Mr. Satish Sood

Sood says it's all about tuning the timing of the projects well."We bought the Kanishka property when the prices hit a low last year.Otherwise it didn't make sense."

He expects the other two hotel projects -- the five-star Royal Garden Hotel and four-star Blue Diamond near Surajkund lake -- to be able to get consumer traffic when the Haryana government legalises casinos.

Talking about the Kanishka property, Sood says that the group is negotiating with several international hotel brands for a tie up.The hotel will be operational in six months.

"We are investing Rs 200 crore (Rs 2 billion) to renovate the building.While the exterior of the 19-storey building will remain the same, it will have a modern look with glass and aluminium panels and have the largest multi-cuisine restaurant in Delhi, spread over a 6,000-sq ft area serving four different types of cuisine," explains Sood.Hong Kong-based Chhada Siembeda Associate Ltd has been hired to do the interiors.

While Satish Sood, his eldest son and managing director of Nehru Place Hotels Ltd, the group's hospitality division, handles the day-to-day operations, Ajay Sood looks after the entertainment division as MD of Ajay Enterprise.

Mr. Satish Sood, Managing Director of Nehru Place Hotels Pvt Ltd stated, "We are pleased to be working once again with the InterContinental Hotels Group for the Crowne Plaza Mayur Vihar New Delhi.