Ankur Chawla is currently a passionate Entrepreneur, a much-awarded Sommelier / Beverage
expert along with being an author and speaker.
Chawla graduated from The Institute of Hotel Management in Shimla, and began his career as a
management trainee with Taj Mahal Hotel, Mumbai immediately after. He did is PG Program in
Leadership and Strategy from IMT Ghaziabad and currently pursuing hybrid MBA from Liverpool
Business School, UK.
With a keen interest in beverages from the very outset, Ankur studied Beverages academically
from WSET, London and has been certified at completing Level 2 and Level 3 of the program;
having been exposed to Master Sommeliers, some of the best International wine events like
Vinexpo etc. Post this learning, he was given the additional responsibility as the Sommelier
of the Taj Mahal Hotel New Delhi as well as managing the celebrated restaurant “Wasabi by
Morimoto” at the hotel.
With an almost a fated entrepreneurial path ahead of him, Ankur shaped the Beverages program
of JW Marriott New Delhi as their Director of Beverages and played a global role as member
of Marriott’s Asia Pacific Beverage Advisory Board in the year 2014 - 2017.
He is one of the Taj 26/11 attacks survivor and has Authored a best-selling book “14 Hours:
An Insider's Account Of The 26/11 Taj Attack” as well.
Currently, he is the Co-founder of Responsible Whatr, India’s first and only Natural Spring
water from Himalayas packaged in an endlessly and infinitely recyclable aluminum cans with
the intention of reducing the single use plastic problem. He is also the founder for a
well-established FnB Consulting company “ScopeBev” with many successful projects under the
belt & has also been consulting numerous International and Domestic Beverage Brands and
Restaurants across the spectrum on various aspects.
