Wipro signs 1.7L sq ft Smartworks lease to expand Kol ops
Times of India | 5 December 2025
Kolkata: Wipro has taken on lease 1.7 lakh sq ft of workspace for around 3,000 people from Smartworks Coworking Spaces Ltd to expand its footprint in Kolkata. Sources in Sector V told TOI that this would be the Indian MNC's largest space in the city after its own campus. Smartworks, however, refused to confirm or deny the name of the lessee.
Wipro that provides information technology, consulting and business process services, and is one of India's Big Six IT services companies, already has 21,000 employees at its Salt Lake Sector V campus. Work is underway on its second campus in New Town, which will have a seating capacity of 10,000 people.
The transaction involving office space at two Smartworks sites—Victoria Park and Mediasiti—is the largest flex-office deal signed in Kolkata. Both facilities are located in Salt Lake Sector V. JLL India acted as the advisory partner for the deal.
Smartworks is one of India's largest managed office platforms, with 14 million sq ft under management across 61 centres in 14 cities in India and Singapore.
"Enterprise adoption of managed campuses has entered a decisive phase. Large organisations are scaling faster and leaning toward workspace models that offer predictability, depth and seamless expansion," said Smartworks founder and managing director Neetish Sarda.
"With flex contributing a growing share of India's office absorption, our focus remains on building integrated campuses that can support this momentum with consistency across markets," added Sarda, who hails from a veteran jute family in Kolkata.
JLL senior managing director (east and emerging markets) Surekha Bihani said, "This significant leasing transaction in Kolkata represents the growing maturity of India's flexible workspace market, where enterprises are increasingly choosing managed office solutions for their scalability and operational efficiency."
"The IT sector's continued confidence in Salt Lake Sector V as a prime business destination, combined with the ability to deliver customized, tech-enabled campuses across multiple locations, demonstrates how the managed office model is becoming integral to corporate real estate strategies. This deal reinforces Kolkata's position as an attractive destination for large-scale enterprise operations, supported by strong infrastructure and talent availability in the region," Bihani added.
The new workspace will offer tech-enabled environments, modern collaboration zones, meeting suites, recreation areas, wellness facilities and convenience stores designed as holistic, experience-led spaces that support productivity, culture and scale.
Smartworks' growth in recent quarters reflects a clear shift in the Indian office market, with enterprises consolidating into larger, high-quality campuses and choosing partners who can deliver speed, consistency and long-tenure stability.
Strong seat retention, long client tenures, and rising uptake in the 1,000+ seats category, now contributing approximately 35% of rental revenue, highlight how enterprises increasingly view the managed campus model as a long-term, scalable solution rather than a stopgap flex arrangement.
With recent large space sign-ups by Wolters Kluwer and Davies Shared Services in Pune, this deal marks the continuation of Smartworks' steady streak of sizable enterprise take-ups.
Smartworks partners with developers to transform large bare-shell spaces into branded, tech-enabled, ready-to-move campuses equipped with amenities such as cafeterias, gyms, sports zones, crèches, medical centres and convenience stores.