Inside Varun Jain’s Stunning Car Collection Built for Beauty and Speed

THEY SAY YOU NEVER REALLY KNOW WHAT LIES BENEATH. On the surface, Safdarjung Enclave is all quiet, leafy lanes and statuesque homes—but under the veneer lies a world less manicured, more intriguing, with chrome, mirrors and a ‘bat cave’ of machines built for speed.

Much like the man who owns it.

With his quiet smile and signature tika, Varun Jain might pass for your most unassuming neighbour—until you realise he lives for the thrill born in the roar of engines and the blur of motion.

It’s a passion that kicked in early. “I think my first word—before Dad or Mom—was ‘car’” Jain says, laughingly. Like most boys growing up in the ’80s, his world revolved around wheels. His father fed the fire—bringing home Hot Wheels for him to play with and eventually gifting him his first cool car: a BMW M5 (E60) on graduation. “Honestly, it’s one of the best cars BMW has ever made. That engine was a V10—they don’t do that anymore,” says Jain, founder of Smoke Lab Group, a premium spirits company.

Parikshit Rao

A few minutes into a conversation with Jain about his collection—dominated by Lamborghinis and limited-edition Ferraris— and it’s obvious: the man knows his machines inside out. There’s a method to his garage, and it starts under the hood. “I’m a V8 and V12 guy,” he says. Naturally aspirated, not battery powered. The sound, the engine tech, the way a machine responds—these are non-negotiables. “Every brand—Porsche, Ferrari, Lamborghini, Audi, Mercedes-Benz—has its own feel. It’s about what suits you. And I know what suits me.”

The connection from wheel to steering is sacred. “That feedback is everything. It’s about reaction time,” he adds. “I race too, for passion. If I wasn’t doing what I do, I’d be a full-time racer for sure.”

A girl could be forgiven for taking in all that zazzy metal and wondering—is it just for show? But this is a garage built by a man who’s not afraid to get his hands dirty under the hood. Jain confesses mechanics was never really his thing. Still, his instincts are sharp. He recalls a moment in 2004: fixing a stuck gear lever in a friend’s brand-new BMW, overriding the mechanic’s advice on a hunch— and getting it right. Even today, as a reluctant backseat passenger, he knows the second something’s off. “I’m like, ‘Stop the car, check the tyre.’ The driver steps out and goes, ‘Oh sir!’” He shrugs. “It’s the gut. You just know.”

Over the years, that gut instinct has sharpened—not just behind the wheel, but in what he chooses to park in the garage. “When you’re younger, you buy cars to show off,” says Jain. Back in 2008, he was featured in Pinnacle magazine as the first Indian to buy a Rolls-Royce Ghost. It’s a car he says he wouldn’t be caught dead driving today. “I think I’ve crossed that phase. Call it maturity, maybe. Now it’s about buying something that holds value—and has meaning.”

Which brings us to his eternal love: Ferraris. Jain has often spoken about his obsession with the brand, one that runs deep enough for him to name his son after the founder, Enzo. So, what is it about the Italian stallion that has his heart? “You spot a sports car and say, ‘That’s a Ferrari.’ That’s how deep the branding runs—it’s in your head from birth,” he laughs. Fittingly, his first-ever car was a Toyota MR2—“the poor man’s Ferrari,” he adds with a grin.

Jain’s first Ferrari was the 458 Speciale. “Only four came to India. It’s the last special V8 in that category,” he says, explaining how Ferrari releases a limited-edition model as a final send-off before retiring a line. “They’ve really changed the game with special editions—because to get the next one, you have to be eligible.” His second? The 488 Pista Spider, a convertible he was allocated precisely because he owned the Speciale. “It’s like getting a Hermès bag,” he says with a laugh.

While engine specs and steering feedback fuel Jain’s obsession, design is just as central to his love affair with cars. The underground garage is proof—he designed it himself, down to the lighting. “It’s a very personal space,” he says, and his sense of pride in it is palpable. It’s still a work-in-progress, but the highlights are hard to miss: life-size figurines of Iron Man, Batman and Deadpool, sourced straight from local cinemas. “What do they do with the toys on display once the movie’s done? I asked and said I wanted to buy them!” he grins.

Quietly tucked away in a corner are two Maybachs—the family cars. ‘They’re incredibly comfortable for daily use and still running brilliantly, even after one-and-a-half lakh kilometres,’ Jain says.Parikshit Rao

The collectibles—miniatures and scale models—that line the shelves are either finds from his travels or treasures ordered online. Jain has an in-house art whiz who brings his wildest briefs to life. One piece on the wall features a painted car with a playful twist: Batman and Robin reimagined as Enzo and Robin, named after his two sons. Then there’s the Aston Martin mounted like artwork—the mould made by his late friend, Bonito Chhabria. “A lot of people ask me, ‘Why’s it on the wall?’” he says. “I tell them—because it’s art.”

Jain’s obsession with design doesn’t stop at the garage—it extends to the cars themselves. He’s handpicked the colourways of his Ferraris. “See the yellow one? It was actually red,” he says, pointing to the 458 Speciale. “Yellow just looked better on the car.” The 488 Pista Spider, on the other hand, was built from scratch to his exact specs. He flipped Ferrari’s classic colourway—from red with blue and white to white with red and blue.

If he had to pick a favourite, though, it would be the 458 Speciale—“comfortable, raw, very me on a track,” he says. Next on his radar? The Porsche 911 GT2 RS, slated for 2027, with serious design chops and track pedigree.

These machines may be road-legal, but they’re made for the circuit. “Driving them on the street is like flying an A380 to Mussoorie. Why would you do that?” he shrugs.

Which naturally begs the question: where does Jain—who insists on driving himself—take these machines out for a spin?

He grins. “I get that a lot,” he says. “At night.”

FOR ALL HIS DAREDEVILRY, JAIN IS JUST A SENTIMENTALIST at heart.

Every time a car rolls out to make space for the next, he holds on to a piece of it: a bronzed engine base turned into a table, framed etchings of favourites past. “So many times, if you want to get that, you have to sell this. So, I’ll keep a part of the car,” he says, pointing to the carbon fibre bonnet of his favourite Porsche 911 GT3.

The garage is dotted with toys and memorabilia, including a repurposed bonnet and exhaust salvaged from former carsParikshit Rao

Few know that Jain is an avid biker—one who took a step back after a bad crash. ‘I ride less now, but bikes are a real stress buster,’ he says. Pictured above with his Can-Am three-wheeler. Parikshit Rao

Every number plate has a story as well—the birth year of Enzo, wife Sanya, his own. “My dad has a car with triple one which was the number on his first car, a Fiat,” he says. One of the family Maybachs bears 6666, a choice made by his son. “I just asked him what number he wanted, and he goes, ‘All sixes,’” Jain laughs.

Cars are a family passion and the boys, especially, share their father’s love. Jain recalls how, during the lockdown, they’d do donuts in their go-karts right in the garage, where their toy cars have their own mini-garage. They’ve been joining him on the track since they were one and have built an uncanny stamina for speed. “A little boost and most kids pee in the car, adults get nauseous—but these two just sit like it’s nothing,” he says.

For all his sentimentalism, though, there’s a sharply pragmatic side to Jain—he is an entrepreneur, after all. While he loves his Ferraris with a driver’s passion, he’s also shrewd enough to know they’re solid investments. “When people ask, ‘Why are you buying these cars? They don’t hold value,’ I tell them, no—the value appreciates,” he says.

Among his most eye-catching pieces are Playforever’s vintage racing car toysParikshit Rao

He has few regrets when it comes to his cars—except one that stuck with him as a life lesson. “Don’t let go too early. I regret selling two of my cars—just six months later, their value shot up by `70 lakh,” he says.

Now, he’s determined to hold on to the real gems—not just as investments, but as legacy. “I’ve already started seeding it in the boys’ heads—‘This will go to your son or daughter.’ They ask, ‘Why?’ And I tell them, ‘You’ll understand when you’re older,’” he laughs.

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