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From mega bills to spontaneous dates: Swiggy Dineout Valentine’s report
From mega bills to last-minute plans, India celebrated love with flair
MUMBAI: Valentine’s Day 2026 was a feast for the senses and wallets alike, according to Swiggy Dineout. India’s on-demand dining platform revealed how the nation celebrated romance with big gestures, lively nights out, and plenty of spontaneous bookings.
Metropolitan hubs continued to rule the roost with Bengaluru, Delhi, and Hyderabad seeing the most reservations. Emerging cities aren’t far behind, with Ahmedabad, Jaipur, and Chandigarh joining the party. Growth was particularly striking in Surat (up 180 per cent), Vadodara (155 per cent) and Bhubaneswar (145.5 per cent) compared with the previous Saturday.
Mumbai stole the headlines with a single customer splashing out Rs 130,155 – the highest bill in the country. The city also hosted the largest single group booking, with 30 diners coming together to celebrate in style. Most Valentine’s transactions took place between 10pm and 11pm, proving love, and hunger, strike late.
Mumbai stole the spotlight with a mega-spender whose bill made everyone else blush, while savvy diners were cashing in on discounts, including a Pune customer saving 60% and another in Bengaluru saving 50 per cent. Fine dining was on fire, with bookings up 121 per cent year-on-year, though pubs, bars, and lounges remained the crowd favourites, accounting for 30.6 per cent of all reservations. Last-minute romance was the order of the day, with 66 per cent of diners booking within two hours of heading out. Together, India saved over Rs 6 crore, proving that love can be grand, yet thrifty.
Bengaluru, Mumbai, and Delhi led the premium dining rush, showing a growing appetite for curated, high-end experiences. Meanwhile, spontaneous bookings reinforced modern lifestyles, where convenience and instant gratification rule the day.
Whether it was big spends, huge groups, or a last-minute romantic dash, Valentine’s Day 2026 proved love and dining go hand in hand – and sometimes, they go all out.
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Accor names Amit Malik VP people and culture for South Asia
Hospitality major taps HR veteran to drive talent and culture agenda
MUMBAI: Accor has appointed Amit Malik as vice president for people and culture in South Asia, strengthening its leadership bench as it scales operations across the region.
Malik will be part of the South Asia leadership team, overseeing the people, talent and culture agenda across India and neighbouring markets. His mandate includes building organisational capabilities, strengthening leadership pipelines and enhancing employee experience across Accor’s growing portfolio.
With more than two decades of experience, Malik brings a blend of human resources expertise and business leadership. His career spans multiple sectors and geographies, equipping him to support Accor’s evolving workforce needs in a dynamic hospitality market.
“We are pleased to welcome Amit to Accor,” said Accor chief executive officer, South Asia Ranju Alex. “His understanding of people strategy and strong business orientation will be instrumental in building a high-performance, purpose-led culture.”
Before joining Accor, Malik served as president for Japan, Asia Pacific and Australia at WadzPay. He also spent several years at Aviva Life Insurance India, where he held senior roles including chief people officer and later chief executive and managing director.
His earlier stints include leadership roles at Bank of America, Royal Bank of Scotland, American Express and GSK Consumer Healthcare, giving him a wide lens on organisational transformation and governance.
Accor’s latest leadership move reflects its focus on building a future-ready workforce as competition intensifies in the hospitality sector. With Malik at the helm of its people strategy, the company is betting on culture as a key driver of growth.
