Key Management Personnel
Manish Lodha is a senior investment professional with over 25 years of expertise across the Indian financial markets, spanning corporate finance, fixed income, equity research, and portfolio management. A Chartered Accountant and Company Secretary, Manish combines financial discipline with an understanding of market fundamentals to deliver long-term returns.
Prior to his current role at Ashika Investment Managers, he made significant contributions as a Fund Manager at Mahindra Manulife Mutual Fund. Manish has also been associated with Canara HSBC OBC Life Insurance Company and Kotak Mahindra Mutual Fund, where he was a part of equity research and portfolio management.
Earlier in his career, he spent four years in corporate finance function in BOC India Ltd (now Linde India Ltd), giving him a well-rounded perspective on both capital markets and corporate finance.
Manish comes with research-driven approach, strong focus on fundamentals, and ability to navigate diverse market cycles, making him a respected voice in the equity investment field.
Mr. Umang Parekh is a qualified Chartered Accountant and Law graduate with over 7 years of focused experience in equity research. He brings a strong analytical foundation to the team, with a deep understanding of the Indian equity markets.
His core expertise lies in fundamental analysis, where he evaluates company financials, tracks sectoral trends, and delivers comprehensive research insights to support investment decisions. Umang's multidisciplinary background enables him to approach research with both financial and legal perspectives, adding depth to his market analysis.
Rutvi Jain is a finance professional with over three years of experience in the capital markets. She is a CFA Level III candidate and holds a degree in Business Management Studies from H.R. College of Commerce and Economics, Mumbai.
With a strong academic foundation and practical exposure, she brings a focused approach to investment analysis, equity markets, and valuation. Her interests lie in deep fundamental research, market dynamics, and long-term investing strategies.
Aloke Sasmal is a seasoned investment and wealth management professional with over 22 years of experience across asset management, private banking, wealthtech, and capital markets. He has held senior leadership positions at London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG), FinIQ, Indiabulls, and ING, where he consistently led business expansion, digital transformation, and product innovation initiatives.
Before joining Ashika Investment Managers, Aloke led Wealth Data & Analytics Solution Sales for India & South Asia at LSEG, advising leading private wealth and digital-first firms on their data-driven transformation journeys.
Previously, Aloke was instrumental in launching and scaling FinIQ’s India business, building digital investment platforms for banks and brokers. At Indiabulls, he played a pivotal role in establishing the firm’s Mutual Fund and AIF platforms, contributing to their rapid growth and market positioning.
Aloke brings a unique blend of strategic sales expertise, distributor engagement.
Ajay has over 8 years of experience across Family Offices and Interior Contracting & Services in the areas of Accounts, Finance, Taxation, and Operations within Asset Management Companies (AMCs).
Before joining Ashika Investment Managers Pvt. Ltd., Ajay managed AIF and PMS operations, accounts, and taxation at Ace Lansdowne. He has prior experience in MIS and cost management at a turnkey contracting firm, investment analysis and reporting at a family office, and audit and taxation at a CA firm.
He holds a master’s degree in commerce from Mumbai University and is an Inter-CA from the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India.
With over 20 years of experience across equity research, investment banking, data science, and portfolio management, Himadri blends financial expertise with machine learning to build systematic, factor-based investment models.
At Ashika Investment Managers, he leads the Quantitative fund management team, designing adaptive, data-driven equity models that integrate alpha signal discovery with rigorous risk management.
Previously, he led analytics strategy at HDFC Bank, founded QuantumGrowth—a global predictive intelligence SaaS platform—and held roles at Taurus Mutual Fund, Morgan Stanley, Dar Capital, and IL&FS Investsmart.
Abhinav Jain brings over 22 years of comprehensive experience in Private Credit and Structured Finance, specializing in Origination, Structuring, and Syndication across diverse market cycles. At Ashika Investment Managers, he leads the Credit Fund Business, driving the firm’s vision to build a strong, innovative, and disciplined private credit platform.
Prior to Ashika, Abhinav held leadership roles as Managing Director at EAAA India Alternatives Limited and Senior Executive Vice President & Fund Manager – Structured Debt at IIFL (360 ONE Asset), where he managed complex credit strategies and mid-market financing mandates. He previously headed the Syndication business at Capital First Ltd., establishing the vertical from scratch and pioneering several structured solutions for mid-cap borrowers.
His earlier experience at Edelweiss Financial Services, Deutsche Bank, and IDBI Bank further strengthened his expertise in structured credit, private financing, and relationship-driven lending. Abhinav holds an MBA from the University of Mumbai.
Aloke Sasmal
Ajay Sharma
Executive Leadership
Chirag Jain
Mr. Chirag Jain is a dynamic entrepreneur and business leader with a diverse portfolio of responsibilities across the Ashika Group. He serves as the Chief Executive Officer of Ashika Capital Ltd. and is a Director at Ashika Investment Managers Pvt. Ltd., where he oversees multiple business verticals and drives new strategic initiatives.
He is currently leading the launch of a Venture Capital fund focused on India’s evolving tech landscape, in collaboration with international partner FinsightVC. Chirag is also an active member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Shapers Community—an initiative that brings together young change-makers driving impact worldwide.
He is an All-India Rank-holder Chartered Accountant from the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) and holds a Bachelor’s degree in Commerce (Hons) from St. Xavier’s College, Kolkata.
Ajay Arora
Mr. Arora has an extensive experience of over 32 years in various roles relating to capital markets such as Investment Banking, Stock broking oth Retail and Institutional, Corporate Advisory, Asset Management and Private Banking. He has gained his expertise in Asia and MENA and has done extensive marketing in Europe, South Africa, US, Japan and Australia while he was associated with institutions like Kotak Mahindra Bank, IL&FS Investsmart, Deutsche Bank, ICICI International and Mashreq Bank-Private Banking. He has been in leadership position of building financial services businesses for past 2 decades.
He has build the brokering business both in India and Dubai including the business of Asset management and Private Banking for family offices.
Ajay is a rank holder Chartered Accountancy with post-graduation in Management and also holds Business and Marketing diploma from Ross Business School, University of Michigan.
Fund Management Team
Mr. Manish Lodha
Manish Lodha is a senior investment professional with over 25 years of expertise across the Indian financial markets, spanning portfolio management, equity research, investment banking, and corporate finance. A Chartered Accountant and Company Secretary, Manish combines rigorous financial discipline with a deep understanding of market fundamentals to deliver long-term value.
Prior to his current role at Ashika Investment Managers, Manish held senior positions at some of India’s leading financial institutions. He made significant contributions as a Fund Manager at Mahindra Manulife Mutual Fund. Manish has also been associated with Canara HSBC OBC Life Insurance Company and Kotak Mahindra Mutual Fund, where he led equity research and portfolio management initiatives.
Earlier in his career, he gained valuable corporate finance and finance function experience through roles in established firms including BOC India Ltd (now Linde India Ltd), giving him a well-rounded perspective on both capital markets and corporate financial management.
Manish is widely recognised for his research-driven approach, strong focus on fundamentals, and ability to navigate diverse market cycles, making him a respected voice in the Indian investment community.
Umang Parekh
Mr. Umang Parekh is a qualified Chartered Accountant and Law graduate with over 7 years of focused experience in equity research. He brings a strong analytical foundation to the team, with a deep understanding of the Indian equity markets.
His core expertise lies in fundamental analysis, where he evaluates company financials, tracks sectoral trends, and delivers comprehensive research insights to support investment decisions. Umang's multidisciplinary background enables him to approach research with both financial and legal perspectives, adding depth to his market analysis.