On May 31, when doctors at the Max Hospital in Saket, Delhi, told chartered accountant Vivek Aggarwal that his father’s condition was critical and that the family should prepare for the worst, the 45-year-old immediately called his elder daughter, Jivisha, in Bengaluru.
Vivek Aggarwal, his wife Tarjani, daughters Jivisha and Varya, and mother Premlata died in the June 3 fire at a B&B in Hauz Rani. (Parveen Kumar/HT)
The organs of Radhe Shyam (77), the family patriarch, were failing, his oxygen levels were dropping, and doctors had put him on BiPAP support. The message from father to daughter was simple: “Come home.”
20-year-old Jivisha, who had just begun her first year at PES University in Bengaluru, boarded the first available flight and reached Delhi on June 2 around 4pm. The family wanted to be together. Three days later, Vivek, his wife Tarjani, daughters Jivisha and Varya, his mother Prem Lata and three relatives from Rajasthan would die in a devastating fire that engulfed Flourish Stays, the B&B, where they had shifted to be closer to the hospital.
Six days after the blaze, Radhe Shyam himself died in the ICU, unaware that his entire world had already vanished.
Behind the tragedy are two quintessential Indian stories. The first is of family whose journey mirrored that of countless middle-class households across India — families that spent decades building homes, educating children, caring for ageing parents and dreaming of a better future. And the second is of how relative wealth is no insurance against the unpredictability, and low value, of life in India where safety is often given the short shrift.
This is the first story.
From Ajmer to Delhi, and beyond
Radhe Shyam and his wife Prem Lata left Ajmer, Rajasthan, and moved to Delhi in 1978 with their newborn son Vivek. The young family settled in Kotla Mubarakpur in south Delhi, occupying the first floor of a four-storey ancestral building where several cousins grew up together.
Radhe Shyam joined the family’s automobile spare parts business, which had been operating since 1974. Over time, he branched out into real estate construction and interior decoration, establishing himself in the business in 1995 before eventually retiring about a decade ago.
“Uncle had worked very hard throughout his life. Once Vivek started doing well professionally, he gradually stepped back and left all decisions to him,” said Mahendra Aggarwal, Vivek’s cousin who now lives in Noida.
Relatives describe Vivek as a brilliant student. He studied at Manav Sthali School in Delhi, graduated from school in 1996, and then enrolled for a commerce degree even as he prepared for his CA exam. According to another cousin, Deepak Aggarwal, Vivek became one of the youngest CAs in the Delhi region in 1999. He would have been 21 years old at the time. “He was among the top five in Delhi and among the top 30 in the country.”
His professional career began overseas. Mrinal Aggarwal, Vivek’s nephew, said his first job was with an Oman-based company. He stayed overseas for almost five years. “He went to Singapore and later to Nigeria before returning to India in 2004.”
Back home, Vivek held senior positions with several leading companies. He worked with AiRtel between 2004 and 2006, joined Genpact where he worked till 2012, moved to HCL, later worked with Info Edge, and eventually joined InsuranceDekho as chief financial officer in August 2024. Weeks before his death, he had travelled to Hong Kong to receive an award from his company.
A family on the move
Vivek married Tarjani in 2005 in an arranged marriage. Family members said the couple complemented each other perfectly. “Vivek was very clear in his decisions and goals, while Tarjani was extremely creative. She loved organising things and took responsibility for every family function,” Mahendra said.
According to relatives, Tarjani had recently launched her own event management company. “She played the role of a perfect wife and daughter-in-law. She brought up both daughters with strong family values,” Mahendra added. The couple enjoyed a large social circle and frequently hosted relatives and friends.
The Aggarwals’ greatest pride was their daughters. Jivisha had secured admission to PES University for a computer science engineering course. Her younger sister, 16-year-old Varya, studied in Class XI at DPS Gurugram. Family members said the sisters were ambitious, and were already planning to study overseas. Varya had recently returned from Germany after participating in a student exchange programme.
Perhaps nothing represented the family’s success more than their sprawling three-storey duplex-style house in Sector-46, Gurugram. They moved there only in December 2025. Vivek Aggarwal purchased the 500-square-yard plot in 2015 as an investment. “But after he started working in Gurugram, he decided to build his dream house on it,” Mahendra said.
Construction began in 2018. The father-son duo invested nearly ₹ 4-5 crore, largely from their s…
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