Mental healthcare organisation Amaha is set to close its ₹100 crore fundraise aimed at expanding its hospitals and clinics network across the country. But the 10-year old entrepreneurial journey almost did not happen, says Amit Malik, Psychiatrist, and Founder-Chief Executive Officer of Amaha, recalling the transition from wanting to address mental health within a larger health ecosystem to setting out on his own.
The latest fundraise has seen support from existing investors Lightbox Ventures and Fireside Ventures, along with London-based life skills platform, Sandbox International Holdings Limited (SIHL), Nithin Kamath (through Rainmatter), and the family offices of Shreyas Shibulal, Ashish Bharat Ram and Adarsh Jalan, a note from Amaha said. The ₹100 crore round also includes ₹10 crore in debt financing from Alteria Capital, it added.
Recalling early days of the journey, Malik told businessline, “the idea at that point was not to …be an entrepreneur. .. The goal ….was to build this (mental health-centric services) maybe within a larger ecosystem… within a larger multi-specialty hospital system…But unfortunately, and quite understandably, the economics of how hospitals work – mental health doesn’t feature in the top few priorities …Surgical specialties take the forefront.” After eight months of conversations, he says, it became clear he would have to build the network, with his own funds, and support from friends and family.
A crucial positive, though, was that such an initiative could be started from scratch in India, and it would have a big impact, he said, as the conversations on mental health were already happening. Having done his MBBS in India, and another 14 years in the United Kingdom, Malik says, the western-model was unlikely to work in India – that was more family-centric, among other things.
Looking to make specialised care accessible to people living with mental illnesses, Malik says, the plan is to add about 1000-beds in about five years – about 30 hospitals and 60-odd clinics. At present, Amaha has two hospitals (30-odd beds) in Bengaluru and nine centres in Delhi NCR and Mumbai, besides Bengaluru.
The organisation said, the funds would go towards infrastructure, strengthening its clinical teams and investing in the technology to deliver quality specialist mental healthcare to more people across India. Amaha’s services are across digital self-care, outpatient and inpatient treatment, and community support – for mental health conditions, including anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder, ADHD, OCD, addiction, schizophrenia and personality disorders.
Published on October 23, 2026
