Ashok Khanna

At that point, both my father and I travelled across the world to look at various destinations, but we came to the conclusion, when we came back to India, that the therapies and practices available here had evolved through generations and were much superior and beneficial compared to others available worldwide.

I started yoga at I think at the age of 30 when I was still working with the oberoy. My actual wellness journey started when the lease was signed for Ananda with the Maharaja Garwal. Then my father and myself we traveled worldwide all over the world actually to look at various destination spars but came to the conclusion when we came back to India that the therapies and practices were available in India through which have been evolved through generations were much superior and beneficial.

So I think there's a curiosity that Jenz has which I've not really seen in any other generation so far. You know we took a lot of this for granted. you know those those grandmothers tokas and you know that was all I but nobody asked the pertinent questions and now you find Jenzi really wanting to embrace their culture in a way like never before right so and they're also willing to invest in themselves because they are seeking that balance of life which I think nobody else did and so they're investing in themselves at a much younger age

Together with my wife Neelam, we studied the wealth of ancient sciences and health practices in India to piece together the pillars of Ananda- Yoga, Ayurveda, Vedanta and Spirituality.

Human touch is really important. AI and technology can complement it, but cannot replace it. Most people coming here want a human touch, less machine and more hands.

I think it is the feel and touch, and luxury is also about the feeling.

Find faults within yourself and not in others.

Four Seasons in Montreal.

The seeds were always there because from the time we started he was talking to spiritual lack of a better word gurus. They were looking at the ancient sciences of yoga and ayurvea but they didn't know the power that they would bring into the mix. even though they were all there and these weren't things that hotels were introducing at all back then. When we sort of had them all in place, they started to sort of come together very powerfully and I think that's when the transition started to happen that we saw that we can make a big change here.

I think this is when Ashika came back and Mahesh both of them brought this whole aspect out. People are looking for wellness and not for just a holiday with a wellness program.

I think today people are asking the harder questions like why am I here? Who am I? What am I here for? Why am I doing this? The sort of spiritual quest so to speak. And I think India is a treasure in that sense. There's no other country that has the kind of lineage and the culture and the spiritual history that we have. People have always come here to sort of find themselves. And now I think Indians are realizing too that they can they can find themselves here. And I think that the scriptures actually have all the answers. And so Ananda is sort of perfect place to introspect because we're probing the questions and surrounding people with all that knowledge as well for them to be able to find those answers for themselves.

In hospitality, my grandfather, Mr. Oberoy, I used to work very closely with him. So he inspired me a lot. But when it comes to wellness person who really inspired us and who gave us this direction of wellness what Ananda is was Swami Ram his asham was based in Rishiesh he used to do a lot of research work and that's where aa was actually born a cosmetic company so he inspired us a lot and then there were others gurus like Muniji gi from paratan we spent time with himati of course vid academy. We spent a lot of time there in the academy. We have their teachers now giving lectures at Ananda. So there were lots of people who did inspire me. Swami Partashati is uh one of them.

I have to say I haven't been exposed to many others. I think what inspires me more than people is actually travel because I like to go to places that have a rich culture and history because that permeates in to the architecture into the art and the food and the craftsmanship of the place and that's the kind of thing that really inspires me.

the world of wellness has changed so fast and is changing so fast it's very difficult to keep up with it you know so there's so many places that do more uh clinical forms of wellness there all these sort of fancy light infrared kind of machines that do different things so we've consciously made an effort to not focus on those and lean more heavily on tradition because that's something that we know that will never change but at the same time we look at techn technology as being a supportive factor in all of the things that we do.

It's also because you know people they want immediate results now. Nobody wants to wait. That's what I wanted to understand. You know how to kind of address that. Look, it's a matter of time that people realize that wellness is a journey. It's not a onestop fat farm. It's a lifelong journey. And I think people also do realize that in order for anything to be sustainable, you have to continue it for for your entire lifetime. So the human touch is very important and AI and digital technology complement it but cannot replace it. So most people who come to Ananda want the human touch. When they go to a physiootherapy they're not very enamored by all the machines that those people use. So we are using less and less machines and more hands.

I started yoga at the age of 30 when I was still working with the Oberois, and my actual wellness journey started when the lease was signed for Ananda with the Maharaja of Tehri Garhwal.

I think peace and happiness is the biggest luxury that anybody can strive for. I feel it's uh feel and touch.

My reaction was very positive because it had really good energy. But since it had been uninhabited since the Viceroy’s time, my wife did not have a very positive reaction. The Maharaja used to stay in one part of the mahal and the other was in complete ruins. But because yoga and Ayurveda were born in the Himalayas, I felt that it was the right place for me to do something very special.

In the 90s, when we conceived Ananda, there was not much awareness around wellness. It was not mainstream, but things have changed. Now people are not looking at wellness through the allopathy point of view. Natural wellness is appreciated, and that’s where we come in.

We do not have any plans at the moment. We want to make it more holistic and parallel to changing times.

Ananda was ranked the No. 1 Destination Spa in the World by Condé Nast Traveler Readers' Travel Awards 2020 with a record 6 million readers voting for their favourite travel destinations.

Two decades ago, given rising stress levels and the impetus on health and rejuvenation in the world, I embarked on a mission to find a spiritual, serene and pollution free location to create a destination spa and wellness retreat.

When I came upon the Palace Estate of the Maharaja of Tehri-Garhwal, overlooking Rishikesh and the Ganges river, I knew at once that this was the chosen place.

In creating Ananda we stuck to ancient Indian Virtues, where holistic living was a way of life: back when people understood the balance of nature, the ways of the universe and how the elements affected not just physical health but also mental wellbeing.

It was always clear to me, that if people achieved harmony within, they would be at peace. This is the very philosophy which brought Ananda in the Himalayas into being, believing that each individual is unique.

We adapted the concept of traditional ayurvedic food for your body type and refined it to incorporate modern cuisine concepts using fresh seasonal produce.

All this, seamlessly combined with the authentic wellness traditions of Asia and the west, is our recipe for Ananda's holistic wellness.

The last and most important element essential to Ananda's being are its people. Each and every member of the staff needed to understand, imbibe and live by the Ananda philosophy and we were lucky to find them. They are the single most important reason for Ananda's success.

My team and I feel privileged and humbled with this, and for every award and accolade we have received over these past two decades, knowing well that we have many more milestones to achieve.

This year will see us intensifying our wellness programmes, with a renewed focus on Ayurveda, comprehensive Panchakarma procedures and newly introduced Oriental therapies & TCM.

The Ayurvedic and lifestyle consultation processes at Ananda have been augmented with comprehensive assessment and diagnostic tools.

We have also introduced enhanced physiotherapy services to offer targeted solutions for pain related issues that are increasingly chronic across the world.

There is also a renewed focus on sustainability practices to reduce carbon footprint and being socially responsible for local communities.

I thank you deeply for being part of our vision and the Ananda journey. I hope to see you soon again, continuing on your wellness journey and living the Ananda way of life.

It has been an amazing journey over the past 20 years, throughout which we have maintained our ethos of authentic traditional wellness and discerning, caring service at the highest standards.