At first glance, Aishwarya Bhende is like any other regular girl barely out of her teens. It’s impossible to believe that this gorgeous girl is 22 and the owner of the three-floor luxury dining yacht!
She looks younger than her age until you start conversing with her and are in total awe of the wisdom and business acumen that she has. This business savvy young lady has single-handedly designed, incepted and executed India’s first, one-of-its-kind floating restaurant called AB Celestial. Just in case you’re wondering what AB stands for, it is the short form for Aishwarya Bhende.
Even before I reach there for the interview, the staff have been instructed by Aishwarya and I am greeted with warm welcoming smiles and escorted into the lavish boat. The staff leads me to a private deck (which has the most beautiful view of the sea and the sea link), where I meet Aishwarya and we settle down for an interview.
Aishwarya says she’s very much a Mumbai girl. She did her schooling from Bombay International School and went on to Jai Hind College where she graduated in business studies.
When I ask her where the idea of the floating restaurant came from she says, “Since I was a year old I have been travelling a lot with my family and have seen many other boats, but the one in Sweden caught my eye. It was a dining boat with different levels, it was something that I always fancied. A lot of people also say that is because I am an Aquarian and a water sign so they feel that’s the reason I love being close to water.”
This is the first one-of-its-kind floating restaurant in India which was started in the Summer of 2017 only for 2 months. “We had to close the restaurant after the Summer because of the Monsoons. Marine activities are not permitted for almost 3 months during the Monsoons. During that time we dock at the Fairy Wharf with all the other boats,” informs Aishwarya.
Speaking about how the business has been picking up she says, ”The business is better than I expected and we have clients coming in from Delhi, Hyderabad, Pune, etc. the good thing about this is that we are on the coast and there is not much activity, and most of us hardcore Mumbai people, want to travel outside and relax by the sea in places like Goa, Maldives etc. but we don’t stay here. So this is a large attraction for tourism and it’s surprising that a lot of people from abroad too have been visiting us.”
You will be surprised to know that unlike other 22-year-olds, who would mostly be seen partying or travelling around, having a good time with friends, Aishwarya is very focused about her business, in the process she tells me that she has lost many friends but she has no regrets. “I wake up in the morning, I overlook all the activities that are going to happen every day and then I am here from the time it opens to closing. If there is a function in the afternoon I come here earlier.Currently, we aren’t open in the afternoon for lunches but we do plan to do that post Monsoon. Our idea is to attract a lot of office goers and people who want to host a brunch,” shares the determined young woman.
Her family has been a great support says Aishwarya, “My family does help me. They come time to time as most of the people don’t take me seriously since I am only 22 but honestly I have put in a lot of effort. It took me eight months to put the interiors together, which I did myself. A lot of interior designers did come to me but I was not very happy with their suggestions and I wanted to do it myself the way I had imagined or visualised. From interiors to staff, to the menu I have been actively involved myself in all of it,” says Aishwarya.
As easy as it may seem, the whole journey has not been an easy one for her, getting permissions has been quite a struggle, she tells me that it took almost three years to set the whole place up. “However, I am grateful that the government has been so supportive of this project,” Aishwarya said.
The boat which was built in Florida is around 3000 square feet of area in each level and can accommodate up to 500 people. There are 8 bedrooms in the Hul which is in the last level of the boat but that is only given out for people to rest and get ready during weddings or reception functions. “We’ve had our first wedding this year, we did a sea theme,” informs Aishwarya excitedly.
There is a café on the lowermost deck, level two is the banquet, and the third floor is a party hall complete with a DJ area while the upper deck is the highlight of the boat, one can get a phenomenal view of the sea and the sea link from there and even watch the sunset or have a moonlit dinner right under the sky! The boat also has a cabin for the captain and a private deck which is not open to public (I was lucky enough to enjoy the view and solitude there though!)“After another season we plan to expand once we see how this goes,” says Aishwarya.
When I asked her if she would like to give any message to other young entrepreneurs she said, “If you have a dream it’s always good to plan it out. It is great to have parents who support you, so appreciate that. There will be times when you feel like giving up; like there was a time when I cried and told my mom that I can’t do this but she told me not to give up. I am glad I didn’t. The thing is, it might take time, like 2 or even 3 years sometimes but hang on, don’t give up because it will come through.”
“When you are doing business I don’t think it’s going to be ever complete. You’re never going to be happy even when you achieve your goal but there is always something else that will come forward, what I mean is there’s always more to do,” She adds.
We’re sure there will be a lot more for this extremely smart and gracious young woman to look forward to. Team HFT Wishes her all the Best! And also wishes her A Happy Women’s Day!
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