Hot Seat

The hotelier and his muse

Lalit Suri, chairman and managing director, Bharat Hotels, promoter of the Grand Group of Hotels, is a multi-dimensional man with more facets to his personality than one can imagine. How does he move so effortlessly from one role to another? Neeti Mehra attempts to understand the man and his muse

Hotelier. Politician. Industrialist. Philanthropist. Art-collector. One man; a multitude of personas. It would be simplistic to dismiss the person in question as a dilettante without weighing his antecedents. But in this case, the accusation dies an inevitable, silent death. How does Lalit Suri toe the line between so many disparate worlds, each a complete entity of their own? Putting the question to the man himself is akin to questioning a veritable monk; the answer doesn't lie in words; it is considered by deeds done.

Academically bright, he studied in elite institutions of the capital city, where he resided. An alumnus of the renowned St. Columbas School Delhi and of St. George's School, Mussoorie, Suri completed an honours degree in commerce from Shri Ram College of Commerce, Delhi University. It was a forgone conclusion that he would join the family business, as most scions would want to do. Except that the family had not diversified into hotels yet. This happened in 1982, when Bharat Hotels Ltd. was formed.

He pursued automobile engineering in England for two years before returning to the homeland in 1971, and then joined the family run Delhi Automobiles Ltd to start and spearhead the company's specialised division for automobile body fabrication on buses, station wagons, trucks and military vehicles. From automobiles to hotels, it was a long journey. In 1982 when Bharat Hotels was incorporated, he started as the joint managing director, and when the family wanted out in 1987, he took over control as chairman and managing director.

Since then, he spearheaded in record time the completion of the company's mega project of a 444-room 5-star deluxe hotel in New Delhi along with an adjoining shopping-cum-commercial complexes - World Trade Centre and World Trade Tower. On October 20, 1988, the hotel was commissioned - InterContinental The Grand, New Delhi. After this, there was no looking back. He commenced on a rapid expansion plan and continued his new projects at a time when the entire tourism industry was going through a downtrend.

But neither the collapsing bourses nor the naysayers could waiver his determination to succeed. The next venture was the 125-room InterContinental The Grand Palace, Srinagar. At that time it was considered a great risk to invest in property in Kashmir, but his foresight and belief inspired him. Many in the industry didn't consider it a wise move. It was a calculated risk, but ultimately it paid-off. Today the former palace residence of the Maharajas is one of the leading heritage resort hotels of the country, riding on the buoyancy of tourism in the state. It was converted into InterContinental Hotel in April, 2001 - making it the state's first international hotel. For this initiative, Suri received the prestigious 'Special Award' from the Government of India, Ministry of Tourism, one of the many accolades he has received throughout his lifetime.

The venture in Srinagar was undertaken with the sole purpose of assisting the government in its socio-economic development, offering employment and promoting tourism. He staunchly supports the concept of public - private participation in tourism ventures. "What is also encouraging is that the government has realised the potential of earnings from the tourism sector and the multiplier effect tourism has on the economy," he says. And now an increasing number of Indian states are actively promoting tourism - both nationally and internationally - and new market segments are attracting visitors, which he says is a sign of a maturing industry.

Disinvestment is also high on his agenda. This is only too apparent in the bid for the landmark Great Eastern Hotel. The 165-year old heritage property in Kolkata will operate as The Grand Great Eastern Kolkata, by early 2007, after restoration. Acquired for a sum of Rs 520 million, it is the third heritage property owned by the Bharat Hotels Ltd. The hotel will need another Rs 1.2 billion for modernisation and a facelift.

His grit and focus is evident in this success story. Today the Bharat Hotel group operates its hotels under 'The Grand' banner and its present portfolio incorporates 7 luxury hotels in the country's metro cities offering more than 1,600 rooms in the five-star deluxe segment. Besides, the group also has interests in newspaper publication, automobiles, and automotive car air-conditioning systems, telecommunications, information technology, human resource management, real estate and property development.

For a man with a finger in so many pies, he has no trouble in juggling his life at all. An avid art collector and a philanthropist, he believes in giving back to society what one has received from it. He is involved with a village charity, which helps educate children, rehabilitation of the visually challenged and is also contributing financially to various charities in the country. For the past 22 years, he has been operating 10 fully equipped medical mobile vans. These vans provide free medical advice and distribute medicines to the needy in villages in Uttar Pradesh. He also contributed in both kind and donations to the Indian army, for the rehabilitation of war widows and the army's socio-initiatives in Jammu & Kashmir.

A vociferous supporter of the tourism industry, Suri is also involved in policy making decisions of various associations and the government. Those roles go hand in hand with his participation in various industry forums. He was the immediate past president of Hotel Association of India and is the honorary chairman of the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), India Initiative. Suri was also the driving force that ensured that the prestigious 5th Global Travel & Tourism Summit of WTTC was held in New Delhi, in April 2005. A Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha, this is second term, and he is the only representative of the Indian tourism industry in the Upper House.

His outlook for the year is positive and he gives credit to the government for it, saying, "The tremendous success of the 'Incredible India' campaign, the extensive marketing efforts that have gone into this campaign internationally and the effective use of electronic media along with Internet have brought about a lot of awareness about the country and 2006 will continue to reap the dividends of the campaign." He also feels that the high growth rates of the Indian economy, of more than 7.5 to 8 per cent will continue to bring in good cheer for the industry.

As for his hotels, he does not feign any modesty, and says, "For my group of hotels, the Grand Group - as you must be aware, we are the fastest growing 'single owner' chain in the country. Today we have hotels in all major destinations of the country - New Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Goa, Udaipur, Khajuraho, Srinagar - with new hotels also being built in Ahmedabad, Bekal and our latest acquisition of the famous Great Eastern in Kolkata, which we will reopen by the end of 2006 or early 2007, after restoration, as The Grand Great Eastern Kolkata. By 2008 we are also looking at hotels in Hyderabad, Jaipur, Noida, Dubai."

His voice trails off and you can notice the assurance with which he speaks. For a man with myriad passions in life, the new year has just begun.