GOURMET TRAVELLER 161parklands, The Penthouse looks and feels like a private club, as
befits the former capital of the British Raj. Everything, from the
ceramic-handled cutlery to the elephant motif crockery, is chosen
for its style, character and aesthetics.
Baillieu-Latif contracted master craftsmen to create the inlaid
marble furnishings, Venetian mirrorwork and plaster of Paris.
Elephants and camels parade past pavilions and lakes, and
eggs circle the head of a dancing lady in the lavish wallpaper,
custom made in Paris, that lines the restaurant of pink chandeliers,
cherub sconces and coffered sky-blue ceiling. Beyond it lies the
tea terrace with stunning views to the Victoria Memorial and
Kolkata’s two monumental bridges. The views are even more
exhilarating from the green-and-white tiled infinity roof pool.
Owners Husna-Tara and Anshuman Prakash earned
their hotel stripes at Glenburn Tea Estate, an exclusive inn
on 647 hectares of Darjeeling tea country. This latest offering
is Kolkata’s most exclusive address. Kanak Towers, 7a Russel
St, Kolkata, glenburnpenthouse.com
The Oberoi Udaivilas, Udaipur
Sometimes, gazing upon exquisite creations such as Agra’s Taj
Mahal or the Shalimar Gardens in Lahore, it’s tempting to believe
it’s no longer possible to realise architectural dreams. And then
you enter the forecourt of The Oberoi Udaivilas, a modern-day
Mewari palace on Udaipur’s picturesque Lake Pichola, and realise
such breathtaking ambition still exists in India.
Guests arrive by boat and alight at a jetty shaded by a
250-year-old banyan tree. A golf buggy transports them to the
forecourt, a pleasure garden of petal-shaped stepping stones in
a cobalt pool fringed by chequerboard marble, chattri pavilions
and an ancient neem tree. “By the time you enter the hotel
you are already wowed,” says general manager Amit Kaul.
Inside, the palace is a dreamscape of whimsical domes, breezy
colonnades, block-painted frescoes and expanses of stone. Every
column is carved, every arch scalloped, every interior wall frescoed
or mirrored, every chandelier dripping in Belgian crystal.
The 87 sybaritic rooms and suites are set in 12 hectares
of landscaped grounds, perfumed by jacaranda, frangipani
and jasmine, and inhabited by peacocks. Some rooms have
a pool on their doorstep; all have butler buttons, cut-work
bedspreads and bone-inlaid joinery.
Dining options range, from the Rajasthani-meets-Indian-
meets-conti treats of Chandni’s al fresco lake terrace to the
Royal Indian menus served at the signature Udaimahal
restaurant, beneath gold-leaf and midnight-blue ceilings.
“Everything in the hotel is done by Mewari artists,” says
Kaul. “People of Udaipur take a lot of pride in talking about
Udaivilas because it embraces the architecture and the feel
of this region of Mewar. It’s put the city on the world map.”
Perhaps more than any other Indian property, The Oberoi
Udaivilas has convinced global travellers that subcontinental
hotels can be a class apart. Badi-Gorela-Mulla Talai Rd, Haridas Ji
Ki Magri, Pichola, Udaipur, oberoihotels.com
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