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Department of Hotel Management, Christ University, Hosur Road, Bangalore 560029 Vol. 3 (10), OCTOBER 2013
Repertoire
October brings us to exams, the end of a semester and the much awaited
vacations. Join us in this issue to read about some exciting new developments in
the Department of Hotel Management. Also see what the holidays have in store
for us and experience the Joy of Giving. Read on for all this and more!
-Avin Thaliath, Editor-In Chief
The Hilton MOU
-Lara Williams
Conrad Hilton founded of Hilton Worldwide in 1919
and today it is one of the largest American global
companies in the hospitality industry. The Hilton
owns over 4000 hotels across the world. They are
looking to expand further and view India as a
potential market with a promising future.
Christ University was established in 1969. It has
been rated among the top 10 educational
institutions in India. In 1991, The Department of
Hotel Management was started in order to develop
well trained students to join the hospitality
industry. Christ University has one of the most
prestigious hotel management (BHM) course in the
country.
Hilton worldwide has come to seek recruitment
from one of the top and best colleges in India. On
the 31st of October, Hilton worldwide had signed a
contract for a strategic partnership with the
department of hotel management of Christ
University. Mr martin Rinck(President, Hilton
worldwide Asia pacific),Mr Brendon Toomey( Vice
president, Asia pacific), Sunil Kumar (regional
director HR India), Mr Manoj Sharma ( director HR
Hilton Bangalore) and other dignitaries were
welcomed by Dr. Fr. lt.Thomas E Mathew. This
moment is a huge turning point in the history of
Christ University.
The agreement allows the students to train under
the Hilton group. This programme includes both
theory and practical training. It designed in such a
way to develop and nurture the student’s skills and
abilities according to international standards of the
hospitality industry. All first year students will
undergo a set of examinations and interviews,
among which 15 of the best will be chosen. This
partnership provides the students with more
exposure and how to deal with problematic
situations proactively. Their contributions towards
training these aspiring individuals will also help to
keep the department up to date with the
international dynamics. They will be able to adapt
quickly to the change in guest demands and adhere
to it more efficiently. They also provide internships
and job offers to promising graduates.
Following the signing of the agreement, the
students then posed questions to the board about
the programme and their company. The questions
were answered so accurately that there was no
room for doubt. After the formalities of the
agreement, the event ended with a cricket match
between Hilton Worldwide and the Department of
Hotel Management. Showing their competitive
spirit, the Hilton won the match. This coming
together of Hilton worldwide and Christ University
will pave a path to the future success and growth of
this industry in India.
Shoreditch: Where all of London goes to party.
-Anahita Girish It was Mid-May and I was nearing the end of my 10
days in England. By then I had had a fairly thorough
taste of fully English culture- the music, the
creativity, the countryside, Cornish pasties and
Cream teas. However, I was yet to experience the
solid nightlife London is famous for.
My gracious host gave me a number of web-links to
analyse and scrutinize in order to choose where to
spend my final Saturday night. After going back and
forth a million times I left it to him to decide.
It was a rather chilly evening with a gentle drizzle
(typically British) and we set out, post-dinner to
meet a few friends at an extremely English pub
called The White Lion. This public house was so
authentic, I felt as though I was on the set of a
movie. With hardly any space to breathe, we
squeezed our way up two miniscule floors only to
be pushed back down to a corner. With Guinesses
in hand, we huddled around an old wooden table
and yelled at each other over loud Brit-Rock. The
energy was electric, with everyone in high spirits.
The cosy nature of the bar allowed people to
mingle easily, generating large new friend groups
nearly every night. A feature of the bar that was
new to me was a narrow shelf that skirted the
exterior of the bar. This was for excess guests who
spilled over on extremely crowded nights! This was
a feature that was also well utilised whenever the
weather was good.
After just a single drink, we ventured out in the cold
to a semi-artsy place called The Book Club. It was
more spread out and packed to the brim. Famous
for magazine launches, topic based discussions and
unusual music concerts; The Book Club attracts a
young intellectual crowd looking for a fun evening
combined with some mental stimulation. The décor
of this hip pub changes regularly as its walls host
exhibitions of local artists.
We shared a decent starter platter while
overhearing numerous conversations at a long
table. The seating was such that many groups often
have to sit next to each other- yet another feature
that was unusual to me.
We then moved to the basement which contained
ping pong tables, pool tables and a large dance
floor packed with youngsters grooving to the latest
underground tunes. Apart from resident DJ’s and
theme nights, this space is said to host new artists
nearly every month.
The Book Club is not just a night spot but also
serves Breakfast, Lunch, Tea and Dinner on
weekdays as well as Brunch on weekends.
(Argyriades, 2012)
The club closed shut down at 12am and so we
stepped out again to look for another place as the
night was still young. After walking around in a
freezing drizzle, we finally hopped into a London
Cab and went a few streets away. We arrived at
what appeared to be an old style leather store.
When my host said we were entering this old
beaten up place, I didn’t believe him.
Inside the Packet
Keerthan Noble
No one can eat just one, No Confusion, Great
Combination, Yehi hain Right Choice Baby…Ring
a bell? Of course! They are slogans from famous
FMCG (Fast Moving Consumer Goods) brands.
Where ever we are from, we take our snacking
seriously. But we often forget the fine line between
tasty and healthy snacking, which has now created a
great dilemma in our minds and our eating life style.
Indians for example, are spoilt for choice with over
22 Chip and Snack Manufacturing units around the
country, and with the variety and number of
products produced by every unit, defining Healthy
and Tasty snacking has poses a major challenge.
According to a recent article in the Times of India,
in order to match the change in eating habits of the
people in India, FMCG companies such as PepsiCo,
Nestle, Parle and Marico introduced BFY (Better
For You) products, which assured fat free and
healthy snacks and a few of them included products
such as Aliva, Lay‟s Baked potato chips, Maggie
atta noodles and Monaco Smart chips. But it all back
fired and left FMCG companies suffering losses
comprising close to 14,500-15,000 crores in the
Indian Market alone (according to the PwC, India-
FICCI report). Indian FMCGs today have a few
takers of these healthy snacks. This has resulted in
stacking up shelves with packets of „healthy‟ snacks,
while the „tasty‟ ones are flying off theirs.
The choice left now is to pick between the unique
tastes or the health preference offered to consumers
by these snacks. What is your pick?
Sources-
The Times of India (Nov.5, 2013)
www.potatopro.com
(Sodini, 2011)
On stepping inside, I nearly gasped. It was not even
slightly what I had expected. With cool grey, black
and white interiors, the placed screamed “Hipster”.
Those inside only contributed to the image –most
of them dressed to match the décor. Like The Book
Club, Jaguar Shoes continued into the basement
where the bar and more cosy seating were present.
This bar appeared to be more focused on art than
the previous one. Most of the crowd seemed to be
regulars who purely discussed art, film and fashion
while sipping on classy wines. Nevertheless, it
proved to be a fascinating place where we enjoyed
ourselves people-watching.
The last and final place we headed to before calling
it a night was a tiny bar called Translate. This long
corridor style place housed a fun young crowd and
an exciting DJ who churned out hits from the early
2000’s.
After dancing our final bits of energy away, we
walked out hungry and followed the crowds to look
for a good post-midnight snack. We found ourselves
walking into a small shop with a whiteboard menu
and a hardly legible name. It offered sandwiches,
fries and the like at decent prices and judging from
the quickly growing crowds, was obviously popular.
I had a small bowl of Mexican chilli loaded with
crisp fries. Steaming hot chilli that quickly warmed
my hands and my heart in nearly 5 degree weather
was a perfect end to what was a super fun night in
Shoreditch, East London.
THE JOY OF GIVING – HAVE YOU
EXPERIENCED IT?
- Poorvi Iyengar
Mother Theresa once said, “it is not how much we
give, but how much love we put into giving”. Every
year thousands of Indians rally in the month of
October to celebrate the joy of giving week- a week
to celebrate philanthropy
Initially named the India giving week, Joy giving is
supported by several Non government organisations
and corporate houses and has aboard several top
celebrities participating as ambassadors to promote
the inculcation of the spirit of giving among
citizens.
Since its inception, in 2009 it has channelized about
30 crores in donations and several hours of
volunteering.
Giving is often associated and defined in monetary
terms, but this essentially is where the joy of giving
differs. Money is hardly a consideration. One could
just take time off an otherwise overloaded schedule
at work, college, or even daily home chores and
volunteer at various institutions. If that isn‟t your
cup of tea, dip into your inner artist and offer to
paint a school wall, for this shall help.
The joy of giving has combined artistically money,
time and skills to create a celebration of sorts. The
act of giving is not necessarily directed to the needy,
but all individuals in this diverse society.
The week is celebrated by organising events such as
the 7 days 7 gifts, where individuals are encouraged
to perform random acts of kindness to people they
do not know for every day of the week .The purpose
of conducting this event is to help direct ones
attention towards others and not just on oneself.
Our industry, the hotels have done its bit too. Hotels
in Chennai and Hyderabad have held events such as
Battle of the Buffet and have provided lavish buffets
at zero cost to several Ngo‟s in the respective cities.
Fundraisers are characteristic features of this week
and many hotels have also hosted these events.
Any initiative such is this is bound to face criticism.
The greatest criticism to this initiative stems from
the fact that it focuses and restricts giving to a time
period i.e just a week. The argument against this
statement is that the aim of the initiative is purely to
create an awareness and those who believe in these
ideals will continue to give even after the stated
time period.
HALLOWEEN CREEPS IN TO PROWL
AROUND TOWN!
-Avani Panshikar
Carved pumpkins, eerie lights, bizarre costumes,
and bags filled with candy construe the true spirit
of Halloween from a time dating back countless
years. A day when families wake up wondering
what costumes to make or design, how and when
to carve their pumpkins, kids look forward to a fun-
filled evening when they can trick-or-treat their
way through the streets. The festival is known to
have rooted to the Celtic culture in Ireland,
according to its "Druid" religion, November 1st was
New Years' on their calendar. The celebration
would begin on October 31st, and last into the
following day. The belief was that the spirits of
those who died in the previous year, would rise
and rove on the earth, this night. It is also known
as “All Hallows Eve”. Samhain, the Lord of
Darkness, was known to summon all these spirits
back into the underworld on the evening of
Halloween. Traditionally, Halloween is incomplete
without pumpkins. The famous Jack O’ Lanterns
which were carved out of turnips ( by the Irish,
conventionally) , now are inevitably amazingly
carved pumpkins with a pair of eyes, a nose and a
mouth, usually lit from the insides, placed outside
homes, to drive away the evil spirits.
Halloween is not just about all these spooky and
scary things, it involves very fascinating and unique
sweets, snacks, dishes and desserts. This is a day
when people go all out to make interesting and
innovative things like The Great White Pumpkin
Cheeseball, Monster Eyes, Brew-Ha-Ha Punch,
Various Halloween Cupcakes and Cookies (shaped
like Spiders, Horror characters, and so on.)
Although these myths and practices still vastly
prevail in U.S.A and the English countries, it is rapidly
gaining popularity in other countries like India,
China, Japan, Slovakia, etc.
In India, over the past few years we have seen a
substantial rise in Halloween celebrations and
parties. Like on 31st October 2013, the Sheraton,
Bangalore, hosted an exclusive Halloween party at
Durbar, where guests had gathered to shake-a- leg to
the peppy beats that DJ Tyron had in store for them!
In a few other places too, people across all age
groups were present, including the family crowd.
They put up several props and the kids really enjoyed
themselves. They had skull-shaped bottles from
which people could drink and the response to its
spooky feel was great.
As the business of Halloween is getting bigger and
better with each passing year, a lot of props and
costumes are being imported to India as the demand
for them has surged. People are also willing to spend
a bomb on such evenings. A city-based event
manager and entrepreneur says, "We are organizing
a party with more than 2,000 guests where we will
be giving away Halloween goodies. Pumpkin and
skull lanterns with severed heads, hands and legs,
will be part of the decoration. There is a lot of
demand for costumes this year and we have seen a
change in the merchandize too. A lot of clubs are
also putting up kiosks at the venue where people can
purchase masks and props."
Bangalore is one of the more in-tune cities of India,
with adopting international cultures, which is why
Halloween has become popular in this city.
We can see the influence of this day even in the
homes in Bangalore, Mumbai, Chennai, etc. as we
see little children craving for candy and going from
door-to-door to convince residents of apartments
and gated communities to throw in some candy, with
their ever-sparkling eyes.
Many bakeries, academies and cake boutiques, like
Lavonne kept with the mood and were a part of the
'I LOVE INDIRANAGAR-Big Trick or Treat' and were all
set to be swamped by kids on this spooktacular
Halloween!!
With Halloween slowly digging its claws into a
country like ours, the day is not far, when we would
see huge malls dedicated to Halloween attires and
accessories, haunting their way all over our cities!
All Saints Day
-Claudette Carvalho
In the early days Christians marked the
anniversary of the martyrs death for Christ at
the place of martyrdom. Frequently martyrs
suffered on the same day that led to joint
commemoration. The church felt that a
separate day should be appointed for the
deaths of all these martyr‟s thus began all
saints day. At first only martyrs and St. John
the Baptist were honored by a special
day. Gradually canonization was established.
This day is celebrated o the 1st of
November every year in remembrance of all
the saints. It is also known as All Hallows
Tide, All-Hallomas, or All Hallows' Day.
Christians all over the world celebrate this
day in remembrance of the martyr‟s life. In
France services are offered in church in memory of all
the saints are held on that day. But by the evening the
focus turns towards the dead. Cemeteries everywhere
are crowded with people who come to clean and
decorate family graves. This day is very closely tied
with all souls day that is celebrated on the 2nd of
November in commemoration of the dead. The whole
concept of All Saints Day is tied in with
the Communion of Saints. This is a belief that all of
God's people, on heaven, earth and in a state of
purification are in a communion.
There are many symbols in association with this day.
A few of them are a sheaf of wheat, a crown and the
hand of God.
HOSPITALITY TRENDS – WHAT WE NEED TO
KNOW.
-Poorvi Iyengar
The nature of the hotel industry allows for it to be
dynamic. Subject to constant changes, this industry
has continuously evolved. Numerous trends have
emerged and have become norms that facilitate
functioning.
As students of a hotel management programme it is
an essential to stay abreast with trends that affect
industry. Knowledge of aspects such as this will
prove to be a differentiating factor for us as human
capital.
The trends in the industry cover a fairly large
domain but are focussed primarily on aspects such
as the use of technology, regional preferences,
environment friendly practices and pricing
strategies.
In terms of technology, the hospitality industry has
developed to great extents. Hotels have realised the
role of technology in increasing efficiency,
promoting productivity and streamlining and have
chosen to adopt the technological route in
performing functions. Boutique hotels have
employed the use of cloud computing systems that
have helped reduce operating costs . The industry
has also taken complete leverage of the advent of
smart phone technology and hotels have developed
numerous mobile applications and micro sites to
enable customer interaction. Hotels have also begun
to use customer review sites which help in building
the brands reputation. Hand held devices are also
being used generate KOTs.
Realising the responsibility that they have towards
the environment hotels have now amended and
developed practices to fit the term often described as
eco friendly. The concept of Ecotels has gained
popularity. The emphasis on the utilisation of eco
friendly cleaning supplies as well as locally sourced
food has increased greatly. Plumbing management
so as to use water resources effectively as well as
electrical management by the used of LED and CFL
lighting systems has been employed .
Each year is host to a new culinary trend. In terms of
2013, It is observed that single dish restaurants are
on the rise i.e restaurants built around one type of
food have now become popular and desserts are a
common theme. Brewing styles are turning sour,
individuals are now showing preference towards
sour beers which have appeared in menus of several
craft brewpubs.
Keeping up with these trends and utilising them
effectively will definitely contribute to guest
satisfaction and bring great revenues to a property .
However for us as individuals staying informed
about these trends will bring a marked difference
Editor-in chief
Avin Thaliath
Conceptualized and Designed by
Bryan John Fernandes
Srujana Sagi
Editorial Team
Avin Thaliath
Keerthan John Noble
Vishal Bose
Aravind Varghese
Claudette Carvalho
Shivani Gogia
Anahita Girish
Vishwas Badami
Mahira Alvares
Angelina Maben
Bryan John Fernandes
Srujana Sagi
Poorvi Iyengar
Behzad Tarapore
Lara Williams
Navaz Bharucha
Contact us at:
Christ University, Hosur Road
Bangalore— 560029
Karnataka India
Phone Numbers: +91.80.4012.9100
+91.80.4012.9600
Fax: +91.80.4012.9000
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.christuniversity.in
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