CHENNAI: Growing up watching her father R Ravichandran build a food empire — Nandana Palace — in Bengaluru, Shweta Ravi was determined to follow in his footsteps. Having completed her education in Finance,when she took over as the director in 2015, the next step was to expand their brand in a new city. Chennai was the unanimous choice. But right when they were ready, the pandemic struck and put their plans on hold. “The Chennai outlet was supposed to open last February but it opened only this year in January. If not for the lockdown, by now we would have set up two or three outlets in Chennai,” shares Shweta. A month after the hotel’s launch in OMR, business seems to be brisk. Basking in the success of their first step in expanding their brand, Shweta talks to CE about taking over the reins from her father, lessons she has learned and how growing up under his wings made her fall in love with the industry.
Excerpts follow.
How did you get into the hospitality industry?
I was born and bred into this business. My father started Nandana Palace in Bengaluru in 1989 and I have grown up watching him run the business. Although I wanted to do something in art and design, it was more of a duty for me to take over my father’s business — he has built such a big brand. This was also something I was extremely passionate about.
Now that you have made Chennai your (second) home, what is it that you like about the city?
I have been in Chennai for the past six years and everything is so different from Bengaluru — in terms of the people, lifestyle. I find Chennai to be rooted in its culture, unlike Bengaluru. And I also believe that a place is as good as its people and I have managed to befriend some people here. But apart from all these, I think I have fallen in love with the beaches, as there are none in Bengaluru.
Tell us about your growing-up years.
My father was extremely passionate about travelling. He used to plan at least four vacations a year. We have travelled across India as well as internationally. We used to stay at the best of the hotels and experience all the uniqueness the city and our country had to offer. We ate at the best restaurants, enjoyed street food and explored every part of the city. And I loved that. Even now, I try to plan as many vacations as possible, and everything is completely pre-planned. So food and hospitality is
something I love — to experience as well as to help others experience.
What’re your favourite cities and countries?
Greece and Finland. Greece astonishes me; a small island like that has the largest number of visitors in a year. And I love the way, architecturally, the island has been designed. It is brilliant. Imagine telling every single person that they need to maintain a particular exterior — that’s the rule there. And Finland is a paradise on earth. It is completely untouched. You see more cattle than people, the experience you get there like the watching Northern Lights, swimming among the glaciers etc is beautiful.
What is your relationship with food?
I love to explore food and my favourite dish is biryani — and that’s also the speciality of our hotel. The best thing about India is that each region has a biryani to their name, hence, we have so many varieties. Apart from that, I enjoy native foods of the cities I am visiting. I believe that when you travel, you have to experience the city’s native food and not look for your comfort food. While I love food, I don’t cook. I have trained my cook to make dishes to suit my palate.
What are some of the entrepreneurial qualities you have imbibed from your father?
The biggest thing I have learned from my dad is the art of balance, which most businessmen don’t do. He used to drop me at school every single day. He made time for family and equally made time for the business. He was able to grow in all verticals and I think that’s what makes a fulfilled life. That’s something I want to be and I am trying to be. In terms of business, he comes from an agricultural background, he built everything brick by brick. It’s his perseverance in a competitive market that he was able to withstand any market situations in the last 30 years and still make the company grow year on year. I am still learning.
What are the business ethics you follow?
Quality of ingredients is something we take very seriously. Even if the price of raw materials increases, we are ready as a company to take the cut, but not compromise on the ingredients. We never see the short-term benefit. And with vendors, we have been able to maintain a long-lasting relationship, which I think is very difficult in this industry. We build relationships, it is not about the transaction.
What’s a typical day for you?
After my workout and breakfast, I head to the restaurant. I take care of the operations here and in Bengaluru. We are always working on something new to be introduced every year, be it a new project or a new brand. That’s the USP of Nandana as well. We have a lot of patented dishes. I take some time out to look at that as well. I don’t take a weekly off. I take half a day off, but I visit the restaurant every day. I take proper leave when I go on holiday. When I am in Chennai or Bengaluru, I work. But once a week, I meet my friends.
What are your lockdown learnings?
Lockdown has kind of remodelled our entire industry. We (Nandana Palace) had a huge format and now we have downsized our format. We had outdoor catering and sweet shops before lockdown and that’s completely shut. That manpower was diverted into other verticals. We worked on various new brands based on the remodel. It gave us time to rethink and adapt a lot of new strategies. Right now, we have almost regained our business.
What are your other interests?
I paint and do art shows. Those close to me know this. My interest was always art and I don’t ever want to leave it. I try and do at least one exhibition a year. I do one painting in two-three months; I put the brush on
the canvas whenever I get
time. That’s why I do one exhibition a year with eight-ten paintings.
How has art shaped you?
Art helps me create. For instance packaging, something that Nandana is known for. I keep curating various types of packaging. If you are creative it doesn’t have to be specific only to art or music or dance; you can be creative in your business as well.