Lakshyaraj Singh- The Majestic Prince of Mewar

Lakshyaraj Singh Mewar – The Prince of Royal House of Mewar is the younger son of HRH Arvind Singh Mewar, 76 ^th custodian of Mewar Dynasty which is often acknowledged as the world’s oldest serving dynasty. While HRH Arvind Singh Mewar’s thriving leadership has set several milestones for HRH Group of Hotels, his younger and only son Lakshyaraj Singh Mewar is following the footsteps of his father. 26 year old Lakshyaraj has taken over several key responsibilities in the affluent family business of HRH Group of Hotels. Developing several HRH properties and projects like managing Jagmandir Palace Hotel and expansion of HRH’s security standards are few of the core tasks he’s accomplishing successfully. Lakshyaraj Singh Mewar was born on 28 January 1985 as the youngest child of Arvind Singh Mewar and Vjayraj Kumari Mewar. His elder sisters are Bhargavi Kumari Mewar and Padmaja Kumari Mewar. He studied Bachelors of Commerce in Hospitality Management from Blue Mountains Hotel Schools in Australia. Lakshyaraj Singh Mewar has done his early education from Maharana Mewar Public School- Udaipur, GD Somani School- Mumbai and Mayo College– Ajmer. After staying away from home for more than 14 years, Lakshyaraj Singh returned back to Udaipur in 2007. For me, it was a treasured occasion with Prince of Mewar in a lavish office located in the City Palace compound. Scented villa with a spiritually inspiring song of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan was sounding calm. The compassionate Prince formally called as “Maharaj Kumar” is a multi dimensional personality. He is a General Manager of one of the most beautiful palace hotel; he is a diehard cricket fan, eager of perfectionism, artist by heart & custodian of royal house of Mewar. Bearing all these virtues in heart & responsibilities on his shoulders, the sociable mewar prince also has a hidden passion for Urdu language. Here are the excerpts from an interview with Lakshyaraj Singh Mewar of Udaipur.

…………………………….

  You remained away from home since school days; don’t you think you’ve missed those pampering of parents, comfort of home and fun time with friends? The prospectus of life is divided in three different phases – Maazi, Haal and Mustaqbil i.e. Past, Present and Future. I have an auspicious present and I firmly believe that more we think about past more our command of making future decisions becomes weak. I live every part of my life to its fullest. My childhood was not unusual, indeed it was remarkable. There are memories which I still cherish but certainly don’t regret. Would you like to share one most memorable moment of your childhood? There are many but one which I really feel proud to share is once when I played cricket in one European country representing Mayo College, I broke 40 years record of a notable player there. It was one most unforgettable moment for me. Are you more practical and less emotional? I believe I am more of a practical type, now you have to decide. Being emotional is not something bad but there should be a proper balance between the two. How was your experience in Australia while studying Hotel Management? I stayed in Australia’s two different cities Sydney and Leura. Our campus was like a world in itself. There were students from 35 different nations, besides our regular curriculum we got to learn each other’s traditions, culture and how to take things differently from each others perspective & that’s what benefited me the most. Being from a hospitality industry, what’s better than learning world’s different customs practically? Was it tough for you to live in Australia as you have grown up under strapping traditional environment in India? Yes, at first it was a big cultural shock for me. What is taboo for us might be acceptable for them, the way we greet to the way we eat; everything differs so it was not easy for me to cope up. But gradually, I made it. I became more confident, when in our first lecture I was the only Indian and our British lecturer when noticed me, he said that “You all are here to learn hospitality but there is one Indian gentleman sitting with us who has hospitality inherent in his blood”. That’s how we Indians are known globally. Being from one of the royal families of India, how people in Australia treated you? I didn’t disclose my family status to anyone for first 2 years. It was when one Indian group had organized photography exhibition in Sydney and invited my father as a chief guest, for some reason my father could not attend the event and on his place I attended it as a chief guest. Next day, my photograph was published on front page of Sydney Morning Herald which made me known. How was your life after education? Did you opt for jobs somewhere? I’d worked in different hotels and restaurants for next 2-3 years before coming back to India, it was all from housekeeping to table attendant to managerial level. I did whatever was required to gain best experience in hospitality industry.

Photo of Lakshyaraj Singh published in SydneyMorningHerald dated June 7, 2005

  How you felt after coming back home in 2006? It would be like a complete new place for you? I never felt anything new at all because I am closely attached with my birth place. It’s a relation of heart which doesn’t get affected by matter of distance. After you came back to India, what was going on in your mind regarding HRH Group, there must be some innovative ideas in your mind? I knew that big responsibilities are coming on my shoulders so I was much prepared. Although, I kept myself like a piece of dry sponge, ready to absorb whatever comes amid. Our organization has a 400 years old history and every single brick of it is placed conscientiously which I cannot overlook. So, first I tried to understand every in and out of it before thinking about any further action. What about your plans of tying the knot ? Few years back somebody asked me, am I hooked or happy? I said happy; the person questioned, till when? I replied: that destiny has to decide. Cricket is your passion, it never came to your mind of making it a career? I am crazy about cricket, it was my dream to play leagues and one day to represent India but I have other higher responsibilities which twisted my dream in other way and I founded Udaipur based cricket association to generate opportunities for real talents, it also kept me attached to my passion. At present, I am a Permanent Special Invited Member of Rajasthan Cricket Association.

Photo courtesy: Eternal Mewar

Didn’t you ever thought of getting into politics? There are several other ways to serve. Who’s your idol? My brother in-law Mr. Lokendra Singh who captained Indian Polo Team in world is my sole idol . He is a man of great character. Although my father always remained my source of inspiration, I learned too much from my mother and I am very much attached to both of my sisters. What’s your favorite cloth brand? None, I generally prefer tailored clothes. What’s your favorite food? Homemade but if go out I prefer Chinese. Would you like to name your favorite hotel other than HRH’s? Hotel Taj Lake Palace. Which is your favorite restaurant? Trishna at Mumbai. Your favorite pass time activity?