A graduate from the Delhi University, Mr. Koul completed a 3 years Diploma in Hotel Management from the Institute of Hotel Management, Pusa in 1981. He started his career as a Management Trainee with Jaypee Group at their hotels in New Delhi, and subsequently worked with the Hotel Corporation of India, Indotels Hotels Management Services Private Limited, and Tourism Finance Corporation of India (TFCI) in 1990 where he was responsible for appraising more than 200 hotel projects. In 1996 he created a specialized Tourism Consultancy Organisation providing need-based service to new entrants in the hospitality trade under the banner Naaz Hotel Consultants Pvt. Ltd.

Anil Sharma graduated from IIT Roorkee in the year 1982 and started his career with Bharadwaj & Associates in the year 1982 and worked with them till 1984. Thereafter, he joined Kabil Associates—a USA based firm and worked with them until 1989. He worked with them on various prestigious projects namely USIS Calcutta, US Chancery Burma, US Consulate & Consular Residence in Lahore. In addition he also worked in the US office of Kabil Associates for 6 months. In the year 1989 he started his own practice of Architecture by the name of ASA (Anil Sharma Associates). His first project in Pune was later on branded as Holiday Inn Pune. It was also awarded "The Best New Hotel of the Year in Asia Pacific Region" by Holiday Inn worldwide. Since then ASA has been involved in various reputed Hotel projects all over India and has designed two projects in Kazakhstan.

Naveen Jain is a veteran hotelier known for his enthusiasm for work and passion for excellence carrying more than three decades of experience in the Indian hospitality industry across investment, treasury, corporate finance, operations finance, project execution and general management.
After having worked with Oberoi Hotels for 25 years, Naveen joined Duet India Hotels in 2008 and presently heads the organisation as President of the company. Under Naveen’s leadership, Duet has grown as an institutional player in a short span of time. It has been able to leverage on the high credibility of its investors and has access to funding pipeline. Duet also introduced Holiday Inn Express brand in India in joint venture with InterContinental Hotels Group. Naveen is a Commerce graduate from Sri Ram College of Commerce, Delhi University and a Chartered Accountant. He is also associated with various industry forums.

Sanjay Dhingra graduated from School of Planning and Architecture, New Delhi in the year 1990. He started his career with Architect Sudhir Vohra and worked with him as an ARCHITECT till March 1994 and as an ASSOCIATE ARCHITECT till December 1996, on a wide range and scale of projects with varied degree of involvement. Nature of projects of having been associated with, included various outlets of NIRULA’S chain of Restaurants and other Restaurants’ Interiors; Building and Interior Design of a 40 room Hotel; Bank Branch and Departmental Store Interiors; Residential and Commercial Building Designs; Conceptual Proposal of a Highway Resort; Plotted Residential Estate for senior executives; Industrial Kitchen Planning and Equipment Design; Property Evaluation and Cost Estimation assignments. He was also involved with the Interiors’ of Littlewoods departmental stores in Bangalore and Hyderabad. In the year 1997, he started his own practice of Architecture/ Interior Design/ Project Management by the name M/s SDC (Sanjay Dhingra Consultants). From 1997 till 2000, he had rendered Interior Design Consultancy and Project Management & Site Coordination Services for Domino’s & McDonald’s outlets across India. High point of his career includes Refurbishment of Public areas at Taj Mahal Hotel, Mansingh Road, New Delhi for providing Interior Coordination Assistance in the year 2000. He had also rendered Interior Design Consultancy services for Barista Bars at Chennai and Bangalore in the year 2001.

A post graduate in Business Administration, Dhruva Rathore has been in the hospitality industry for over twenty years. He started his career as a Sales & Marketing management trainee with Indian Hotels Company Limited followed by a stint with ITC Hotels Limited. He subsequently occupied leadership positions in Sales & Marketing at Parkroyal New Delhi and with Indian Hotels Company Limited in New Delhi. He joined Hyatt Hotels & Resorts in February 2005 to set up the sales organisation in India, moved to the Development function in 2008 and is currently Vice President – Development responsible for the Indian subcontinent and Maldives.

Raj Rana is currently the Chief Executive Officer of Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group, South Asia. Raj started his hotel career in India and went overseas in 1991. After working in various senior executive positions in Europe and U.S.A, Raj returned full circle to India in April of this year. Previously Raj was head of Radisson Franchised Operations, for Carlson based at the company’s world headquarters in Minneapolis. His broad spectrum experience includes brand growth and expansion, opening hotels, managing brand conversions and ensuring profitable business operations. Raj did his Hotel Management from Institute of Hotel Management, Pusa, New Delhi and MBA from New York.

Ajay Bakaya is the Executive Director of Sarovar Hotels. He oversees the operations and development of the 70 hotel group in India and Africa.
Ajay is a 1980 graduate of The Oberoi School and a 1983 postgraduate alumnus of Cornell-Essec, France. His 36 years of international hotel experience includes assignments in Africa, Australia, France, India and the UK. Ajay's experience includes that of a GM with Oberoi Hotels. He was Director - Rooms at Australia's largest hotel, the 800 room Four Points by Sheraton, Sydney. He has also worked as AGM at The Sheraton on the Park, Sydney, a 600 room deluxe hotel, part of Starwood’s Luxury Collection.
Ajay is a keen runner, cyclist, mountaineer and an adventure traveller. He was also awarded “Entrepreneur of the Year” by Federation of Hotels & Restaurants Association of India.

Rajiv Sharma is Vice President Development for South West Asia and is responsible for driving the strategic distribution of IHG brands through hotel management contract signings, in key locations across the sub-region. Rajiv started his career with IHG in 2004 as Director Development South West Asia and in 2007 was made Associate VP Development for the South West Asia region. In late 2009 he assumed charge of the New Delhi Office and has been given the additional responsibility of managing owner relationships. In 2011 he assumed the responsibilities of Vice President Development, South West Asia.
He has more than 25 years of experience in the hospitality industry with significant expertise in the hotel and tourism development arena, spanning South West Asia and Australia. He has also handled Development roles with Aman Resorts, Accor and Southern Pacific Hotels in the South West Asia region. Rajiv has worked in Australia with Horwath and in the US and Germany in hotel operations.
Rajiv holds a Master of Business Administration from the Australian Graduate School of Management, Sydney in addition to a Bachelor of Business Administration from Fort Lauderdale College, Florida. He also holds a Hotel Management Diploma from Dadar Catering College, Mumbai. He is currently based in New Delhi, India.

Mr. Param Kannampilly Chairman Of The Institute Of Hospitality - Western Group India Chapter Mr Param Kannampilly, Post Graduate in Hotel Management, Fellow of The Institute of Hospitality, London, Fellow of the World Academy of Productivity Science. Awarded Fellowship to the Academy of Productivity Science for his significant contribution to the environment through sustainable development and was conferred the UN – Global Futures Network Award, a special honour for his outstanding contribution to sustainable development and future of humanity.
His career spans over 35 years of active involvement in the hospitality industry traversing many milestones. He is presently the Chairman & Managing Director of Concept Hospitality Pvt. Limited, the group responsible for setting up and operating Ecotels in Asia and has spearheaded the successful launch of his own brand of Hotels - The Fern Hotels & Resorts ” which are environmentally conscious.
Currently he is also the:
Chairman of The Institute of Hospitality - Western Group India Chapter
Member on the Board of Governors of the Institute of Hotel Management & Catering Technology, Mumbai.
Member of the FHRAI Executive Committee for 2014-15
Member on the Advisory Panel of the Hotelier India Magazine

Mr. Indrajit Maitra, who is a Civil Engineering graduate and is also the Fellow of Institution of Engineers and Fellow of institution of Valuers and a registered Valuer with Central Board of Direct Taxes. Indrajit Maitra Associates (IMA) was established in the year 1991 by Mr. Maitra. The firm is a proprietorship and have a strength of about 70 people and specializes in the field of Consultancy in Project Management, Quantity Surveying and Valuation. Type of Projects generally handled are Industrial, Hospitality, Commercial Buildings, Residential, Fitouts etc.

After graduating from Institute of Hotel Management, Bhopal in 1994, he joined the renowned Ambassador Group of hotels as a Trainee Management Chef and gradually he was became the head of the Sky Chef division as Master Chef. Later on he moved to Suman Motels into Corporate Planning and was instrumental in the opening of resorts and motels. After a successful tenure in hotels, Rajatjoined a consulting firm specialising in food service design. He promoted HPG consulting in 1999, and today it's a well-known Consulting Company specialising in food service design, laundry design and facility planning for hospitality projects. HPG Consulting has already associated with projects for international brands like Hilton, Marriott, IHG, Accor, Starwood, Langham Hotels, Dusit International, Millennium Group, Taj Hotels, besides the local hotel groups in India.

Pawan Raj Kumar is Director Development of Continental Equipment India Pvt. Ltd, which is India’s largest manufacturer and supplier of commercial food service equipment under the brands of CONTINENTAL and FROSTLINE.
He has extensive experience in operations management and deep understanding of real life situations in operations and business management. He has led large-scale service operations and business development with large multinational clients in India. He has almost 18 years of experience in establishing and successfully running large-scale operations. Pawan has lead Continental to receive Best Supplier Partner awards from McDonalds and YUM while also a special award from President of India.
Recently, Continental became the first Equipment Company in India to receive NSF certification. Continental is now one of the three Internationally recognized suppliers to McDonalds Worldwide. Pawan, an Engineering Graduate and an MBA, also runs a food business under the brand SUPACORN which is focused on sweet corn production and retail.

James’ charge is to strive for excellence in all aspects of DiLeonardo’s goal to be the best. His relentless pursuit of excellence brings him in contact with all aspects of the firm, clients and project collaborators around the globe.
James oversees all aspects of DiLeonardo’s global operations with a guiding focus on advancing its reputation for exceeding client expectations in the pursuit of excellence.
He received his Bachelor of Sciences in Business Administration degree, with a concentration in Finance and Marketing from the University of Vermont as well as Degree of Doctor of Business Administration in Hospitality Management Honoris Causa from Johnson & Wales University. Among the various civic and professional organizations he is associated with, James is an active member of the Urban Land Institute, Historic New England, a founding board member for the US Green Building Council Rhode Island Chapter Board of Directors and is a registered LEED Accredited Professional. He is also on the International Advisory Board of Johnson & Wales University and is a frequent guest speaker at industry conferences.

Amitabh started his career in 1992 working on Saarc Conference Center project in Thimphu, Bhutan. He was then member of the project team of Park Royal hotel in Nehru place in 1993 - 94.
He then joined the “Taj Group of hotels” in 1995 as Construction coordinator and worked with them till 2006 and was Area project manager – North India, when he left them. During his stint of 11 years with the Taj, he managed the execution of several green field luxury hotels & flight kitchen projects. He also managed some prestigious renovations like Taj Mahal Hotel and Towers Mumbai and Taj Ummed Bhawan Palace Jodhpur.
In 2006, he joined Starwood Hotels & Resorts to take care of their Design and Technical Services department for South Asia based out of Gurgaon. Since then he has been instrumental in opening several hotels in the past seven years and is now working on 40+ projects along with his team. He has been working on already present brands like Sheraton, Le Meridien, Luxury Collection and also introduced brands like Westin, Four Points by Sheraton, alofts, etc. to the Indian market. There are a couple of Ws and St. Regis too in the present pipeline .

Jay Chandra – Principal Consultant Design Tek Associates India Pvt Ltd, New Delhi - INDIA Graduated from Algonquin College of Applied Arts and Technology, Ottawa Canada with distinction / honours, backed with over 23 years experience in various Hotel Organizations overseas and in India. Since 1998, have had the privilege to be associated with all Major Hotel chains with National & International exposure, to design and develop professionally managed BOH areas and Food Service Consulting.

Mandeep has spent over 30 years in the Hospitality Industry. After successful stints with International Hotel Brands such as Choice Hotels, Intercontinental Hotel Group (IHG) and Carlson Residor in General Management positions, he became, in 2001, President of ITC Fortune Park Hotels, part of the USD 8 billion ITC Group. He is credited for having built the Fortune hotels Brand and establishing it as a leading player in the Indian Mid-Scale Hospitality sector growing the business over 100% year on year throughout his term. Post his career with ITC, Mandeep set up joint ventures to own and operate hotels in the Indian upscale sector with the multi-billion dollar Real Estate and Financial services conglomerate, Dawnay Day Group UK, Private Equity Firm Duet International UK and subsequently with Onyx Hospitality, the leading hospitality player in Thailand.
Prior to moving to Jones Lang LaSalle India he spent three years in a consulting role as President with TEN Hotels and Hospitality Solutions, a company he founded in 2011 providing end to end solutions to the hospitality Industry. An established Industry leader, Mandeep is respected for his insight into the Indian Hospitality Industry, having won several awards & recognitions for his accomplishments. He is a regular invitee to several Industry forums and a speaker in Seminars & Conferences in India & abroad.

Lokesh Sabharwal is a professional hotelier with over 16 years of experience in hotel development, consulting and operations. Based at the Gurgaon office, he is responsible for leading Accor’s growth activities across India, Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka, besides being a key member of the regional strategy and operations team.
Before joining Accor, Lokesh was Director Development, South West Asia for IHG. Prior to IHG, Lokesh worked with HVS in the New Delhi office in the Consulting & Valuation division, where he was responsible for directing valuations, feasibility and market demand studies for investors, lenders and hotel companies. Previously, he worked with Hyatt Hotels Corporation across various hotels in management and front line roles.
Lokesh has completed his Hotel Management from the International College of Hotel Management, Adelaide, Australia and also holds a Diplome Culinaire d’Hoteliere from Le Cordon Bleu. He has also completed a Certification in Real Estate, Development and Hotel Investment from Cornell-Nanyang, Singapore.

As the Joint CEO of the Realty and Social Infrastructure Division (RSID), Kalyanaraman leads the Project Management Services vertical of the Feedback Group. He has over 30 years experience in procurement and project management, and has worked on several mega projects in the real estate industry. The Project Management vertical offers program & project management, MEP services, construction planning & supervision, revenue enhancement & forecasting and performance improvement.
Under Design & Engineering vertical, the division provides specialized services pertaining to infrastructure planning, master planning, infrastructure and utilities design, quantity surveying, architecture services and detailed engineering.

Mr.Narendra Verma joined Oberoi Hotels in their 1st Management Training Programme in 1966.
After completing the Management Program, he was sent for further 2-year Course in Hotel Planning to New York. There he worked with a leading firm of Hotel Consultant, Messrs Robert L.Kahn Associates.
He was also entrusted with planning, design and installation of the Laundry and Food Service Facilities for the Oberoi Towers in Bombay.
From 1973-79, he was involved in the overall expansion, renovations, refurbishing and development of various Oberoi Hotels in India and abroad. In 1979, he was promoted as the Vice President in-charge of Planning & Development. For the next 3 years, he was responsible for various Projects in Iraq, Singapore, Australia, Egypt, Europe, America, Australia, and South East Asia. By mid 1982, was posted in Egypt as the Area Vice President for development and operations. He was also the Managing Director of a Joint Venture Company between Oberoi Hotels and the Egyptian Government Public Sector undertaking.
Mr.Verma decided to take voluntary retirement in-order to start “Hotel Services Consultants” in 1993.

Ritu started the India office of M/S TID International, Singapore in January 1995. She developed and promoted TID India and handled design co-ordination between clients and senior designers of the head office in Singapore. Within a short period of starting TID India, she found herself running an international design company of par excellence and heading a team of 19 people. The passion and challenges of introducing new design to a still nascent and evolving market in India has given rise to new avenues and exciting times. She has learnt that the best experience in interior design comes with travelling, observing and expanding ones horizon to new ideas. In her words, "Interior design is not just about what is within the 4 walls, it is about creativity and thinking out of the box."

Shri Surender Kumar Sangar age 58 years is graduate in commerce and Certified Associate of Indian Institute of Bankers. Previous to joining the Company, he had been working as Field General Manager of Union Bank of India and having more than 36 years of experience including 15 years as Branch Head, besides working a Regional Head (Delhi) and Zonal Head of North Zone and Maharashtra Zone.
He has vast exposure in Banking and Project Finance, Corporate Banking, Credit Policy, Strategy and Business Consulting. He has attended various training programme and seminar in India & abroad. He has been instrumental in creating three Credit Verticals i.e Large Corporate Credit Vertical, MSME & Credit Policy Verticals and Mid Corporate and Restructuring Vertical in the bank.
He had been member of various Committees viz. Credit Risk Management Committee, Investment Committee, Asset Liability Management Committee, Assets Quality Management Committee, Premises Committee, and Credit Approval Grids.
Presently he is Managing Director of Tourism Finance Corporation of India Ltd. Delhi engaged in lending for hospitality projects.

Prem Thakur is the Sr. Manager – Design & Project Management- South Asia for Marriott International and based in the regional office in Mumbai. He is handling various Projects across the sub continent.
Prem brings with him over 19 years of experience in Project Design & Management, engineering operations, architectural and engineering consulting services, budgeting, cost control, engineering design review, value engineering, systems installation management.
He has extensive experience of managing engineering operations of complex properties like Renaissance Mumbai, Grand Hyatt Mumbai, and Oberoi Mumbai.
Prem is an IGBC accredited professional. He is a member of ISHRAE Mumbai and also a Core committee member of IGBC Mumbai chapter and has been instrumental in carrying out initiatives on Green revolution in the region.
Prem has won many awards, recent being “Global Distinguished Service award- 2015” from Marriott Corporate office and “Project Manager of the Year” Hotelier India 2014.
Prem has a Bachelor of Civil Engineering Degree from Walchand College of Engineering in India.

Mr. Anoop Bali, Chief General Manager of Tourism Finance Corporation of India Limited (TFCI) holds a Master’s degree in Business Administration and is an alumni of IIM Ahmedabad. He has rich experience of 24 years in the areas of Project Finance, Project Development, Project Monitoring, NPA Management, Corporate Advisory, etc. He has developed expertise in development and financial structuring of tourism related projects. He has participated in various prestigious training programmes, conferences & seminars in India and abroad. He is Chairman of investment committee of India Enterprise Development Fund (IEDF) and is institutional nominee on the board of various assisted companies in tourism sector.

Spent Childhood and grew in Shimla. Schooling from St. Edwards School and then Economics Honours from S.R.C.C, Delhi University.
Joined Oberoi Hotels as management Trainee in 1973 and became General Manager of Oberoi Palace Hotel, Srinagar in 1980. Till 2011 grew in the Industry and worked with Global and Multinational Hotel Organizations. Notable were stints as CEO of BASS Group ( now IHG ) for South and West Asia and finally as President of ITC WelcomHeritage Hotels, where I pioneered the Heritage Tourism movement in India before retirement in 2011.
Am now Director and Principal Advisor of ZINC Hospitality, CrossRoads Hotels and Speciality Restaurants Limited. Am also on Governing Bodies of Hotel Management Institute Pusa, PATA India Chapter, Heritage Hotels Association, and Founder V.P. of The Eco Tourism Society of India.
Am Honourary President of Save The Children India and The Reynoo Mathur Charitable Foundation. Both are focussed on Education and Health.
Recipient of The Karamveer Patra from ICONGO for pioneering the Code of Conduct for Safe and Honourable Tourism, officially endorsed by UNODC and adopted by the Ministry of Tourism.

An architect by qualification, Mr. Khozema Chitalwala is today recognised in the industry as a seasoned artiste who excels in imaginatively transforming simple spaces into well-designed ambiences of desire, aestheticism and comfort, delivered on time and within budget. Specialising in hospitality interiors, his name is associated with the numerous awe-inspiring masterpieces he has helped create for his elite list of clients, which includes the Taj Group of Hotels, ITC Welcome Group, Hyatt Regency and many more. Mr. Khozema Chitalwala, the Principal Partner & Chief Architect at Designers Group, completed his Degree in Architecture from the Academy of Architecture (Rachna Sansad) in 1987 but came across his now extremely successful career in interior hospitality design quite by chance. During his internship, working in close proximity with another famous interior designer opened up for him a whole new world of design and what it meant in terms of spaces. The detailing involved in this field instantly captivated and inspired him but, ultimately, it was the challenge associated with creating a completely new and unique identity for each project that pushed him towards the craft of interior design.

M. Ram Vittal Rao belongs to the “now” generation of highly qualified and sought after Hospitality Operations Design Consultants. A Sciences graduate from Mysore University and an Oberoi School of Hotel Management product he has had the opportunity to do high quality and innovative hospitality designing for over 35 years.
Having worked with the Oberoi hotels groups for over two decades, he has to his credit designed over two hundred hotels, restaurants and flight catering projects. He is the only Indian Consultant to have designed the Rastrapathi Bhawan (The residence of the President of India) & the residence “Antilla” of Mr. Mukesh Ambani, as a Hotel Design Consultant. He has to his credit completed & ongoing projects in India, U.A.E., Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Qatar, Maldives Bhutan and Mauritius.
He and his team at Vital Concept Design Pvt Ltd with over 100 combined years of experience have worked with Indian & International Hotel Brands for all their Hospitality Operations Design requirements.

Umar Tramboo is known for wearing many hats. As a scion of Kashmir’s well-known Khyber Group, he has gained considerable experience working across the group’s diverse portfolio ranging from cement to flour mills, healthcare to handicrafts. He also serves as Director for Khyber Industries Pvt. Ltd and holds the distinction of being the youngest Director on the Board of J&K Bank Ltd. He was appointed in 2004, when he was just 24 years old, and served his term until 2008.
An energetic professional with well honed entrepreneurial skills, Umar is credited with the Khyber Group’s foray into hospitality with the launch of Kashmir’s first luxury resort, The Khyber Himalayan Resort & Spa, Gulmarg. The opening of this resort in December 2012 broke a new dawn for travellers to enjoy the legendary beauty of the picturesque Kashmir valley. Today, with just two successful years in operation, The Khyber Himalayan Resort and Spa, has placed Gulmarg on the world map winning several accolades and appreciation for its impeccable service, warm hospitality, and facilities at par with international standards and continues to win travellers’ hearts.

Rahul Kumar is Principal Architect at of one of India’s most respected and the leading Hospitality design Architectural firm - Rajinder Kumar Associates (RKA). RKA has been selected & awarded by Construction World Magazine as one of the Top Ten Architects in India, thrice in the last 6 years. Over the last 35 years RKA has designed several prestigious and landmark projects in the country including the first Ritz Carlton property at Bengaluru, the new Westin at Chennai, Taj Vivanta at Gurgaon, and one of the world's largest ‘platinium rated green’ hotel,- the ITC Royal Gardenia in Bengaluru. Some of RKA’s well-recognized designs include The Grand Hyatt Hotel, Crown Plaza Hotel, Radisson Hotel and The Imperial Hotel in New Delhi, the new Claridges ( now vivanta) Hotel in Surajkund, the India Expo Trade & Convention Centre and HCL Technology Campus in Greater Noida, GMR Novotel at Hyderabad Airport, the Ibis Hotels at Delhi Airport and in Gurgaon, Pune and Mumbai and the new Tech-Mahindra Software Campus at Pune. RKA is currently involved in 4 hotel and 3 commercial sites at the DIAL Hospitality District at New Delhi. Currently Kumar is involved in the design of a luxury hotel at Muscat Airport in Oman, Holiday Inn Hotels in Chennai and Bengaluru, and Vivanta Hotels by Taj in Amritsar & Dwarka.

The growth of Pride Group is attributed to Mr. S. P. Jain, Managing Director. Starting from scratch, he has successfully built the Pride Hotel chain across Pan India. Under his Stewardship, the Pride Group today operates Twelve hotels in India. Mr. S. P. Jain over the past two decades has been associated deeply with the Hospitality Sector. He has held the positions of Vice President, Secretary of FHRAI and President of WHRAI. He is recipient of awards viz. "EMERGING INDIA AWARDS", LONDON 2008, LATE RAI BAHADUR, M. S. OBEROI MEMORIAL AWARD for outstanding contribution to Hospitality Industry and "BEST UPCOMING LUXURY HOTEL" FOR THE "PRIDE HOTEL, AHMEDABAD", "WORLD TRAVEL BRANDS AWARD 2014 for "THE MOST PROMISING UPSCALE BUSINESS HOTEL CHAIN IN INDIA", "GOLDEN STAR AWARD TO THE PURAN DA DHABA FOR RESTAURANT OF THE YEAR 2014".
Mr. S. P. Jain stands fully committed to ensure Pride Group of Hotels expanding from the present 15 Hotels of 2000 Rooms to 30 Hotels with 3000 Rooms, during next five years.

Seema Bhatt is an independent consultant (based in India) working on issues related to ecotourism, biodiversity and climate change. Her particular focus of work is on strengthening the links between conservation of biodiversity and livelihoods of local communities. She views ecotourism as one such link and has coordinated two projects on ecotourism as the South Asia Coordinator for the USAID supported Biodiversity Conservation Network. Seema has since then worked extensively with various other ecotourism projects in India and other parts of South Asia. She has co-authored a book on Ecotourism Development in India published by the Cambridge University Press. Seema is a Fulbright Research Scholar and was based at the Center for Responsible Travel (CREST) in Washington DC where she explored the feasibility of ecotourism certification in India. She has since her return, been working on setting standards for ecotourism in India. Seema holds a Master’s degree in Environmental Studies from the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies. Seema is at present the Vice President of the Ecotourism Society of India.

Aaron studied architecture at Harvard from 1990-1993, where he completed his thesis on the Kowloon Walled City in Hong Kong. Inspired by the intelligence of this walled city, and the dynamic growth of Asian cities in general, Aaron founded OMA Asia in Hong Kong in 1994 with Rem Koolhaas, to explore new design possibilities. In 2001, the office became independent and was named RAD. Aaron continues to operate the office with a similar vision and interests. He works with a team of talented designers of multinational origin, to pursue new design approaches in the unique Asian socio-cultural matrix. Aaron's desire is to make meaningful intellectual and physical contributions to our culture and the built environment.
Aaron and his team have received numerous design awards including hospitality projects including W Seoul, Xixuan Spa Boutique Hotel and etc.. The works have been exhibited in several international biennales. Aaron also frequently delivers public lectures. Internationally, he is an active design critic, and has been appointed as the Hong Kong University External Examiner for 2011-2013.

Mr. Mathur is hospitality professional with over 35 years experience in India and the United States, with a proven track record in developing and managing all major hotels brands.
Suresh started his career as a management trainee with Oberoi Hotels. He then worked for ITC Hotels; Maker Development Services in Mumbai; going on to work for Chatwal Hotels in New York. In 1993, Mr. Mathur joined JHM Hotels as Vice President – Operations, overseeing the company’s portfolio of hotels with comprising of brands like Marriott, Hilton, Starwood, Hyatt, etc.
In 2010, he returned to India as Chief Operating Officer for JHM Hotels (India). As country head, Mr. Mathur oversees the Gujarat JHM Hotels; Auro University School Hospitality Management in Surat; and new properties under development in Gujarat.
Suresh completed high school from Mount St. Mary’s Delhi; studied at St. Stephens, Delhi and then went on to graduate from the Oberoi Hotel School. He is a Certified Hotel Administrator and Certified Hospitality Educator from the Educational Institute of the American Hotel & lodging Association; with specialization programs from Cornell University; Ecole Hoteliere, Lausanne, Switzerland; “Owner Orientation” programs conducted by Marriott Hotels; Hilton Hotels and Intercontinental Hotels Group.

Babul has more than 25 years of experience in Real Estate space with Kuljian Corporation, Tata/Taj , GE Capital and Duet . He has been in leadership position for many years and has evolved innovative implementation strategies for seamless delivery of multiple Projects in tandem.
He was instrumental for managing and delivering on several landmark Greenfield Developments successfully across various verticals including hospitality, commercial, industrial and infrastructure. Babul has significant exposure in delivering Projects Internationally as well in US, UK, Poland, Romania , Philippines etc . He strongly believes in International Quality and Local Affinity. He has managed to get the best out of the Project stakeholders by way of a 360 degree collaborative effort. He empowers his talented Team and leverages their collective intellectual capital for impactful delivery of complex projects.
Apart from his formal Training in Indian Institute of Technology , Kharagpur and Indian Institute of Management , Calcutta , he has done several Leadership Program seeded out of Croton Ville , US.

Dr. Gandotra holds a doctorate in Architecture from Cardiff University, Wales, UK, and a Masters degree in Design from the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi. Currently, she leads the team of architects and engineers which comprise the Technical Services Group for the Indian Hotels Company Limited (IHCL). As a highly qualified professional with a flair for delivery, her career spans 19 years across diverse assignments including Hotels, IT SEZ, Commercial, Residential, Plotted and Mixed Use Developments. Her keen interest in engineering and construction were highlighted during her work on the Underground Metro rail project in Delhi with Pell Frishmann Prabhu. Her recently published book titled, Temple Architecture – Analysis of Plans, Sections and Roof Form, 2011, 3 Vol., is being well received by the academia across the globe.

Sohrab Dalal graduated from CEPT, Ahmadabad with honours in 1984. During this period he also worked with Meldrum Burrows and Partners in Sydney for a year, and after graduation with the famous Architect/ Sculptor Satish Gujral.
In 1985 he founded the firm Atelier 2001, along with Khushroo Kalyanwala and Sonali Bhagwati, which was converted to Spazzio Design in 1993. In 2010 Spazzio was merged with Designplus and he took over as Managing Director of the merged entity.
Sohrab has also been invited as a speaker to various events and seminars including the Cityscape in Dubai and New York. In 2009 he, along with Wong Chiuman of WOW Designs, Singapore received the award for the “building of the year” from the Singapore Institute of Architects & LEEF Award, London for the Taj Vivanta project in Bangalore.

Sonali Bhagwati is a co-founder of Spazzio Design, recognized internationally as one of the leading Indian contemporary design firms. After the merger of Spazzio with Designplus, she has taken over as President of the company. She graduated from CEPT, Ahmadabad in 1985, and also a Scholarship from L'InstituteFrancaise D'Architecutre to work in Paris for a year.
She is an executive member of the Conservation Society of Delhi. She was also the consulting editor of the Habitat Section for the Times of India newspaper. She is on the committee of experts, constituted by the Ministry of Environment, Government of India. She has recently been appointed as one of 3 members of Delhi Urban Arts Commission. Recently, she was conferred with the Zee Business and India Home Awards as "Architect of the Year", and one of the Twenty Best Architects of India in the magazine 'Reflections'. She has designed and supervised the creation of the ‘Design Hubs’ at the Commission Premises. She has been closely involved in the city level projects taken by the Commission.

Civil engineer by profession, Mr. Bansal ventured into family profession of civil contractors at a young age of 20. In a career spanning 25 years, his company under his able leadership has executed jobs for reputed companies like L&T, ONGC, Essar, Food Corporation of India and Indian Railways. In 1990’s, he diversified into hospitality industry and did hotel projects in Mumbai and Surat. He also was an owner of famous restaurant “Copper Chimney” in Mumbai and Surat. In 2001 Mr. Bansal moved to the USA and acquired a few hotel projects in Atlanta.
In the year 2008, Mr. Bansal started Lords Hotels and Resorts, a mid segment Hotel company and in a short span of time ,the Lords under his leadership today operates 22 properties spread across India and Nepal. Another 11 hotels are currently at various stages of completion and are expected to be operational by 2015. The company is in constant negotiations with other hotel projects all over India. His vision is to make Lords a 50 Hotel company by 2016.
Mr. Bansal is a “Life Time Member of AAHOA” (Asian American Hotel Owners Association) ATLANTA – USA the World’s biggest hotel association having more than 11000 thousand members.

With over 14 years of varied experience in the real estate sector, Aninda has been involved in a wide array of roles panning from Project Management, Design Management, Architectural and Interior Design, to Business Development and Marketing, and Client Relationship Management (CRM) / Account Management.
Aninda has been an integral part of the transaction of key accounts for the Project Management vertical at CBRE. He has effectively helped set up project delivery tools and systems for ongoing projects, as well as knowledge and process systems for the vertical. Over the years, Aninda has effectively managed project deliveries for corporate offices, hospitality projects, factory and institutional buildings, while maintaining good relationships with clients following project deliveries as well.
As Senior General Manager of the Project Management vertical at CBRE, Aninda is currently the client relationship manager for key interior fit-out / Greenfield projects. He has delivered projects close to 500,000 sq. ft. during his tenure with the organization, and has helped clients set up their workplaces while working closely with CBRE’s global corporate real estate teams.

As co-founder of Studio Symbiosis Architects we have been involved in projects of various scales and sectors ranging from Hospitality, commercial, residential, mixed use and master plans. Graduated from Architectural Association school of Architecture, London i have been looking at creating robust and efficient forms with sustainability embedded in the designs and integrating computational techniques in the design process. Post graduation i went to work with Zaha Hadid Architects for a period of around five years where i was involved in a number of key international projects.
The work done by us in Studio Symbiosis has been published widely and we have been honored with prestigious international awards namely; Iconic Award 2014, German Design award 2015, International Property awards 2015-16, 40 under 40 Europe to name a few.

Founder of iSambhav, symbolizing infinite possibilities in a world of resource trajectory heading towards a declining trend. iSambhav is a training and advocacy establishment recently established to mainstream the art of Sustainable Development practices in industries and other stakeholders. To impart cutting edge knowledge to academic institutions - both schools and colleges.
Pioneered the concept of eco designing in ITC Bay Island in Port Blair during the period 1988 to 1992; Travel House in 1992 to 1994 and in Land base India Ltd from 1994 to 1996. Submitted a paper to ILO/ CORNELL UNIVERSITY on eco-designing in 1994.
Headed the Confederation of Indian Industry’s (CII) Renewable Energy Cell for a year during the period 1996 to 1997. Developed the eco-rating for schools for the Delhi Government which has been distributed to over 1200 schools, translated into Marathi & further distributed to 6000 schools in Maharashtra.
Ex Faculty of the Railway Staff College, Baroda and conducted 30 sessions on eco-designing for the senior management of the Indian Railways.

Rajeev Agarwal is a graduate from the School of Planning & Architecture, New Delhi. He established an architectural design studio in New Delhi, in 1998 as 'Rajeev Agarwal Architects' and has since worked on a range of projects including exhibition galleries, residences, resorts, institutions, master plan developments to low cost appropriate architecture in the last 15 years. He has been a member of the visiting faculty at School of Planning & Architecture, New Delhi and Sushant School of Art & Architecture, New Delhi. He has also widely participated in discussions on various design fields including architecture & their implication on places and people.

Mr. S M Shervani is the Managing Director of Shervani Hospitalities Ltd. which owns the Shervani Group of Hotels and the Rodeo Restaurant in New Delhi. He is also the Director of Shervani Industrial Syndicate Ltd. He has been in the Hospitality business for last 30 years. He is an alumnus of the Institute of Hotel Management, Pusa, New Delhi.
He is the immediate past President of Federation of Hotel and Restaurant Association of India and over the years has held many other positions. He was also the President of Hotel and Restaurant Association of Northern India comprising of 9 Northern states. He was earlier the President of Uttarakhand Hotel and Restaurant Association and also has been the Vice President of National Restaurant Association of India.
He is a member of Hotel & Catering International Management Association (HCIMA), UK and is also on the Board of Governors of the Institute of Hotel Management, Pusa, New Delhi.

Sunil Mathur is a seasoned professional with deep experience driving hotel performance & brand growth. With three decades of expertise, he is one of the leading business strategists in the industry. An Oberoi Hotels alumni, he has worked with some of the best global brands & domestic chains in India, the sub-continent and the Middle East. A passionate professional, Mr. Mathur has successfully led the entry of hotel brands into new markets, importantly in the widespread midscale segment. His views & insights are valued by industry insiders and regularly sought by trade press. As Corporate Advisor, he currently mentors Lords Hotels & Resorts, India’s rapidly growing hotel chain.

As a meritorious student, Yudhisthira Krishna Dasa joined M.S. Ramaiah Medical College, Bangalore to pursue his studies in Medicine. During his first year in college, Yudhisthira Krishna Dasa came in touch with the Krishna Consciousness movement and subsequently dedicated his life in the service of Srila Prabhupada’s mission in the year 1997. Initially, he was involved in handling the Prasadam Department of ISKCON Bangalore.
After few years of serving the temple, Yudhisthira Krishna Dasa became the Head of Operations of The Akshaya Patra Foundation in Hubli from 2004-2008. During this time, he oversaw the setting up and running of the world’s largest kitchen in Hubli with a capacity to feed over 200,000 meals every day. Subsequent to the successful implementation of the mid-day meal programme in Hubli and Dharwad districts, he became the President of Akshaya Patra’s kitchen in Bellary. Here, he was once again involved in building and setting up a large centralised Akshaya Patra kitchen infrastructure to feed about 150,000 children every day. He is currently leading various resource mobilisation initiatives for the Vrindavan Chandrodaya Mandir, the skyscraper temple for Lord Sri Krishna in Vrindavan.

As co-founder of Studio Symbiosis Architects we have been involved in projects of various scales and sectors ranging from Hospitality, commercial, residential, mixed use and master plans. After Graduation from Germany and 2 years of working experience in Auer+Weber+Associates in Stuttgart I completed my master studies in the Architectural Association school of Architecture, London. I have been looking at creating robust and efficient forms with sustainability embedded in the designs and integrating computational techniques in the design process. Post graduation I went to work with Zaha Hadid Architects as Lead Architect for a period of around five years where I was involved in a number of key international projects.
Recently I won the 40 under 40 Europe award for emerging talent. The work done by us in Studio Symbiosis has been published widely and we have been honored with prestigious international awards namely; Iconic Award 2014, German Design award 2015, International Property awards 2015-16.

Suvyakta Narasimha Dasa was born in 1973 in Kerala. He completed his Bachelors in Engineering (Mechanical) from M.S. Ramaiah Institute of Technology remarkably by topping his class and securing 5th rank in Bangalore University. Soon after his studies, he joined Lincoln Helios India Limited as a Design Engineer in October 1995 and was associated with the company till March 1999 when he chose the Krishna Consciousness movement over his lucrative career. In 1999, he joined ISKCON Bangalore as a full-time missionary.
Suvyakta Narasimha Dasa led the Facilities Management function of the temple from 2001 to 2005. In 2006, Suvyakta Narasimha Dasa became involved in the setting up of the Akshaya Patra kitchen in Vrindavan and overseeing the operations. This kitchen now serves 165,000 meals every day. Suvyakta Narasimha Dasa is also the Governing Body Member of the ISKCON Bangalore Group of temples.
Presently, as Senior Vice President, he is involved in overseeing the fund raising and construction of the Vrindavan Chandrodaya Mandir, the world’s tallest temple for Lord Sri Krishna in Vrindavan.

Mr. Steve Borgia is currently the Chairman & Managing Director of INDeco Leisure Hotels. INDeco is “INDIA ECOLOGY”. A tourism company with national interest. The only Indian Hotel group to win the distinguished “Global Eco Tourism Award and Winners of Embassy Nomination for American Museum Partnership”.
Steve Borgia wears several caps. But all through carries the INDOLOGIST one. Whether at the UN, Government of India, Press, Films, Hotels or the corporate, he moves beyond competition, finding a unique position. His companies and concepts are people centric. Creating INDeco Hotels Swamimalai, INDeco Hotels Mahabalipuram and INDeco’s Lake Forest Hotel, India’s unique heritage hotel is a landmark. He holds office as executive member in the INDIAN HERITAGE HOTELS ASSOCIATION and PATA.
He is also a founder member of the ECOTOURISM SOCIETY OF INDIA. He is best known as the fire brand President & CEO of the then debt ridden Sterling Resorts, which he pulled from near grave. INDeco is also the winner of distinguished NATIONAL TOURISM AWARD for 2010.