The 2026 edition of HVS ANAROCK HOPE Day 2 was held on February 27, bringing together global hospitality leaders, investors and industry executives.
The day 2 of the summit opened with a recorded conversation between Elie Maalouf, Chief Executive Officer, IHG Hotels & Resorts, and Mandeep Lamba, President & CEO (South Asia), HVS ANAROCK. The session focused on global brand strategy, expansion priorities and the outlook for India within IHG’s international portfolio.
The first panel, titled Luxury Reimagined – Catering To The Evolved, Empowered, and Ever-connected Guest, examined changing consumer expectations in the premium segment. Speakers included Anuraag Bhatnagar, Chief Executive Officer, The Leela Palaces, Hotels and Resorts; Gaurav Bhushan, CEO, Lifestyle & Leisure Brands, Accor and Chairman, Accor India; Neil George, Strategic Advisor, Rosewood Hotel Group; and Stephen Ho, President – Greater China and Growth, Asia Pacific, Hyatt Hotels and Resorts. The discussion was moderated by Mohit Nirula, Chief Operating Officer, The Oberoi Group.
In the LeaderSpeak@HOPE segment, Mark S. Hoplamazian, President and Chief Executive Officer, Hyatt Hotels Corporation, spoke with Mandeep Lamba on Hyatt’s India strategy, brand expansion and capital allocation priorities.
The session titled Will What Brought Us Here, Take Us There: Addressing The Next Growth Opportunities assessed future growth drivers in South Asia. Panelists included Nikhil Sharma, Managing Director & Chief Operating Officer – South Asia, Radisson Hotel Group; Ranju Alex, Chief Executive Officer, South Asia, Accor; Sudeep Jain, Managing Director, South West Asia, IHG; Sunjae Sharma, Managing Director – India & Southwest Asia, Hyatt India Consultancy Private Limited; and Zubin Saxena, SVP, Region Head, South Asia, Hilton. The session was moderated by Akash Datta, Managing Director (South Asia), HVS ANAROCK.
Following a break, Michael Grove, Chief Executive Officer, HotStats, presented data on revenue and cost trends influencing hotel performance across India, highlighting margin pressures and rate growth.
In India’s Hospitality Moment: From Cyclical Upswing to Structural Supercycle, Puneet Chhatwal, Managing Director & CEO, IHCL, and Shaleen Kumar, Executive Director & Head, Investment Research for Emerging Companies, UBS Securities India, discussed the sustainability of current growth levels. The session was moderated by Nikunj Dalmia, Partner, Shepherd’s Hill Group.
The development-focused panel, Hotel Development Reloaded – New Markets, New Models, New Mindsets, brought together Clarence Tan, Senior Vice President, Development, APAC, Hilton; Omar Romero, Chief Development and Luxury Officer, Minor Hotels; Sameer Nayar, Executive Vice President – Strategic Development, Oberoi Hotels & Resorts; Suma Venkatesh, Executive Vice President – Real Estate & Development, IHCL; and Vikram Lalvani, Managing Director & CEO, Sterling Holiday Resorts. It was moderated by Akash Datta.
Post lunch, Same Building, New Guests – Will Hotel Design Catch Up? titled session examined evolving design requirements. Speakers included Ar. Amit Gehlot, Partner, ASA Design; Mrinal Sharma, Co-founder, Flipspaces; and Rashna Kapadi, Director, Design & Technical Services – South Asia, Radisson Hotel Group. The discussion was moderated by Ar. Khozema Chitalwala, Founder & Principal Architect, Designers Group.
The midscale segment was the focus of Is Midscale The New Battleground? Consolidation, Collaboration, And The Future of Growth. Panelists included Deepika Rao, Executive Vice President – New Businesses, Hotel Openings and Corporate Communications, IHCL; Jatin Khanna, CEO, Sarovar Hotels; Kahraman Yigit, Co-Founder, Olive by Embassy; Neeraj Jain, Chief Business Officer, Bloom Hotels; and Rahool Macarius, Market Managing Director, Eurasia, Wyndham Hotels & Resorts. The session was moderated by Swati Arora, Vice President – Consulting & Valuation, HVS ANAROCK.
Technology-led sessions followed. In Future of Hotel Discovery — Powered by GenAI, Abhishek Logani, Chief Business Officer, Hotels, MakeMyTrip, and Ankit Khanna, Chief Product Officer – Hotel, Growth & Emerging Businesses, MakeMyTrip, outlined the impact of generative AI on distribution and booking behavior.
The next-generation leadership panel, Tech, Trends and Transformation: The Next Gen Vision for Indian Hospitality, featured Amruda Nair, Founder, Araiya Hotels and Resorts; Arjun Baljee, President, Royal Orchid Hotels and Founder, ICONIQA Hotels & Resorts; Shruti Shibulal, Executive Vice Chair, Board of Directors, Tamara Leisure Experiences; and Suhail Kannampilly, Managing Director, Concept Hospitality. It was moderated by Anant Apurv Kumar, Co-Founder, Brij Hotels.
The discussion on marketing and communications, Influencer Marketing And Story Telling For The New Age Traveller, included Joanna Lobo, Travel & Lifestyle Journalist & Editor; Malini Agarwal, Co-Founder, MissMalini Entertainment / The Idea Factory; and Ragini Chopra, Group Head, Corporate Affairs, InterGlobe Enterprises. The session was moderated by Madhulika Joshi Pallod, CEO & Chief Creative Officer, Martist.
In When Algorithms Decide – Is AI Now The Real Power Broker In Travel And Hospitality, panelists included Bhanu Chopra, Chairman & Managing Director, RateGain; Santosh Kumar, Country Head, Indian sub-continent & Indonesia, Booking.com; Sidharth Gupta, Co-founder and CEO, Treebo Hospitality Ventures; and Stephen Rushmore Jr., President & CEO, HVS. The discussion was moderated by Ravish Swarup, Founder & CEO, Praxis Services & Onefinerate.com.
Capital markets took focus in Listed, Liquid and Restless: The Race for Growth. Speakers included Neelendra Singh, Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer, Lemon Tree Hotels Ltd.; Raghu Sapra, Head Hospitality, Embassy REIT; Rahul Pandit, Managing Director & CEO, Advent Hotels International Limited; and Shwetank Singh, Managing Director & CEO, Chalet Hotels Limited. The session was moderated by Dr. Sanjay Sethi, Non-Executive Director, Chalet Hotels Limited.
The penultimate session, Rewriting the Playbook: New Paths into India’s Hotel Market, featured Nicholas Smith, Vice President of Operations – Asia, Minor Hotels; Rohit Dar, Vice President and Head of South Asia, The Ascott Limited; and Santhosh Raman Kutty, Chief Business Officer – Development, Mahindra Holidays & Resorts India. It was moderated by Amit Ranjan, AVP – Transaction Advisory (South Asia), HVS ANAROCK.
The event concluded with Showtime@HOPE, where Kapil Dev, former Indian cricket captain, was in conversation with Prakash Iyer, author and leadership coach, on performance, leadership and resilience.
The summit brought together senior leadership from global and domestic hotel companies, investment firms and technology platforms.
