Review: The Leela Palace Bengaluru

A modern reference to India’s “second Taj Mahal”—Amba Vilas Palace, the royal residence in Mysuru, the city to the west of Bengaluru in Karnataka—The Leela Palace is an exuberant, contemporary mishmash of architectural styles and interiors. Its Art Deco design has colonial touches, and South Indian temple art meets Rajasthani artisanal craft. No holds are barred with 20-foot sandstone pillars, 24-karat gold-leaf accents, crystal chandeliers, floral frescoes, hand-tufted carpets, and elaborate flower arrangements. The core clientele remains tech entrepreneurs drawn to India’s answer to Silicon Valley, but despite that, the atmosphere remains fun. This is a slice of Bengaluru writ large, from the shorts-wearing founders holding Zoom meetings at breakfast to the lively local families eating at Jamavar, the hit Indian restaurant, and friends brunching for hours on Sundays at Citrus, The Leela’s all-day diner (as I used to do, fueled by sangria). There is also a gentleness to life here, with guests soothed along by an unobtrusive butler service, the possibility of strolls around the lush, verdant grounds, and live music accompanying rare single malts in The Library Bar. Pleasingly, not much has changed since the hotel’s opening in 2001, but some shifts are welcome, including the recent meticulous touching-up of the famous gold on the ceilings. The Leela generates almost all the electricity it needs from its own wind farms, and a bottling plant is in the works too—proof that its future is green as well as gold.