This year 45 general managers participated in the second edition of Rediscover Chennai, Rediscover Life
Scattered hair, biker jackets and knee guards are not things that are usually associated with general manager hotels. And yet, here they are, giving up power dressing – sharp suits, ties, oxfords – for biker chic as they ride along the East Coast Road to raise awareness of tourism.
The second edition of Rediscover Chennai, the Rediscover Life bike ride took place over the weekend. It started last year as four enthusiastic bikers and hoteliers – Rajesh Radhakrishnan, Sudip Sengupta, Shafi Ahmed and Shabin Sarvotham – brainstormed to find a way to boost tourism in Tamil Nadu.
“The travel and hospitality industry has been badly hit due to the pandemic. When hotels opened last September, business was poor with only 10-15% of people in some hotels. “It was demotivating,” says Shafi Ahmed, general manager of E Hotels, “we had to send a loud and clear message informing our guests that hotels are safe.”
Rajesh Radhakrishnan, general manager of The Park, says, “We had to discuss the reopening of hotels.” The question was how to get people to take notice. Bikes were the answer. Thus happened the first edition last year in which 30 general managers rode to Mamallapuram and back. This year the number increased to 45. They were joined by those who were not accustomed to the allure of two-wheeled rides in cars. “The idea is to promote Chennai and its hotels, focusing on places to visit,” says Radhakrishnan.
Supported by India Tourism and Tamil Nadu Tourism, this time the event was flagged off by Venkatesan Dattatreya, Regional Director, Ministry of Tourism, Government of India and Sandeep Nanduri, IAS – Director of Tourism and Managing Director of TTDC, Government of Tamil Nadu. .
The bikers covered a distance of about 80 kilometers to Kovalam, stopping near the Bay of Life on the way, where surfing and other water sports were performed. Shaukat Jamal, who runs Bay of Life, took the bikers through a session where he explained the wind patterns, the waves and talked about the cleanliness of the beach.
“We plan to make it an annual feature,” says Radhakrishnan. Is it a challenge to find new destinations every year? No, says Shabin Sarvotham, senior general manager at GRT Radisson Temple Bay. “There are a lot of hidden places in India,” he said, adding that he had been in Udhagamandalam for more than nine years and there is still a lot to discover.
Sarvotham, Ahmed, Radhakrishnan and Sengupta (Vice President at Green Park) ride together almost every weekend. They recently went to Pulicat, Vedanthangal and Kolli Hills, the latter being the longest ride they have completed together. “It has 71 hair pin bends,” says Radhakrishnan, his voice with a tinge of excitement. “It is about 400 kms from Chennai, but we went through villages, so it was about 500 kms long,” says Shabeen. After a 14-hour workday from Monday to Saturday, Shabin says that riding on Sundays is stress-free, even if it means being outside and until around 5.30. “On our rides we don’t discuss hotels or business,” he says.
.