Mohan singh oberoi biography of donald

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Mohan Singh Oberoi was honoured with the Padma Bhushan in 2001 for his contribution to the Indian hospitality industry.

Mohan Singh Oberoi, a man with humble beginnings and an indomitable spirit, transformed the face of the Indian hospitality business. The force behind the Oberoi Group of hotels, he started off working as a front desk clerk at The Cecil Hotel in Shimla, India. Born into a Sikh family in pre-partition India’s Jhelum district (now in Pakistan), Oberoi faced early adversity. After his father’s untimely death, he joined his uncle’s shoe factory in Lahore. Riots, however, forced its closure. He then joined The Cecil Hotel in Shimla as a front desk clerk with the hope of a fresh start. Little did he know this role would shape his future, as he displayed dedication and contributed to hotel upgrades.

Mohan Singh Oberoi’s unwavering pursuit of his passion led to the purchase of his first property, The Clarkes Hotel, in 1934. To fund this venture, he mortgaged his wife’s jewellery and every asset he possessed, displaying his unwavering belief in his vision. His perseverance and hard work soon brought results, allowing him to pay off the mortgage in a remarkable five years. Oberoi then bought the Grand Hotel in Calcutta despite its poor condition owing to a cholera epidemic in the region. This project also turned out to be a huge success, solidifying Mohan Singh Oberoi’s position as a visionary hotelier.

Mohan Singh Oberoi’s passion for the hospitality industry drove him to acquire hotel after hotel, both domestically and internationally. The Oberoi Group now owns and runs 31 luxurious hotels and resorts, all of which uphold the greatest standards of luxury and service.

Mohan Singh Oberoi was honoured with the Padma Bhushan in 2001 for his contribution to the Indian hospitality industry.

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Successful hoteliers often travel diverse and unconventional paths to get to the top of their field. None may have traveled further than Rai Bahadur Mohan Singh Oberoi, who was born in a small village in what is now Pakistan. An unemployed college graduate down to his last 25 rupees, he found a job as a clerk at the Cecil Hotel in Shimla, in the foothills of the Himalayas.

That was in 1922. He went from clerk to manager to partner, and then made his big move in the city then called Calcutta: He bought the Grand Hotel, a few years earlier after a cholera epidemic, and turned it into a hotel that became headquarters for British troops during World War II.

Over the next 40 years, he would build a hotel company with 26 properties in 10 countries, influencing the growth of chain hotels and the development of tourism in India. At 82, in 1983, Hotels & Restaurants International named him “Man of the World” “because of the expertise and professionalism with which his name is associated worldwide.”

Mr. Oberoi died in 2002. And while the name of the magazine and the name of the award has changed, there are still Oberoi hotels in India and beyond, including the Oberoi Cecil, where he got his start.  

Nowadays, we call it “Hotelier of the World” – and you can vote for the 2016 nominees for the top corporate and independent hoteliers here. 

HOTELS is celebrating its 50 anniversary this year with a new #ThrowbackThursday every week. Have your own memory? Share it with us.

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 1972: M S Oberoi (left) meets president Sadat of Egypt (right) at the Mena House hotel in Cairo, Egypt. For both men the hotel was an object of prestige. Nasser needed a huge convention centre with a world class hotel attached to it. For Oberoi, Mena House was like the old Grand in Calcutta: a gem. He would make Mena House a landmark in restoration. A substantial sum would have to be spent to restore the hotel. Oberoi could not pitch in with any capital, but guaranteed a six per cent return on investment to the owning company Upper-Egypt Hotel Company and EGOTH – The Egyptian General Company for Tourism and Hotels.
 
Early Years of Mohan Singh Oberoi

1900: Mohan Singh was born on 15 August 1900. He grew up in Bhaun, a small city of some 8,000 inhabitants in Punjab, now in Pakistan. At 14 MS went to the Dayanand Anglo Vedic (DAV) School in Rawalpindi, chosen by his mother for its balanced mix of tradition and modernity. In Rawalpindi he saw two firsts: the first Englishman and the first hotel, Flashmans.

1901: Death of MS’s father, a 20 year old Sikh by the name of Sardar Attar Singh.

1916: After passing his matriculation exam, MS went to law school in Lahore, where he moved in with the family of Sardar Singh, his father's brother. His uncle was the proprietor of a flourishing shoe-factory, which gave MS exposure to the world of production and business.

1918: Half way to his bachelor’s degree, MS decided to abandon his studies in order to work in his uncle’s factory. Although initially not supportive of the move, MS’s uncle offered him a managerial position. However, times in India were uncertain and MS’s early career fell victim to wave the unrest and protest that was spread across the subcontinent.

1919: The shoe factory shut down after people were shot in Amritsar, causing widespread chaos.

First steps in the hotel trade

1920: At the age of 20 MS returned home and