‘Every mistake is a lesson learnt’: Amit Ahuja, Founder, AA Hospitality

(The Proust Questionnaire is a questionnaire about one's personality. It has its origins in a parlour game popularized by Marcel Proust, the French essayist and novelist, who believed that, in answering these questions, an individual reveals his or her true nature.)

Amit Ahuja, worked with the Embassy group for twelve years before launching AA Hospitality in 2015. Now 35, he is a restaurateur striving to create unique dining concepts across Bangalore and the rest of the country. He currently owns and operates The Open Box, MISU and Housefull. Here are his answers to our Proust Questionnaire…

What is your idea of perfect happiness?

Sundays with my daughter.

What is your greatest fear?

Failure

What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?

I trust too soon!

What is the trait you most deplore in others?

Negativity, Jealousy and laziness.

Which living person do you most admire?

My dad for his simplicity and Richard Branson for his super fun approach to business and being so successful.

What is your greatest extravagance?

Travel, gadgets and sneakers.

What is your current state of mind?

Panic and excitement – MISU, Indiranagar opens in a week!

What do you consider the most overrated virtue?

Hard work – I prefer ‘Smart Work’.

On what occasion do you lie?

Never! Oh damn, I just lied again.

What do you most dislike about your appearance?

My nose.

What is the quality you most like in a man?

To be able to keep his word. That’s why they call it ‘A man’s word’.

What is the quality you most like in a woman?

Mental strength and selflessness.

Which words or phrases do you most overuse?

‘Wow’ and ‘yummy’.

What or who is the greatest love of your life?

My family.

Which talent would you most like to have?

To be a jack of all trades and master of all.

If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

My OCD to strive for perfection in everything we do, which often comes across as crazy to people around me, especially those working with me.

What do you consider your greatest achievement?

That’s still work in progress.

If you were to die and come back as a person or a thing, what would it be?

A pilot of an international commercial airlines – I love to travel.

Where would you most like to live?

Los Angeles, New York, London, Dubai, Mumbai or Queenstown.

What is your most treasured possession?

My talented team.

What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery?

Giving up too soon – not giving 200%.

What is your favourite occupation?

What I am doing at the moment.

What is your most marked characteristic?

My OCD

What do you most value in your friends?

Loyalty and support.

What is your favourite name?

Guddu - when my mom calls me that, Amu - when my daughter calls me that.

What is it that you most dislike?

Dishonesty.

What is your greatest regret?

I have none. Every mistake is a lesson learnt.

What is your favourite journey?

The trip my wife Pratiksha and I made to New Zealand in 2016.

What is your motto?

To create a dream team in the hospitality business with the best and most unique set of concepts and to be the best son, brother, husband and father.

‍