WOW Awards Asia 2024: Meet the Esteemed Jury of Hotel and Venue Group

by  EVENTFAQS Bureau Industry Watch | July 13, 2024 | News

WOW Awards Asia 2024 WOW Awards Hotels and Venues

The 15th edition of WOW Awards Asia, the largest platform for recognizing excellence in Experiential Marketing, MICE, LIVE Entertainment, and the Wedding industry, is scheduled for August 17th and 18th, 2024, at the JIO World Convention Centre in Mumbai. The awards, evaluated through a two-phase judging process overseen by jury members and validated by EY, will be presented during a grand ceremony.

The jury members, carefully selected from diverse backgrounds with extensive industry experience, ensure fairness and transparency in the evaluation process. They possess significant expertise and play a pivotal role in determining the most deserving winners.

While you enter your best work in the event & experiential domain with the intent to take the coveted metal home, it’s time you meet the jury members of the Hotel and Venue Group.

Under the Venues Group, which encompasses Hotel & Venue (Group D), the focus is on recognizing the finest MICE & Wedding Venues across Metro India, destination India, and destination Asia. This category celebrates excellence in Business Events, Intimate Weddings, Lifestyle/Luxury Events, Big Fat Weddings, and Convention Centers.

Let's meet the distinguished jury members of the Venue Group at the 15th Edition of WOW Awards Asia 2024: 

Amiya Swarup, Partner, Experiential and Marketing, Ernst & Young LLP

Amiya Swarup, is a Branding and Marketing Executive and Partner with Ernst and Young, India. A seasoned business strategist with 17+ years of experience advising, guiding, and helping organizations with marketing and digital solutions. Amiya leads media and brand partnerships and is an expert in key industry trends.

Carissa Nimah, Chief Marketing Officer, Bhutan Tourism

Carissa Nimah is the Chief Marketing Officer for the Department of Tourism – Bhutan, responsible for the ongoing development, promotion and positioning of tourism in the Himalayan Kingdom.

Prior to moving to Bhutan, Carissa was based in Asia for eight years and was the Guardian of the Brand (Chief Commercial Officer) for a global luxury hospitality brand with resorts in Thailand and the Maldives, where she oversaw their sales, marketing, revenue and reservations teams globally. Before that, she was in the UAE for a decade, working in luxury jewellery and PR and communications.

Originally a journalist before moving into marketing and sales, Carissa has spent almost 20 years working for some of the world’s top luxury brands, and is personally motivated by creativity, purpose and ethical business.  She holds a Masters degree in Strategic Marketing, as well as two undergraduate degrees in Politics and Journalism from Australian universities. She is now studying law part-time.

Carissa lives in Thimphu, Bhutan with her husband and daughter, and has previously lived and worked in Australia, Ireland, South Africa, the United Arab Emirates and Thailand. She has a German Shephard and English Cocker spaniel, as well as a lazy cat. She is a keen motorcycle rider and enjoys discovering the Himalayas on two wheels, as well as travel, hiking, reading and yoga.

Ekta Saigal Lulla, Founder and Partner, ESL Events & Weddings by ESL

Weddings by ESL, a product of passion, was incorporated in February 2011. Born out of the desire to create a truly client focused agency with a strong creative twist. Ekta Saigal Lulla, a Tourism graduate from Mumbai University kick started her career with hospitality industry. Her 1st stint being as Front Office Executive on the Chairman’s floor at The Leela Kempinski , Mumbai where after serving a period of two years she went on to open the Flagship property of Marriott in India – The JW Marriott Juhu, Mumbai. After 9 years with the chain and selling 6 properties in the country as the Associate Director Sales she was also instrumental in opening the Courtyard Chennai. 

After her successful decade with hospitality industry she decided to plunge into deeper waters and joined hands with a common mind to start an Events and Wedding Company. Since then the company has done numerous Weddings and social events. The smallest in size being 70 guests and largest being over 50,000 guests in a day. From two days Weddings to 12 night affairs, From Local to Global, from intimate to larger than life gatherings the company has envisioned and managed to convert them all successfully. 

She wanted to not just create Events but to create an experience that stays with the clients and their guests forever. Weddings by ESL brings a fresh, unique approach to the Event industry with their passion and dedication. 

The team of planners specialize in Bespoke Weddings, Larger than life experiences and corporate events that are entirely tailored to every client's imagination. We Pride ourselves on our Professional and dedicated approach to delivering events to the highest of standards.

Some prominent locations – South East Asia, UAE, Southeast Europe , the Royal States of India, Goa and other cities of India.

Lubaina Sheerazi, CEO & Co-Founder, BRANDit 

Lubaina is the CEO and Co-founder of BRANDit, a company that excels in destination marketing and creating avant-garde campaigns for tourism boards and hospitality brands. With a distinctive career spanning merchandising, learning the ins and outs of the fashion industry, and then deep-diving into travel and tourism, has given Lubaina a broad perspective. With the right business acumen and vision, Lubaina has a sound understanding of what makes people and brands tick. An innovative outlook and risk-taking ability have always given her strategies a creative edge, resulting in remarkable results across brands. She has many successful stories to share, from branding destinations like Oman and Azerbaijan to regenerating Seychelles in India and successfully weaving a positive narrative for Israel, the list of achievements is limitless. She believes that an organization's true foundation is not just its leader, but the team as a whole. As a trailblazer, Lubaina believes in empowering each individual by honing their skills and helping them recognize their full potential in creating value and delivering results, not towards clients alone, but themselves too.

Rajeev Kohli, Joint Managing Director, Creative Travel

Rajeev Kohli, a seasoned professional with over 28 years in the travel industry, is the Joint Managing Director of Creative Travel, a leading independent DMC with a 46-year legacy. Specializing in marketing and strategy, Rajeev has propelled Creative to over 88 global awards for exceptional service and creativity. Passionate about incentive travel, he led his team to win 8 SITE Crystal awards, the most in Asia.

Rajeev actively contributes to the tourism sector, serving as President of global DMC group EUROMIC, a member of CII National Committee of Tourism, and past Global President of SITE. He has held leadership roles in various industry associations, showcasing his commitment to industry development. Rajeev is also a respected speaker, authoring numerous articles and thought papers.

In 2021, Rajeev made history as the first Asian inducted into the Events Industry Council "Hall of Leaders." Recognized as a thought leader in the global incentive industry in 2017, he received the prestigious IMEX Academy Award in 2015.

Adding to his impressive profile, Rajeev joined the World Experience Organisation in June 2022 as a Founding Member. Holding a Master's in Business from the University of Southern California, Rajeev is certified as a CIS, CITP, and DMCP. He is a regular contributor to trade publications and a recognized expert source in the media.

Rakshanda Jalil, Chief Editor, Taj magazines

Rakhshanda Jalil is a multi-award-winning translator, writer, and literary historian. Dr. Jalil has published over 25 books and written over 50 academic papers and essays. She runs an organisation called Hindustani Awaaz, devoted to the popularisation of Hindi-Urdu literature and culture. She was awarded the Kaifi Azmi Award for her contribution to Urdu, the First Jawad Memorial Prize for Urdu-Hindi Translation and the Distinguished Translator Award by Vani Prakashan at the Jaipur Lit Festival. She writes regularly for major newspapers such as Hindustan Times, Indian Express, The Hindu as well as magazines such as Outlook, Scroll, The Wire, etc. She is the Editor of the Taj magazine, a bi-annual book-length journal of the Taj group of hotels.

Shashank Gupta, Co-Founder and Director, Brandwidth & TailorMade Experiences 

I am an Electrical Engineer and an MBA in Event Management and Public Relations. Started Brandwidth Events - a 15 years old Corporate Events and Activations Agency based in Delhi and Mumbai first. About 8 years ago, we started TailorMade Experiences which primarily is a Wedding and Social Events Agency based in Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata. In the last few years we have tried to curate and plan very interesting weddings along with these milestones -

1. Planned Richa Chadha and Ali Fazal's wedding in 3 cities
2. Planned Sonnalli Seygall's wedding in Mumbai
3. One of the biggest and most beautiful weddings in the valley of Kashmir was planned and executed by us last year
4. Recently got features in Brides Today / Bridal Asia and Vogue for some of our work

Suparna Bhalla, Principal Architect, Abaxial 

Suparna Bhalla, is the Principal Architect at Abaxial, New Delhi. This award winning, thought practice, goes beyond the boundaries of architecture and urbanism into the realm of design research and cultural innovation. She graduated from the School of Planning and Architecture, New Delhi and holds a master’s degree in architectural design from the University of California, Berkeley. She is co-founder of the Future Institute which is an urban research forum and has been both author and editor for several of its publications. 

She was a columnist for Business Standard and is an avid writer for several design journals both in India and abroad. She has also been on the visiting faculty of many design schools in the NCR. Her recent/current works include Ashoka University, Sonepat, HIAL in Ladakh, The World Trade center at Great Noida, Chandigarh and CBD Noida, ISKON Temple complex at Vrindavan, PVR Cinemas in the NCR and several other cities and renovation of the Durbar Hall, Jai Vilas, Gwalior. She is on the Board of the Dastkaari Haat Samiti and has designed their exhibitions at Paris UNESCO, Cairo, Singapore, New Delhi and Mumbai. She is also serves on the committee for commemorative projects for Ministry of Culture