In the hills of Shimla, where apple orchards define both livelihood and legacy, one local story stands out as a powerful example of resilience, reinvention, and returning to one’s roots.
Born into a family of traditional landowners and apple growers, Sahil grew up amidst orchards, where life moved with the seasons. Yet, his dreams took him far from home. After graduating in hospitality, his passion led him to the aviation industry. From 2008 to 2020, he worked with leading airlines, including Malaysia Airlines and Jet Airways, eventually becoming an Aviation and Flight Safety Trainer.
While his career was taking off globally, there was always a quiet pull back home.
Living miles away from Shimla, Sahil often found himself missing the simple things—time with his family, conversations at home, and the presence of his ageing parents and octogenarian grandparents. The fast-paced life of aviation brought success, but it also created a distance that he increasingly felt.
“Along with my career, I also needed time with my family,” he reflects.
When the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the aviation industry in 2020, it became a turning point. What seemed like a crisis to many became an opportunity for Sahil to make a long-delayed decision—return home.
Back in Shimla, he reconnected with his roots—apple orchards and seasonal farming. However, he quickly realised that agriculture, especially fruit farming, is cyclical and limited to certain months of the year. Instead of seeing this as a limitation, Sahil saw an opportunity.
“Time should not sit idle,” he believed.
With this mindset, he stepped into entrepreneurship and founded Bhandari Hardware and Tools. What began as a modest initiative soon evolved into a deeper, research-driven venture. Sahil focused not just on selling equipment, but on understanding real challenges faced by farmers and small industries.
What started as a small venture soon evolved into a research-driven enterprise. Sahil focused on understanding real challenges faced by farmers and small industries rather than simply selling machines.
“We are building solutions that are aligned with real field conditions and regional needs, rather than just making machines,” he says.
His dedication to research opened new doors. The business expanded into manufacturing specialised spare parts, eventually reaching international markets. After meeting strict quality standards, his products began getting exported to Europe, particularly Germany and Austria.
Initially, operations were set up in Sainj near Prala Apple Mandi in Shimla. However, due to infrastructure limitations, he shifted to Chandigarh to scale operations effectively.
Today, his journey has taken another leap. The company has secured orders from automobile firms in Europe and is setting up a dedicated export unit to supply automotive parts, with plans to expand to South Africa.
Alongside industrial growth, Sahil has also focused on agriculture through HENEXA AGRITECH, an emerging brand aimed at modernising farming and food processing across North India.
Operating across Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Jammu & Kashmir, and Uttarakhand, the company offers machinery such as apple grading machines, atta chakki units, oil expellers, pulverisers, and food processing systems. These are designed to improve productivity, reduce manual labour, and ensure better quality output.
In apple-growing regions, where grading determines market value, his solutions are helping farmers reduce losses and secure better prices.
What sets his work apart is practicality—machines built for real conditions, not just concepts.
Sahil’s journey is not just about changing careers. It is about choosing purpose over comfort, and family over distance.
In a world that often celebrates staying ahead, his story reminds us of the power of coming back—back to one’s roots, responsibilities, and relationships.
At the heart of it all, his life revolves around his beautiful wife and his role as a doting father of two—bringing balance to ambition and grounding success in family.
