KOCHI: Jose Dominic, managing director of CGH Earth group is dressed in white.
His office at the Casino Hotel, Willingdon Island, Kochi, is simple. A floor to ceiling bookcase holds coffee table books on various hotel properties around the world, and books on history, yoga, cuisine, management and films. Jose speaks admiringly about the book he is reading at present: Gurucharan Das’ ‘The Difficulty Of Being Good: The Subtle Art of Dharma’.
Jose is a serious person, with an intense way of speaking. And despite interruptions -- a waiter brought a glass of cool papaya juice, while former Indian wicketkeeper Farokh Engineer called from England to book rooms for a vacation in January -- he focuses on the significant events of his life.
Jose’s father, the late Dominic Joseph Kuruvinakunnel took on lease the Malabar Hotel in 1954. As a result, when Jose returned home during vacations from Lawrence School, Lovedale, Ooty, he would sometimes stay with his father at the Malabar Hotel. “I would watch the hotel in awe,” he says. “Most of the areas were out of bounds for children.” But Jose did get an opportunity to meet a group of Americans, who were going from the Malabar Hotel to Thekkady.
Since the Dominic ancestral home was midway, at Pala, they stopped over. “The Americans brought a box of fruits, mostly apples and oranges, from California,” says Jose. “They were wrapped in perfumed paper, and had a wonderful aroma.” In return, the family gave bananas and pineapples.
“They looked so delighted and I was amazed,” he says. “They had just given us such a magical gift, and all we did was pluck some fruits from the backyard.” It had a lifelong impact on Jose. “I subconsciously understood that what is of sustaining value is what we can call our own,” he says. When Jose finished his BCom from Loyola College in Chennai and was wondering what to do next, his mother said, “Good boys do not go for hotel management.” So Jose qualified as a chartered accountant and joined one of the country’s top accountancy firms, A F Ferguson and Co. at Mumbai in 1974.
“The job was challenging and I enjoyed myself thoroughly,” he says. In 1977, he had an arranged marriage with Anita, and things were going well. But his father, who was not keeping good health, asked him to take over the business. Jose was the eldest of six sons. After much reflection, Jose decided to come back, but only for two years. “But the two years turned out to be forever,” he says, with a smile.
Jose’s biggest turning point occurred in 1987 when the late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan, along with their families decided to vacation at the government- run hotel in the Bangaram Islands in the Lakshwadeep. After they returned to Delhi it was decided to rent out the island for private hotel chains.
Apart from big chains like the Oberois, the Taj, and the Leela, the Casino Hotel also received an invitation to send a proposal.
When Jose saw the island for the first time he was stunned. “It was spectacular,” he says. “My first thought was: ‘It would be such a misfortune if this island is spoiled by a hotel’.” While the big hotel chains told government officials that they were planning to spend Rs 20 to 40 crore to build resorts, Jose said, “We will just clean up the place and make it eco-friendly.” Jose’s logic was simple. “Those who come here all the way from Europe and America will want to experience what is unique,” he says. “And what this island offers is nature at its pristine and spectacular best.” Amazingly, the government accepted his proposal and the Casino Group went in full blast to refurbish the hotel. “We redid the plumbing, put terracotta mud tiles, replaced the asbestos sheets, and put coconut thatches on the roofs,” he says.
In their advertising brochure, they wrote: ‘There are no telephones, TV, newspapers, air-conditioning, hot water, room services, multi-cuisine restaurants or swimming pools’.
The hotel was commissioned in December, 1988, but it took about two years to establish its reputation. Today it is world famous and has enabled the Casino Group, now renamed the CGH Earth Group, to establish its name internationally.
“It was a huge confidence booster for me,” he says. In 1991, the group set up Spice Village at Thekkady, and like in Bangaram Island, they depended on the local people, architecture, cuisine, and culture. “It was an instant success,” says Jose. In 1993, the Coconut Lagoon was set up at Kumarakom and now they have nine highly successful properties all over Kerala. Asked the philosophy of his life, Jose says, “God made man in his own likeness. Thus, it is up to man to make something of himself. You cannot blame karma or destiny. You are your own creator.”
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