With 50 sq ft, India’s first pod hotel opens in Mumbai

Hotel room in India has just shrunk.Entrepreneur duo of Shalabh Mittal and Hiren Gandhi have launched a hotel in Andheri in Mumbai with pods between 50 square feet and 90 sq ft.

Urbanpod, the 140-unit hotel, started operations on Wednesday and is the only such offering in the country. It offers classic (single occupancy), private and suite pods.Such hotels are common in Japan, Russia, US, UK, the Netherlands, Singapore and Malaysia.

Mittal, chief executive officer of Mercator Ltd, and Gandhi, head of Vadodara-based Express Group of Hotels hold 45% stake each in Urabanpod, with the balance 10% held by Berlin Lee, promoter of Formwerkz, a Singapore-based architectural and interior design firm that has also designed the pods. The promoters have invested to the tune of Rs 12-odd crore in the business so far.

 

Read more: DNA