Novotel Imagicaa Khopoli has announced the appointment of Hemant Chowdhary as Director of Sales & Marketing, strengthening the hotel’s commercial leadership as it grows as a premier leisure destination in Maharashtra.

With over two decades of experience across global hotel brands including Hyatt, IHG, Wyndham, and Starwood, Hemant brings deep expertise in driving revenue growth, enhancing brand positioning, and building high-impact commercial strategies across competitive hospitality markets.

In his new role, he will lead the hotel’s sales and marketing initiatives, focusing on revenue performance, strategic partnerships, and optimising the business mix to strengthen leisure demand. Hemant will also align commercial efforts with the property’s long-term growth objectives.

Hemant’s background spans leisure hospitality, pre-opening strategies, and hotel positioning, having successfully boosted brand visibility and commercial performance across multiple assignments. He holds an MBA from Welingkar Institute of Management, Mumbai, and is a graduate of IHM Ahmedabad, combining strong academic credentials with hands-on industry experience.

Anil Chavan, General Manager of Novotel Imagicaa Khopoli, said, “We are delighted to welcome Hemant to Novotel Imagicaa Khopoli. His strong commercial acumen, deep understanding of leisure-driven hospitality, and proven ability to build strategic partnerships make him a valuable addition to our leadership team. As we continue to strengthen our positioning as one of the region's preferred getaway destinations, we are confident that his expertise will play a key role in driving sustained growth and enhancing our market presence.”

With this appointment, Novotel Imagicaa Khopoli aims to further enhance its commercial roadmap, reinforcing its reputation as a preferred destination for leisure travellers, corporate guests, and experiential stays.

Fairmont Udaipur Palace has announced the appointment of Siddhartha Mehendale as Director of Finance. Set against the Aravalli Hills, the palace strengthens its leadership team with a seasoned finance professional bringing over 25 years of experience across luxury hospitality and international markets.

In his new role, Mehendale will oversee financial planning, budgeting and forecasting, procurement, compliance and strategic resource optimisation. His mandate includes ensuring robust financial stewardship that supports the palace’s vision of timeless luxury, exceptional guest experiences and long-term value creation.

A seasoned finance business partner, Mehendale has built a distinguished career across India, the Middle East and island destinations, driving profitability, strengthening governance frameworks and enabling sustainable growth. Most recently, he served as Director of Finance at Novotel Kolkata Hotel & Residences, where he led long-term financial strategy, revenue optimisation, cost-efficiency initiatives and compliance excellence while mentoring a large finance team.

His professional journey includes senior leadership roles with Accor Group across multiple properties, including multi-property Director of Finance for Novotel and ibis Bengaluru, as well as assignments at Novotel Hyderabad Convention Centre, ibis Pune and international postings in Qatar, Maldives and Bahrain. His expertise spans pre-opening operations, CAPEX planning, audit excellence, contract renegotiations and implementation of global internal control systems.

Recognised for balancing fiscal discipline with business enablement, Mehendale has been honoured with the Accor Finance Person of the Year awards in 2014 and 2024.

Commenting on his appointment, Mehendale said he looks forward to building strong financial foundations that enable innovation, excellence and sustainable growth at Fairmont Udaipur Palace.

Eight Continents Hotels & Resorts has announced the appointment of Javed Akhtar to its Advisory Board. The move comes as the luxury hotel management group accelerates its focus on long-term growth, asset optimisation, alternative revenue streams and enhanced guest lifetime value across its portfolio.

In his advisory role, Javed will collaborate with the leadership team to guide strategic initiatives spanning loyalty-led growth, experiential revenue integration, alternative monetisation channels, AI-enabled guest engagement frameworks and global partnership expansion.

Bringing over two decades of cross-sector experience, Javed began his career in hotel operations, gaining first-hand expertise in occupancy management, distribution strategy, guest experience and asset profitability. He is the founder of TripXOXO (TravelPort Digital), one of Asia’s largest aggregators of experiences operating in over 140 countries with access to more than 50,000 attractions. He also leads RewardPort, a consumer promotions and loyalty solutions company that has partnered with more than 200 brands to design reward ecosystems and engagement programmes.

Richa Adhia, Managing Director of Eight Continents Hotels & Resorts, welcomed the appointment, highlighting Javed’s strategic leadership in hospitality and loyalty-driven revenue frameworks as key to strengthening the group’s long-term value creation strategy.

Commenting on his new role, Javed noted that the brand’s design-led and culturally rooted approach offers strong potential to integrate loyalty, experiential commerce and AI-driven engagement to unlock sustainable growth.

Founded in 2020 by Haninder Sachdeva, Eight Continents Hotels & Resorts operates across India, the UK and East Africa, with a portfolio including Ocho Homes, Hanric, Treetop and Stamps, delivering design-led boutique hospitality experiences.