From building Asia’s largest organised spa chain to shaping India’s next big hospitality wave, Ritesh Mastipuram is investing in wellness as the future of luxury. The Hyderabad-based entrepreneur, known for founding O2 Spa (now Ode Spa), has shifted his attention to wellness-focused hospitality real estate with the Ridhira Group. His latest project includes branded wellness villas integrated with a world-class resort, aiming to redefine luxury living. Targeting the sub-100-room resort market, Mastipuram’s approach combines sustainability, personalised care, and local authenticity with global execution. For him, luxury isn’t about marble and chandeliers; it’s about how guests feel when they leave: healthier, happier, and more connected. Asmita Mukherjee spoke with him to learn more about his real estate projects and investment plans for the future.
What is Ridhira Group’s overall vision and investment strategy for hospitality-led real estate development?
We’re not just building resorts; we’re planning lifestyle ecosystems. The future of hospitality real estate will be with brands that can create destination-driven, mixed-use developments that combine resorts, wellness residences, and lifestyle facilities into a cohesive vision.
Across the group, we have nearly INR1,000 crore set aside for deployment over the next five years. Every rupee will go into high-yield leisure markets that can support premium room rates year-round and provide strong appreciation for the residential part.
Here’s our three-pronged development model:
1. Flagship Resorts — 10–100 rooms, located in busy leisure markets, designed around the Eight Dimensions of Wellness.
2. Branded Wellness Residences — sold or leased to high-net-worth individuals and global investors, with full access to resort services.
3. Community Infrastructure: Organic farms, learning centres, and cultural venues to keep each destination self-sustaining and active year-round.
Can you share some concrete examples of upcoming Ridhira Group projects that bring your hospitality and wellness vision to life?
This vision is already taking shape in our Hyderabad pipeline, where we have four impactful projects within an hour’s drive of the city:
Future City Project: A 150-key, internationally branded resort paired with 40 branded residences and 25 acres of wellness-focused public space.
Twin Lakefront: Developments in the Vikarabad area. Two boutique properties, each with fewer than 60 rooms, featuring exclusive private villa clusters and an average room rate target of INR 18,000+.
Western Corridor Project: Currently in advanced negotiations, this will be Hyderabad’s first fully integrated wellness township.
Together, these projects represent over INR 600 crore in capital deployment in a single micro-market and will all be operational within the next 24–36 months. They reflect our approach of blending hospitality, wellness, and residential living into self-sustaining lifestyle ecosystems.
How do you see these assets performing?
We expect our resort portfolio to generate EBITDA margins above 35%, supported by our discipline of keeping properties under 100 rooms and our fully integrated approach. By controlling the design, construction, supply chain, and operational technology, we can maximise efficiency, lower costs, and enhance profitability across our hospitality assets.
On the residential side, branded wellness homes in India are appreciating at a 12–18% CAGR in prime leisure markets. With our positioning, we are confident of capturing INR 25–30 crore per acre in sales value in certain micro-markets.
Are you following an asset-light approach?
We call it asset-right, not asset-light. We will own and operate in strategic flagship locations to set benchmarks. In other markets, we will co-develop or manage for third parties. The key advantage is speed. In India’s hospitality growth window (2025–2030), those who can deliver products quickly, at scale, and with brand integrity will take a larger share of the market.
Every large real estate and hospitality project comes with challenges. What have yours been?
In India, challenges are everywhere, but they also present opportunities. I often say that the tougher the problem, the safer you are as a business. Why? Because no one else wants to tackle it.
For us, the real challenge and opportunity is creating community. Most players just conduct transactions: you stay, you pay, you leave. We’re building something deeper: a lifestyle transformation ecosystem that connects you from home to resort and back. Think spa, medical-grade diagnostics, DNA and gut microbiome analysis, curated supplements, verified wellness experts, all integrated via our app, so you only deal with one provider. It’s like Apple’s app store, third-party, but verified by us.
And how does AI fit into this vision? Threat or opportunity?
In the short term, AI will disrupt jobs. In the long term, it’s a great gift to humanity. Darwin taught us that survival depends on adaptability, not intelligence. AI allows even the most remote artisan or healer to connect globally without tech skills. A villager with an Ayurvedic cure can reach a patient in Africa in minutes. We are talking about removing information gaps, the biggest barrier in healthcare and wellness today.
You’ve mentioned sustainability in your projects. What’s your approach?
Our flagship, Ridhira Retreat, is built on the Gandipet riverbank with a simple rule: to source as locally as possible and execute as globally as possible.
More than 70% of our materials for each project come from within a 70 km radius. This reduces carbon emissions and supports local economies. We intentionally design with low-rise architecture (maximum G+1), which allows us to use new construction technologies like 3D printing and precast modular structures.
We also plan to partner with MIT researchers to test sustainable building innovations in real-world settings, positioning ourselves as leaders in both hospitality and construction. In India, even roof tiles change every 70–100 km due to the climate. That philosophy of hyper-local sourcing is now our design DNA – sustainable, vastu-compliant, but with top-quality finishes.
What is your vision for the group?
To create a new real estate category where luxury hospitality meets personalised healthcare and to develop communities based not on demographics, but on shared interests and vibe. In short, we aim to be the real estate developer that builds not just spaces, but life transformation ecosystems.
asmita.mukherjee@saffronsynergies.in
