At 22, she took charge of The Park Hotels. Decades later, she is still shaping its future

Priya Paul stepped into a leadership role at The Park Hotels at the young age of 22, following the tragic death of her father, Surrendra Paul, in 1990. Her father, a key figure in the century-old Apeejay Surrendra Group, was killed in an attack in Assam. In the aftermath, Paul's mother took the chairmanship of the larger group, her sister took over the shipping division, and Priya, already familiar with the hotels, was entrusted with the entire hotel portfolio.

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He was great fun. He was always very involved with us, despite all his busyness. He didn’t have ups and downs – he was quite balanced in the way he saw the world, through both good and bad times.

Paul candidly admits that her early years were a steep learning curve. "At 22, I was not only learning how to work and build a business, but also learning an entirely new industry, as I had no background in hospitality," she said. She relied heavily on experienced staff and pursued executive programs at Harvard Business School and INSEAD to gain expertise while managing the hotels.

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We were always encouraged to pursue our own paths, whether that meant joining the family business or forging a different career.

Despite the challenges of leading a major business at such a young age, Paul found that resistance often stemmed from her youth rather than her gender. "Being a woman was rarely the biggest challenge," she stated. "I faced more resistance because of my age. Many people questioned whether someone so young could make major decisions." She continues to be guided by her father's motto: work hard, play hard, and don't take yourself too seriously unless the situation demands it.

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I simply had to step up and deal with the crisis, both personally and from a business point of view. There was a vacuum that had to be filled.