Vardaraj Shetty (known as Raj Shetty) is the founder, chairman and Managing Worker of the Ramee Group of Companies. The Ramee Group began operations in the early 1990s and now comprises 52 hotels in

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

and the Persian Gulf region.

Early life

Shetty was born in the small town of

Koteshwara Koteshwara is a historic town located in the Kundapur taluk of Udupi district in the Indian state of Karnataka. It is renowned for its religious significance, cultural heritage, and vibrant festivals. This place is known as one of the Seven Muk ...

, near

Kundapur Kundapra, officially Kundapura, is a town in the Udupi district of Karnataka state in India. This town was known as Coondapoor when it was part of the erstwhile South Canara district (1862–1947) of the Madras Presidency of British India. Pr ...

, on Oct. 13, 1960. He lived with his family in

Mumbai Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...

for the early part of his life. His family had been in the business of

restaurants A restaurant is an establishment that prepares and serves food and drinks to customers. Meals are generally served and eaten on the premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services. Restaurants vary greatly in app ...

and food, and he wanted to enter the

hospitality Hospitality is the relationship of a host towards a guest, wherein the host receives the guest with some amount of goodwill and welcome. This includes the reception and entertainment of guests, visitors, or strangers. Louis de Jaucourt, Louis, ...

business. Once his father died in 1973, he worked towards his education. He started to work at a young age and moved to

Dubai Dubai (Help:IPA/English, /duːˈbaɪ/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''doo-BYE''; Modern Standard Arabic, Modern Standard Arabic: ; Emirati Arabic, Emirati Arabic: , Romanization of Arabic, romanized: Help:IPA/English, /diˈbej/) is the Lis ...

when he was 18.

Career

Shetty first invested in the Al Ras hotel in

Deira Deira ( ; Old Welsh/ or ; or ) was an area of Post-Roman Britain, and a later Anglian kingdom. Etymology The name of the kingdom is of Brythonic origin, and is derived from the Proto-Celtic , meaning 'oak' ( in modern Welsh), in which case ...

. In 1997 he launched the Ramee Group of Hotels, Resorts and Apartments. As of 2017 it operated 42 hotels, apartments and resorts in

Abu Dhabi Abu Dhabi is the capital city of the United Arab Emirates. The city is the seat of the Abu Dhabi Central Capital District, the capital city of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, and the UAE's List of cities in the United Arab Emirates, second-most popu ...

Bahrain Bahrain, officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, is an island country in West Asia. Situated on the Persian Gulf, it comprises a small archipelago of 50 natural islands and an additional 33 artificial islands, centered on Bahrain Island, which mak ...

and

Muscat Muscat (, ) is the capital and most populous city in Oman. It is the seat of the Governorate of Muscat. According to the National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI), the population of the Muscat Governorate in 2022 was 1.72 million. ...

. Regent Palace Hotel is the Group's flagship hotel. He launched Ramee Grand Hotel &

Spa A spa is a location where mineral-rich spring water (sometimes seawater) is used to give medicinal baths. Spa health treatments are known as balneotherapy. The belief in the curative powers of mineral waters and hot springs goes back to pre ...

, a 5 star property in

. Shetty owns R-Adda and

Bombay Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial centre, financial capital and the list of cities i ...

Adda, which are lounges in

Bangalore Bengaluru, also known as Bangalore (List of renamed places in India#Karnataka, its official name until 1 November 2014), is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the southern States and union territories of India, Indian state of Kar ...

. Mid-range offerings are underway with the Ramee Rose concept, with projects in

Chennai Chennai, also known as Madras (List of renamed places in India#Tamil Nadu, its official name until 1996), is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Tamil Nadu by population, largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost states and ...

and

. The Ramee Group is actively engaged in the real estate development,

hotel management A hotel manager, hotelier, or lodging manager is a person who manages the operation of a hotel, motel, resort, or other lodging-related establishment. Management of a hotel operation includes, but is not limited to: management of hotel staff, ...

contracting and travel agency operations. The group employs more than 5,000 employees from 15 countries across the globe.

Ramee Foundation

Shetty is the Founder Trustee of Ramee Foundation & Charitable Trust, which is engaged in charitable activities such as helping the deserved in the fields of

Education Education is the transmission of knowledge and skills and the development of character traits. Formal education occurs within a structured institutional framework, such as public schools, following a curriculum. Non-formal education als ...

and

Medical Medicine is the science and Praxis (process), practice of caring for patients, managing the Medical diagnosis, diagnosis, prognosis, Preventive medicine, prevention, therapy, treatment, Palliative care, palliation of their injury or disease, ...

Help. Through the Ramee foundation he has supported many students financially to complete their Education. One of the major contributions is building a First Grade College in Koteshwara, Kundapur, Udupi District. When he realised that no proper buildings were available for one of the government colleges there, he constructed a building and gave it to the government. The college changed its name to "Kalavara M. Varadaraja Shetty First Grade College". Some 2000 students study there.

Signature F&B outlets

Restaurants operated by the group include: * Rock Bottom Café RUKA Lounge (Japanese restaurant/lounge on the roof top of Ramee Grand Hotel) * Mirchi (Indian restaurant and takeaway) * Rocky's Café * Far East Seafood Market (Far Eastern style restaurant with seawater tanks) * Bollywood Café

Recognition

Shetty featured in the Forbes Middle East Magazine in the list of Top 100 Indian Leaders in the U.A.E, and Top Indian leaders in the Arab World 2014: Top Owners. He has received numerous awards, including South India Travel Awards, West India Travel Awards, NRI of the Year Awards and Hotelier Middle East Power 50 Awards.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shetty, Raj 1960 births Living people Indian chairpersons of corporations Hotel chains in India Hotel chains in the United Arab Emirates