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Chatwal wins South Asia Media’s Entrepreneur of the Year award
MUMBAI: New York Based hotelier, model, actor Vikram Chatwal, is awarded Entrepreneur of the Year at the first South Asia Media Awards held at New York’s Miller Centre. The awards looked to honor leaders in the South Asian Society within a variety of categories.
Entrepreneur Vikram Chatwal has taken Hautel Couture to the next level with Dream, an entirely new hotel experience at 210 West 55th Street since its opening in Fall 2004. Dream combines the vision of Chatwal and an Ayurvedic healing center from renowned physician and author Dr. Deepak Chopra. With Dream, Chatwal has created a concept that is truly unlike any other in the world, stated an official release.
Chatwal heads the Boutique Hotel division of Hampshire Hotels and Resorts, with properties in New York, Canada and the United Kingdom. In 1999, he premiered The TIME, a full service boutique hotel located in the heart of Times Square in Manhattan. He also opened the CHATEAU in Montreal, which received a City Tourism award for Best Boutique Conversion in 2000. He then added BUSH HALL, a sprawling 300-year old country estate located outside London that once belonged to Beatrix Potter and Henry the VIII.
The DesiClub.com South Asian Media Awards have been developed to recognize those individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the South Asian community through their talent and hard work.
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UDF poised to return to power in Kerala, says Manorama-CVoter survey
Massive opinion poll projects shift in Kerala politics ahead of 2026 Assembly elections.
MUMBAI: The winds of change appear to be blowing through Kerala’s political landscape and this time, they seem to favour the United Democratic Front. A comprehensive mega opinion survey conducted by Manorama News in partnership with CVoter projects a potential comeback for the UDF in the upcoming Kerala Legislative Assembly Elections 2026. The survey, covering all 140 constituencies with a massive sample size of nearly 90,000 respondents, predicts the UDF could win between 69 and 81 seats.
The ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) is expected to secure 57 to 69 seats, a significant drop from the 99 seats it won in the 2021 elections. This would mean the LDF losing 30 to 42 of its sitting seats. Meanwhile, the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), which drew a blank in 2021, is projected to open its account with 1 to 5 seats.
Region-wise, the UDF is expected to make strong gains in Malabar, winning 25 to 34 out of 48 seats, and in Central Kerala, where it could bag 29 to 33 out of 53 seats. In South Kerala, the LDF is likely to retain an edge with 21 to 25 seats, while the UDF may improve to 12 to 16 seats. The NDA could pick up 1 to 3 seats in the southern region.
The survey was conducted between 14 and 26 March 2026, with additional tracker and snap polls carried out from December 2025 to March 2026. A total of 89,693 respondents participated, ensuring representation across all demographics and social segments.
Manorama News has a strong track record of accuracy, with its previous projections closely matching the actual results of the 2019 and 2024 Lok Sabha elections as well as the 2021 Kerala Assembly polls.
In Kerala’s famously fierce political battles, this survey suggests the pendulum may be swinging back. Whether the final verdict matches these numbers or throws up another surprise, one thing is clear, the 2026 Assembly elections are shaping up to be one of the most keenly watched contests in the state’s history.
