Sunita Kohli President, K2 India A national award-winning interior designer, furniture manufacturer and architectural conservator-restorer since 1971, specialising in public buildings like the Parliament Building of Bhutan, Rashtrapati Bhavan and the Indira Gandhi Memorial Museum in New Delhi, Sunita Kohli is a force to reckon with in design and architecture. Kohli has designed several hotels and luxury hotel boats for the Oberois, particularly in Egypt. Her string of achievements is long—Kohli is the former Chairperson of the Board of School of Planning and Architecture in Bhopal, besides being the first woman to head a National Institute of Excellence. She is also the first interior designer to be conferred the Padma Shri in this discipline in 1992. In the same year, she was also presented the Mahila Shiromani Award by Mother Teresa, now Saint Teresa of Calcutta. Ever since, Kohli has been awarded many Lifetime Achievement Awards. In February 2023, she was also conferred an honorary Doctor of Literature degree. Besides being an architect, Kohli is also an essayist and author with five more books under preparation for publication, including a major book on ‘World Heritage Sites in India’. ‘The Lucknow Cookbook’, co-authored with her mother Chand Sur, is now in its tenth print run and is considered a modern classic. Her most recent book is ‘The India Cookbook – From the Tables of My Friends’ that was released in December 2023, and is dedicated to ‘Rome Kohli – the Long-distance Runner’. “I never presume to give advice, rather I’d want to learn from those younger to me.” Tejas Parulekar Founder, SaffronStays A chartered accountant by training and a corporate banker by profession, Tejas Parulekar is the founder of SaffronStays, a hospitality collective. Born and raised in Mumbai, the commerce graduate from RA Podar College of Commerce and Economics and a CA from The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India., has worked with names like Ernst & Young, ICICI Bank and then HSBC. During a family trip to Europe, Parulekar and her husband, Devendra noticed a gap in the hospitality market—a dearth of curated and quality homestay options in the country. This inspired the couple to ideate a platform that offers the comfort of a home on a holiday. Thus, SaffronStays was born with the motive of providing an indulgent travel experience. At SaffronStays, Parulekar handles Operations and Home acquisition. The best part of her job, according to her, is a chance to visit stunning homes created with passion by their proud owners. It also gives her a window into the stories of their trials and tribulations. Beyond work, Parulekar likes to swim, play basketball and trek in the monsoons in the Sahyadris. She also enjoys watching films and has trained in the classical dance form of Kathak. Her contribution to the hospitality space has earned her several awards, including the CNBC Young Turks Award in 2018 and the Leadership award by SheThePeople in its Digital Women Entrepreneurs Award in 2017. What’s her favourite travel destination? “It’s Bruges in Belgium with its many stone bridges over canals and medieval structures, cobbled streets and cycling routes that exude romance.” “Luxury to me is not just about material possessions, but about experiences money can’t buy. | 56 | 57
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