“There was one chant on everyone’s lips: ‘Dhoni, Dhoni, Dhoni!’” said Keenan McKenzie, the general manager of ITC Narmada, Ahmedabad. Keenan was F&B manager at ITC Sonar Kolkata from 2014-2016, and then hotel manager with ITC Maratha, Mumbai, before taking the reins as GM, ITC Narmada, when the hotel launched in August 2022. He spoke to My Kolkata about the celebratory mood and arrangements at the hotel as Team Chennai Super Kings brought home the winning IPL trophy on Monday night. An exclusive chat:
My Kolkata : Can you tell us about the grand welcome and the celebratory mood at the hotel after the final?
Keenan McKenzie: We played the Whistle podu CSK anthem and 100-150 members of our staff were given whistles. Because it’s an atrium lobby, the sounds echoed through the hotel as the team walked in with the trophy. They walked through a sea of gold confetti to the beat of the dhol wallahs! Our in-house bakery chef made a tiered cake that represented the four tournaments and when Mahendra Singh Dhoni entered, we put the fifth tier on top and invited him to cut it. Dhoni is usually poker-faced, but he broke into a smile when he saw the enthusiasm of the chefs! He cut a slice of the cake and everyone joined in. The atmosphere was festive and there was one chant on everyone’s lips: ‘Dhoni, Dhoni, Dhoni!’ He was the star.
And it was all yellow… How much does this line resonate with you now?
(Laughs) Team Chennai Super Kings checked into ITC Narmada, Ahmedabad, on May 26. The hotel had a yellow rangoli and all the hotel managers, including myself, wore yellow ties to show our support. The crowd of supporters outside the hotel on all days mostly turned out in yellow, too!
What was the crowd like and how did the hotel manage the numbers?
The crowds were maddening. There were more than 1,000 people outside the gate up to the main road. The team bus has to come down a long road, there’s a 1km stretch and somehow the fans knew when the bus was coming or going so they would turn out in huge numbers, waving at anyone in a yellow T-shirt inside the bus. The team’s family members arrived in a separate bus, which came earlier than the players. The hotel partners with the team security and local law enforcement to ensure smooth operations. We ramped up our security and hired bouncers, too. Our main concern was the security and privacy of the players and crowd management. Managing the crowd and the hullabaloo was challenging, but we ensured that everyone from the team to the fans were comfortable. Extra precautions were taken and the crowd were filtered at the entry point itself. Only those with room and restaurant reservations were allowed to enter the hotel.
Keenan McKenzie, general manager of ITC Narmada, Ahmedabad
What did the players enjoy eating?
On game days, they were very focussed. CSK is a team that has a relaxed vibe. They loved the food at Peshawri and the dish most ordered was Murgh Tandoori. Indian players enjoyed phulkas, dal, paneer (for vegetarians) and chicken, while the international players enjoyed the sandwiches, pizzas and grilled chicken.
The cake prepared by Team ITC Narmada
You’ve seen the fandom in both cities, Kolkata and Ahmedabad. Which city is more cricket-crazy?
(Laughs) That’s tough to answer! I think Kolkata is divided between cricket and football, while Ahmedabad is all about cricket. I would say the crowd turnout in Gujarat was more. When I was in ITC Sonar (2014-2016), the home team was Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), and they have their own share of fans. I remember even when RCB was staying at ITC Sonar, Virat Kohli, Anushka Sharma and Vijay Mallya pulled in the crowds.
Shivam Dube and (right) Devon Conway have a bite
What does a sports league like the IPL mean for the hospitality industry?
ITC Narmada, Ahmedabad, has 291 keys in the hotel and around 200-220 rooms were allocated to the teams, owners, staff and BCCI contingent. The summers in Ahmedabad are not great for hotels, so just this IPL got us phenomenal occupancy. And not just us, all the hotels in the city were operating at a 40-50 per cent increase. Sports drives the organised and unorganised industry, from the caterers to the hotels and even aviation. The air tickets between Ahmedabad to Bangalore tickets were thrice the usual rates.
We are now looking forward to the next big thing, which is the World Cup later this year, in which the Narendra Modi Stadium will again play host.
