A Los Angeles man’s 22-year mission to get an Indian consulate in Los Angeles came one step closer to being realized when Indian officials signed a 10-year lease agreement with NAI Capitol Investment for more than 20,000 square feet of office space in Downtown LA.
Kulwant Singh, Consulate General of India, and Priyanka Tyagi, Vice Consul, were both on hand for the signing.
Spearheading the effort is volunteer Gunjan Bagla.
As the CEO and founder of Amritt, a consulting firm that advises companies on how to do business in India, Bagla recognized the need and importance of having an official arm of the Indian government nearby.
“The city of Los Angeles is the most important American city on the West Coast, he said. “The ports in LA bring in almost 45% of all imports into the U.S… Of the G-20 countries, the 20 richest countries, of which India is one, 18 of them have consulates here. The only exceptions are Russia and India, but Russia isn’t going to get a consulate here any time soon. India was missing.”
Currently there are 63 consulates in Los Angeles but “India didn’t have a seat at the table when talking to the mayor’s office, when talking to business people here, when having any international relations or trade conversations,” Bagla said. “Why is it important, you might ask? Well, it’s important because American business people who have an interest in India will now have a local diplomatic presence that they can turn to. If they have questions, they want to inquire more, they want to open an office in India, they want to sell their goods in India, the consulate will serve as a liaison to India.”
Last updated: May 11th, 2026
