Q&A with a Bangalore Expert

With 66 hotel locations in India, including some of the country’s landmark properties, Taj Hotels & Resorts is synonymous with luxury—not just traditional, but also evolving with the landscape. True to form, the hotel chain just announced the worldwide launch of a new brand, Vivanta by Taj, which will bring some young, cosmopolitan “design hotel” sensibilities to a country that’s energized and on an upward swing. Here, Taj executive Jodi Dell LeBlanc chats about the new hotel brand—the prototype of which debuted in Bangalore in 2008—and how it suits the pace of this up-and-coming city.

Trip: What do people come to Bangalore for?

Jodi: Bangalore is the IT capital of the country, housing numerous IT companies in the city, and becoming the second-largest IT hub in South East Asia. The corporate movement has considerably increased post-recession, and in the past ten years the city has grown in every area, be it new hotels opening, real estate businesses, research centers. The tourist locations in and around the city are visited by the locals as well as the domestic and international traveler: Tipu Sultan's Palace, the Bull Temple, ISKON Temple to name a few.

Trip: How does Taj's offering fit into this?

Jodi: Each of our brands has been created to appeal to a distinct psychographic segment.  We have multiple hotel brands operating in Bangalore.