Innholdsfortegnelse for April 2021 i Travel + Leisure India & South Asia

A PLAYGROUND OF TROPICAL adventures, Kandima Maldives is a destination unto itself. Located on Dhaalu Atoll, a 30-minute flight from Male, it is spread over three kilometres. The stay options here range from studios perched among the trees or by the beach, to overwater villas with private sundecks to villas with their own infinity pool. To make your holiday more exciting, Kandima Maldives has collaborated with Skydive Maldives. Imagine a jaw-dropping free fall from 3,657 metres in the air. The experience begins at Dhaalu Airport, where you board a modified Cessna 208 seaplane after a 15-minute safety briefing. Twenty minutes after take-off, you’re launched into the sky. The experience concludes with a smooth landing at a secluded beach on Kandima Maldives. Depending on your expertise, you have the choice of…

KNOWN AS THE ‘rice bowl of India’, Chhattisgarh has a unique food legacy. Its capital city, Raipur, is adapting to modern cuisine trends, while also preserving local culinary heritage. One of the few luxurious venues in the city, Hyatt Raipur offers guests a comfortable stay along with a taste of the region’s unique cuisine. Inspired by the scientific name of rice, oryza sativa, Café Oriza is the hotel’s singular dining venue. The head chef, Maitreya Sen, plays with a variety of flavours to bring you memorable dishes. Expect western flavours in the form of asparagus salad, burrata pizza, sushi, and deconstructed tiramisu as well as delicious regional specialities like Chhattisgarhi farra, dhuska, and more. To further the local experience, the hotel has collaborated with T-Tales, a certified carbon-neutral tea estate,…

1. L.U.C QUATTRO 25 CHOPARD To celebrate its 25th anniversary, Chopard Manufacture has launched its first jumping-hour timepiece, crafted from 18K rose gold and featuring the L.U.C collection’s sleek lines. Housed in a 40mm case, the L.U.C 98.06-L movement is equipped with four barrels based on the Chopard Quattro technology, enabling a power reserve of up to eight days. From the movement to the white Grand Feu enamel dial, the watchmaking is done in-house, thus ensuring a finishing that’s rewarded with the Poinçon de Genève certification. 100 pieces only; price on request 2. CHRONOMASTER SPORT ZENITH The latest Chronomaster Sport, launched earlier this year, pushes the envelope of high-frequency precision. Its new El Primero 3600 calibre measures and displays 1/10th of a second, with the ultra-readable display etched directly on…

IT’S BEEN A HECTIC DAY. After the cancellation of my first flight and a strenuous six-hour wait at the Kolkata airport, I arrive at Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport post 6 pm. I am in the city to shoot with this issue’s cover star—the lovely Diana Penty—at The Oberoi, Mumbai. Recognised as the No. 1 City Hotel in Asia by Travel + Leisure World’s Best Awards 2020, The Oberoi, Mumbai makes for a homecoming for me in more ways than one. First, the property’s all-day diner, Fenix, was my favourite hangout during the years I was working in Nariman Point; second, the hotel’s location on Marine Drive, with a stunning view of the Arabian Sea and the Queen’s Necklace, is unparalleled. That view is one of the reasons Mumbai…

“I LIKE WALKING BAREFOOT,” says 11-year-old Tejas, frolicking around her grandparents’ coffee plantation. Her white frock and pony tail dance in the breeze. I am at Souland Estates Luxury Homestay in Coorg, finding it hard to divide my attention between this sassy third-generation owner and the blazing yellow trumpet flowers further away. Close by, a majestic chikoo tree groans under the weight of rotund fruits. Spring is in full swing when I arrive at this Airbnb in Valnoor—a small hamlet bordering the Durare forest—after a five-hour road trip from Bengaluru in a BMW X3. The journey is part of a partnership between Airbnb and the luxury automobile company aimed at popularising road trips in this part of the country. Run by TC Jayaprakash and family, Souland has four cottages: Perch,…

SOUKYA INTERNATIONAL HOLISTIC HEALTH CENTRE BENGALURU, KARNATAKA Spread over 30 acres of an organic farm, SOUKYA is a residential medical institute that offers curative and customised treatments for over 100 medical conditions. Every room comes with a private garden to soothe the senses. The institute also has an exclusive medicinal garden with over 300 healing herbs and plants. Apart from integrative medicine, including Ayurveda, panchakarma, homeopathy, naturopathy, and yoga, the retreat offers activities such as birdwatching, cooking demonstrations, and musical programmes for the holistic rejuvenation of its guests. soukya.com HINTERLAND VILLAGE KOCHI, KERALA Hinterland Village is spread over seven acres of land with more than 50 avian species thriving in its lush bamboo thickets. With cottages that blend the old and the new, this yoga centre is designed to promote…

HELMED BY MICHELIN-STARRED Chef Adriano Baldassarre, the Italian restaurant at The Lodhi, New Delhi now has an all-new menu. Among the five-star hotel’s stellar dining venues, which include Élan and Indian Accent, Perbacco is a vibrant space that comes with a private dining area and a dedicated wine cellar featuring over 100 labels from various regions in Italy. This summer, the restaurant is all set to serve authentic Italian fare featuring classics as well as innovative recipes. Signature creations from the new menu include ribollita Toscana soup, a selection of antipasti such as caprese and chicken fillet, sugo alla cacciatora with mustard seeds and Romanesco. The range of pastas and risottos includes whole wheat ravioli al’arrabbiata with parsley and grated mozzarella and lamb cappellacci, gremolata. The ‘four seasons’ pizza, sformato…

THERE’S A CERTAIN charm about Rajasthan that I can never quite pin down. Besides the fact that I’m married to a Rajput and Jaipur is my second home, the state itself has a charisma—in its history, culture, landscape, and simply its people—that draws me back often. So, when Luxury Escapes (luxuryescapes.com) curates a weekend itinerary to the iconic Relais & Châteaux boutique hotel Mihir Garh, I can hardly resist. It’s a 50-minute flight from Delhi to Jodhpur, and Mihir Garh is about an hour’s drive from Jodhpur Airport. As we by-pass the city and drive past Rohat, I get a glimpse of rural Rajasthan. We even get held up in a traffic jam of cattle near Khandi village. But as soon as we enter through the gates of Mihir Garh,…

1. PERFUME Bleu de Chanel Eau de Toilette, ₹5,801 (50 ml); sephora.com 2. WATCH Manero, Carl F. Bucherer, ₹4,95,000; ethoswatches.com ——— 3. CARD HOLDER Medium Brown Card Holder, Brooks Brothers, ₹10,000; luxury.tatacliq.com ——— 4. HAIRCARE Bain Densite Homme, Kérastase Paris, ₹2,100 (250 ml); shop.envi.in ——— 5. CAP Logo-Embroidered Cotton-Canvas Cap, Polo Ralph Lauren, ₹5,075; farfetch.com ——— 6. SUNGLASSES Brown Aviator Sunglasses, Ferragamo, ₹25,990; thecollective.in ——— 7. SHOES Replica Sneakers, Maison Margiela, ₹55,174; harrods.com ——— 8. SKINCARE Ultimate Comfort Aftershave Balm Travel Tube, Truefitt & Hill, ₹3,200 (100 ml); nykaa.com 9. CLOTHES Resort 2021 Menswear, Dior Men, price on request; dior.com…

WE LOVE NEW YORK. There, we said it. So when it became the epicentre of the coronavirus pandemic in the US last spring, we watched with heavy hearts as the subway cleared out, restaurants and other small businesses closed, and long-time residents fled. But this is a place that bounces back. It’s only a matter of time before a new crop of hopefuls shows up, ready to remake the city in their own image. Even in the depths of last year’s lockdowns, New Yorkers were innovating—just look at all the creative dining setups that have taken over the sidewalks or the artworks that appeared in the parks and squares. Some of the most iconic locales, like Liberty Island, even underwent dramatic upgrades. Take the ferry across the harbour and buy…

GENEVA WAS GETTING smaller and smaller in the rear-view mirror. We, on the other hand, were inching closer and closer to Megève, blanketed away in the French Alps. That was my eureka moment, when it dawned on me that Mont Blanc was more than just my husband’s go-to brand for pens—it was also Europe’s highest mountain. And we were staring right at it. For the wife of an avid skier and mother of two powder hounds, planning our winter holidays invariably means a frenzied search for new slopes to pound. And Megève, France’s first ski resort, had always been on our radar. After World War I, French baroness Noémie de Rothschild frequented the swanky ski town of St Moritz in Switzerland, but didn’t get along with the aristocracy there. She…

IT’S A LITTLE PAST 8 AM. I sit cross-legged on a yoga mat, with my eyes closed and hands in gyan mudra. I try to focus on the rhythm of my breath but it’s almost impossible. The sound of the river running beside me is distinct, and it doesn’t help that I was given a fair warning about monkeys in the area. I am at The Glasshouse on the Ganges, a boutique nature retreat by Neemrana Hotels. It’s a cold January morning, and I wasn’t foresighted enough to wear socks—yet another reason for the lack of focus. The Glasshouse on the Ganges is a riverside property with 20 accommodation units scattered on a manicured orchard of lychee and mango trees. No wonder the general manager, Makrand Bhardwaj, who was stuck…

PART OF THE Sri Lanka-based Aitken Spence Hotels, the five-star Heritance Aarah offers all that you may seek from a Maldivian holiday. With an isle to itself, the resort feels no less than a private paradise in the middle of the Indian Ocean. A total of 150 exotic villas and suites seamlessly blend modern comforts with a traditional aesthetic. Beyond the luxuries of your abode, six restaurants and five bars make for a gastronomic adventure. Ginifati offers freshly grilled seafood under thatched roofs; Ambula serves Sri Lankan cuisine; and Sky Bar whips up the classics and molecular innovations with equal flair. The resort takes special care of its junior guests. Koka Kid’s Club keeps the little ones engaged with a different set of activities each day, and the Teen Activity…

ASK ANY STAKEHOLDER about the current state of the travel market, and they will tell you that the Indian luxury traveller is ruling the roost. Luxury hotels have seen a surge in travellers over the past couple of months, and people are willing to spend more money to ensure enhanced hygiene, isolation, and exclusivity. And this is just one of the trends that the domestic luxury traveller has kick-started. Let’s look at the others. A PARADIGM SHIFT: INDIA FIRST The biggest shift, travel experts say, is that luxury travellers are now taking Indian destinations seriously. Shoba Mohan, founder of RARE India (rareindia.com), reveals, “Previously, luxury travellers would do, say, three international trips and one domestic trip in a year. Now hopefully, they will do two and two, since they know…

What prompted you to make your latest single, Sister Susannah? I wrote this song along with Alev Lenz and the poet Nikita Gill, who has written for music the first time. Over the past year, there have been many stories of women’s experiences that have brought certain things to the forefront again for the women in my life. There’s an understanding among us about how universal issues of abuse, manipulation, and control can be. The pandemic has disproportionately affected women, particularly those in abusive situations. I felt like having a song where people can connect to that issue, or a sense of empathy, or a desire to do something about it. Art has a funny way of doing that in a way that talking can’t. What’s next for you after…

BORN AND RAISED IN MUMBAI, Diana Penty did not visit Film City until a modelling assignment required her to do so. Nor did she watch many films growing up. But thanks to an uncle who was a fashion photographer, Penty was not a complete stranger to the entertainment industry. “As a child, I would excitedly watch models and celebrities during photo shoots. But I never thought of it as a profession for myself.” A student of marketing and advertising, Penty wanted to build a career in global marketing communications. But life clearly had other plans. A fun photo shoot with photographer Farrokh Chothia (her uncle’s friend) landed her a modelling gig with Elite Models. In hindsight, she realises, that’s where it all began. “At first, it was simply a great…

“WHEN WILL YOU REACH Madurai, akka?” asked my cousin, Kavipriya, from Chennai. “I shall plan to arrive the same day,” she added over the phone. This trip was special because I was visiting my hometown after four long years. I was born in the temple town of Madurai but brought up in Maharashtra’s cultural capital, Pune. Despite the distance between the two cities, I spent my summers and mid-semester breaks in the southern city during my growing years. Memories of playing on its streets with cousins and friends, and ancient board games of pallanguzhi and paramapadham (snakes and ladders), are still etched in my mind. When I arrived with my teenage son, preteen daughter, and sexagenarian mother at my maternal aunt’s home in Madurai, summer was in full swing. And…

I HAVE A MEMORY of going to Mohonk Mountain House in the Catskills with my grandmother and her boyfriend, Sid, when I was four or five years old. In this memory, I’m jumping on my bed while my grandmother begs me to go to sleep because we have so much to do tomorrow. My far more obedient older sister is already asleep, and Sid, a doctor, explains to me that, if I don’t stop, I’m going to hurt myself and I won’t be able to go ice-skating in the morning. Call that foreshadowing. About four decades later, in the fall of 2019, I sat at my computer trying to narrow down the options available to a middle-class family with a two-week school vacation in December. Did we want to go…