Soumya Maheshwari
26-Jun-2026
As Atmantan Wellness Center further strengthens its roots in India, we get exclusive insights from the Founder-Director, Nikhil Kapur, himself.
1. Atmantan marks a decade this year—what have been the most defining shifts in your philosophy and guest expectations over these 10 years?
The purpose of the organisation hasn’t changed at all and I say that with a lot of pride. What has changed is the level of motivation we operate with, and the depth of skill and understanding our team now brings to the table.
We integrate sciences and modalities far more thoughtfully today than we did ten years ago, and the result is much better outcomes for our guests. If I had to name the single biggest shift, it’s that we’ve become more outcome-focused. And I think that shift was forged in the early years — the challenges we faced when we were setting up this business taught us to keep the guest’s transformation at the centre of everything. As for guests, they’ve evolved beautifully. They come to us today far more informed, far more invested in their own healing, and that raises the bar for us in the best possible way.
2. Your partnership with Indian Hotels Company Limited and Taj Hotels is a significant move—what strategic value does this collaboration bring to Atmantan’s future?
Being associated with one of the most trusted conglomerates globally, and being recognised by them in the form of this joint venture, says a lot. They saw us as the right partners. They liked how we ran the business; they connected with the intent behind our service, and that’s really the foundation of this strategic joint venture.
IHCL brings a deep history in hospitality and a genuine global footprint. What’s been remarkable is the sensitivity and the real interest the entire team has shown in wellness as a category, not just hospitality. That shared vision is what made this partnership possible. Having them on board opens up endless possibilities for us to build a complete wellness ecosystem, something that goes well beyond hospitality. We’re actively working on this, and in due course, we’ll unveil the larger vision we’re building together.
3. You’ve announced a new project in Hyderabad—how will this venture differ from Atmantan, and what happens to the original property as you expand?
It’s a 100-room luxury wellness centre, and it’s the next big step for us. As part of our mid-term outlook, we’re looking at four more wellness centres across India beyond Hyderabad and the possible locations include North India, Kerala, and another one in Mumbai. So Hyderabad will be our second property, and it will be closely modelled on the current Atmantan Mulshi experience.
4. Wellness is increasingly blending luxury, medicine, and mindfulness—how do you decide how far to evolve without losing the essence of Atmantan?
Atmantan sits very comfortably at the intersection of all three, but the luxury we offer needs unpacking. It’s the luxury of being in nature. The luxury of being surrounded by like-minded people who are genuinely invested in their own healing. The luxury of a programme designed entirely around you. And the luxury of being held by a non-judgemental team who walks with you through your healing journey.
What goes beyond that is the medical depth: we have over 20 doctors on the team, and we’re continuously building more scientific rigour into our programmes. Mindfulness and self-discovery aren’t add-ons either; they’re essential ingredients in any real wellness journey. And what we’ve seen in our repeat guests is that the more wellness retreats they take, the higher their level of thinking and the higher their quality of living becomes. That’s really our north star…we evolve, but we never lose sight of that outcome.
5. Looking ahead, do you see Atmantan remaining a singular, iconic destination or evolving into a larger wellness ecosystem or brand platform?
Around 2015, as we were getting close to launching Atmantan Mulshi, Sharmilee and I noticed something fundamental, and that was - the market for wellness travellers was significantly larger than what we had planned for. We had conceptualised this back in the late 90s, and the world had changed. Not only was the market bigger, the pool of skilled talent in this space had grown too. That’s when we decided that after Mulshi, we’d open more wellness centres, both in India and overseas.
Atmantan has very clearly evolved. I would say it’s become India’s first large-format wellness hospitality chain. And we have the passion, the understanding, the interest, and the wherewithal to build an ecosystem that goes beyond hospitality into other forms of wellness products and services and ultimately into building wellness communities in India and abroad. So to answer you, Mulshi will always be iconic and singular in its own right, but Atmantan as a brand is absolutely a platform now.
