APAICS | Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies

Sant S. Chatwal

Share This »

---

President and CEO
Hampshire Hotels & Resorts

---

Biography

Mr. Sant Chatwal is one of the most distinguished hospitality business tycoons in the world.  Originally from India, Mr. Chatwal’s first venture into hospitality began in Ethiopia when the self-made entrepreneur saved up enough money to purchase the Lebanese restaurant he had been managing and open a second one serving Indian cuisine.  When a new Marxist government seized his assets in 1975, he brought his ambition to Montreal where he acquired two restaurants and invented a new kind of cuisine: French-Indian.  His U.S. career began in 1979 with the creation of Bombay Palace restaurant in Manhattan, which grew to a total of thirteen international locations by 1986.  Soon thereafter, he acquired Hampshire Hotels & Resorts and since then has grown it to a $1.5 billion dollar hospitality empire. Mr. Chatwal has two children – Vikram Chatwal and Vivek Chatwal – both of whom play active roles within Hampshire Hotels & Resorts.

Under Mr. Chatwal’s direction, Hampshire Hotels & Resorts owns hotels in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, India and Thailand, with over 3,000 rooms in Manhattan alone. The company continues to grow and prosper, unveiling new projects around the globe. Recently, Hampshire Hotels & Resorts began a large-scale expansion throughout his native India, with multiple outposts of the Dream Hotel brand scheduled to open in Hyderabad, Bangalore, Cochin, Chennai, Jaipur, New Delhi, and Mumbai by 2011 – bringing more than 2,000 new rooms to India’s luxury hotel market. The company will also debut a premier luxury brand in 2010 with the opening of The Chatwal New York. The Manhattan hotel marks the launch of Mr. Chatwal’s brainchild brand, “The Chatwal,” with plans in the works for additional luxury properties in Hertfordshire, England and in India.

Beyond his professional success, Mr. Chatwal has also established himself as a leading voice among the Indian-American community and around the world, working tirelessly since the 1980’s to strengthen Indo-American ties. Mr. Chatwal organized and accompanied Senator Hillary Clinton on her first visit to India in February 2005 and returned to the country with her in June 2009 after her appointment as Secretary of State.

Mr. Chatwal has also worked tirelessly to promote the rights of fellow immigrants in the United States. He has devoted considerable resources to worthy political causes, including the strengthening relationship with Jewish Community via work with Jewish congressmen and senators are friends of India. He is a founding director of the Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies which is dedicated to ensuring the participation and success of Asian Pacific Americans in government.

In 2001, Mr. Chatwal became a founder trustee of the American India Foundation (AIF) and accompanied President Clinton on his first humanitarian tour of India in the aftermath of the Gujarat earthquake. As a trustee of the William J. Clinton Foundation, Mr. Chatwal has raised more than $10 million dollars.  He is also a past President of International Punjabi Society (IPS) New York, bringing First Lady Hillary Clinton as the chief guest for the July 2000 IPS world convention.

---