A true karmayogi (1922-2014)
The hospitality industry in the country recently lost one its most illustrious personages , C P Krishnan Nair, Founder Chairman of the Leela Group of Hotels who breathed his last in Mumbai at the age of 92. The son of a government servant who earned a princely monthly salary of nine rupees in those days, Captain Nair as he was affectionately called joined the freedom movement when still in his teens and was associated with leaders like Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose and the leftist leader A K Gopalan. He also had a stint in the Army enrolling in the Maratha Light Infantry and after giving up his commission set up the All India Handloom Board. As an entrepreneur he tasted success in the textile sector with his company Leela Scottish Lace scaling great heights in the export market and fetching him a number of coveted awards. It was during this time that he introduced a new brand of textiles under the name ‘Bleeding Madras’ which became a rage in the market. He was one of those who were instrumental in the Indian textile industry taking wings and expanding to global dimensions.
It was during one of his numerous business trips abroad that Captain Nair chanced to enjoy the hospitality of the Kempinsky chain of hotels in Budapest and this kindled in him a desire to enter the hotel industry and his brainwave resulted in the creation of the first Leela Hotel at a prime location close to the Sahar International Airport in Mumbai. What is worth mentioning is that Captain Nair was 65 when he ventured into the hotel business, an age where people usually prefer to hand over the baton to their heirs and put up their feet and relax. However Nair did no such thing and in partnership with reputed hotel chains like Kempinsky set up swanky star hotels in several cities including Bangalore, Delhi, Gurgaon, Goa, Chennai etc.
His chain of hotels have remained the last word in luxury and boasted of restaurants that were franchisees of famous hotels abroad. In recent times however the Leela group has been staggering a bit due to its having to service its huge debts to financial institutions and has been initiating steps to pare its debt. Although aware of these developments Captain Nair remained optimistic that the tide would turn and his company would be in the black again.
A number of laurels came his way though success always sat lightly on his broad shoulders. A Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Academy of Hospitality Sciences, Global 500 Roll of Honour from the UN Environment Programme, Hotelier of the Century from the Hotels and Restaurants Association based in Geneva and above all a Padma Bhushan from the Government of India were some of the awards that hailed his contribution to the hospitality industry. The self effacing hotelier however never failed to credit his wife and constant inspiration Leela for all his accomplishments.
Captain Nair always preferred to call himself a karmayogi and he remained so till his last breath. Even in his nineties the supremely fit exserviceman who never failed to thank the army for instilling discipline in him attended to the call of duty, had a say in the running of his hotels though he had handed over the reins of administration to his two sons, Vivek Nair, Chairman and Managing Director and Dinesh Nair, co-Chairman and MD. An optimist to the core he always smelt an opportunity to expand whenever any development plans were mooted. Impeccably attired and a host sans pareil, Captain Nair was inevitably wedded to the doctrine ‘athithi devo bhava’ (the guest is always God).
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C.V Aravind
The writer is a Bangalore-based freelance journalist.[/column]