,  and a promoter shareholder of Patni Computers and former Director of PCS Technology, has over 30 years of extensive experience in technology, software, and projects. After the sale of Patni Computers, he focussed on his career as a financial investor and family business adviser through ventures such as RAAY (single-family office), Nirvana Venture Advisors (a $40 million digital and internet venture fund),  The Hive India (a Big Data incubator), Waterfield Advisors (a boutique family business advisory services firm where he is a director) and Campden Family Connect (a pre-eminent wealth membership network where he is a director). Amit Patni’s younger brother, Arihant Patni, managing director of Patni Financial Advisors, is also a co-investor in many of his brother’s ventures.

After the Covid-19 pandemic, Amit entrusted a leading consultancy in 2024 to explore entering an operating business. The firm evaluated businesses like paper, textiles, electronics, chemicals, and finally zeroed in on pharmaceuticals. The Indian generic drugs market reached a size of $30 billion in 2025. The market is expected to touch $53.5 billion by 2034, exhibiting a growth rate (CAGR) of 6.42% during 2026-2034, says an IMARC research report. 

The Patni legacy

Narendra Patni, an MIT graduate, formed his first company, Data Conversion, in 1972, which is seen as one of the pioneering data outsourcing companies. He formally incorporated Patni Computer Systems along with his brothers Ashok and Gajendra, and father Sobhagmal Patni, in 1976. N.R. Narayana Murthy joined the company soon to head the software division. Patni was one of the first companies to set up an offshore delivery centre in India, a pioneering work that led to the growth of IT in India. Patni was among the first to bring supercomputers to India in the late 1970s. In 1982, Patni started assembling computers in India by setting up a factory in Mumbai. In the 1990s, when the personal computer revolution hit India, Patni started selling its own branded computers. 

Soon, the US tech giant General Electric gave a big outsourcing project to Patni, which then grew its strength to over 18,000 people. In 2002, General Atlantic Partners invested $100 million in Patni Computers, then the largest transaction in India. The company did its initial public offering (IPO) in 2004, listing in both India and later on the NYSE. Patni also grew by acquiring specialised firms such as The Reference Inc (financial services) in 2003, Cymbal Corporation (telecom) in 2004, and ZAiQ Technologies (ASIC design) in 2006. 

By that time, General Atlantic Partners wanted to exit fully, and some of the current generation of the Patni family wanted to pursue new businesses beyond IT. In 2011, iGate came into the picture and acquired the promoters’ stake in Patni for $1.22 billion. iGate merged Patni and delisted it from the Indian stock exchanges.