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In Memoriam
End of a legendary era
The late Lalit Suri, chairman and managing director,
Bharat Hotels, promoter of the Grand Group of Hotels, was a multi-dimensional
man with more facets to his personality than one can imagine. Neeti Mehra
unravels the life and times of one of the doyens of hospitality industry who
moved effortlessly from one role to another, achieving many milestones in his
illustrious career
 Hotelier.
Politician. Industrialist. Philanthropist. Art-collector. One man; a multitude
of personas. How did Lalit Suri toe the line between so many disparate worlds,
each a complete entity of their own? The answer doesn't lie in words; it is
considered by deeds done.
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An
Express Hospitality Tribute
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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 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 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 five-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 supported 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 had once said.
Disinvestment was also high on his agenda. This was 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.
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 had no trouble in juggling his life
at all. An avid art collector and a philanthropist, he believed in giving back
to society what one has received from it. He was 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 was also involved in policy
making decisions of various associations and the government. Those roles went
hand in hand with his participation in various industry forums. He was the immediate
past president of Hotel Association of India and was 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 was his second term, and he was the only representative of
the Indian tourism industry in the Upper House.
His outlook was positive and he gave credit to the government for it. He felt
that "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." As for his hotels, he did not feign any modesty, and
had proudly said, "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”. The group was also looking at hotels in Hyderabad, Jaipur, Noida,
Dubai.
Lalit Suri was indeed a man with a mission. The industry will
miss this man with myriad passions in life.
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| The sudden and untimely demise of hotel baron Lalit
Suri is likely to delay the reopening of the century-old Great Eastern Hotel
(GEH) in the Central Business District (CBD) of Kolkata.
Lalit Suri's Bharat Hotels Group took over the mantle
of the GEH after its successful bid last November. The West Bengal Government
had invited bids from hospitality giants to hive-off its stake in the
loss-making hotel. Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, Chief Minister of West Bengal,
reacted with shock on hearing the sudden demise of the Rajya Sabha member.
He said, "The news has saddened me greatly. He was the key person
in the takeover of GEH. Naturally, I am slightly worried about the fate
of the hotel. But I am sure that there are other competent people in the
group who can takeover his responsibilities. I will discuss the situation
with them."
Out of the three bidders shortlisted by the state government,
Bharat Hotels outbid the rest by submitting a bid of Rs 52 crore for 90
per cent government stake. Suri had initially said that GEH would be re-opened
after a Rs 120-crore renovation within a year, but later revised the re-launch
date to early 2008.
Part of the proposed investment was to be financed from
a public offer of Rs 1.20 crore shares. The plan was, however, put on
hold following the volatile state of the capital market. Now, doubts on
the project's renovation and completion have cropped up following Suri's
death. A company official, declining to comment on the details of the
project, only said the reopening plans of GEH are on schedule. After the
reopening the hotel will be renamed Grand Great Eastern and would be upgraded
to a five-star deluxe hotel. Suri, during his talks with the state government,
had also evinced interest to set up a hotel management and catering institute
in the state.
Joy Roy Choudhury - Kolkata
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| With the loss of Lalit Suri, India has not only lost
a very dynamic businessman and an hotelier, but also a man with great courage
and conviction. He had built his hotel empire in a very short period. But
his interest was not only for himself; he was actively involved with associations
to bring up issues with the government relevant to tourism. With him we
have lost a strong voice.
- Anil Madhok, MD, Sarovar Hotels
Lalit Suri's tragic demise is indeed a great loss for
the hospitality industry that he championed relentlessly. I have had the
privilege of working with him for many years as an executive committee
member of the Hotel Association of India as well as World Travel &
Tourism Council. I offer my deepest condolences to the family and pray
that they have the strength to overcome these trying times.
- Priya Paul, Chairperson of Apeejay
Surrendra Park Hotels
The sudden demise of Lalit Suri is a very big loss to
us. He was a doyen of the industry because of his landmark contributions,
especially as the president of HAI.
- M P Purushothaman, Vice President,
FHRAI and President, SIHRA
We have been greatly taken aback by Lalit Suri's sudden
demise. He leaves behind a significant lacuna in the industry and we will
all deeply miss the endearing person that he was.
- PRS Oberoi, Chairman, EIH
Late Lalit Suri will always be remembered as a true hotelier,
who was committed to the cause of the hotel industry. He had a great leadership
quality about him. The industry will always remember him for his key role
in the ITDC disinvestments plans.
- Sunil Mathur, Director (Development),
Cendant
With Lalit Suri's untimely demise, the hotel industry
has not only lost a fine hotelier but also a thorough gentleman, who was
always liked across the business fraternity. Never too engrossed in enlarging
his business empire, he always took initiative to create good friends
within the industry and outside too. He will always be remembered for
his great virtues like humbleness and generosity, which are difficult
to come across today.
- Manbeer Chaudhary, President,
FHRAI
It was with deep regret that we heard of the passing of
Lalit Suri, our long-time partner and a friend of the InterContinental
Hotel Group. His dedication, drive and passion will be missed. We will
continue to provide support to the group and the family and we believe
his vision will continue to provide direction to his hotels and other
businesses.
- Michael Herrmann, Director (Operations),
South West Asia, InterContinental Hotels Group
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