Vijay Mallya’s Pune Countryside Home Reimagined As Hotel Irada, A 32-Key, 66-Acre Design Hotel

Here’s a sneak peek into Hotel Irada — a 66-acre boutique winery retreat on Vijay Mallya’s former Pune countryside estate, where design, art, and local craft reimagine a storied piece of India’s hospitality history.

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Seventy-five minutes out of Pune, the road begins to shift. The air smells different, the light softens, and the city’s edges give way to rolling vineyards and deep green forest. Here, on land once known for its glittering parties and high-profile guests, a new chapter is unfolding. Hotel Irada breathes new life into Vijay Mallya’s storied 2000s estate — once the stage for extravagant soirees, now a modern Indian 32-key retreat wrapped in 66 acres of working winery and cradled by 4,000 acres of reserve forest.

Hotel Irada is the brainchild of 30-year-old founder Yash Malhotra, whose experiences span Cornell University in upstate New York to the creative-real estate crossroads of downtown Manhattan. The result is a retreat that embodies the spirit of a new India — local at heart, global in perspective. This is not a place you simply check into — it’s one you dive into. The hum of activity is everywhere: the Irada Racquet Club hosts spirited matches of padel, pickleball, and tennis; clay pigeons shatter mid-air on the shooting range; and the estate’s Australian manager, Craig Wedge, leads wine tours that wind through sunlit vineyards before descending into the dusky barrel room. Between it all, there are grassland safaris, horseback rides, axe-throwing in forest clearings, and creative workshops from cyanotype printing to DIY wine label making.


A Living Canvas of Indian and Global Creativity

Left: A glimpse down the softly lit corridors of the design hotel, where clean lines and considered details set a tone of quiet sophistication. Right: The hotel design features a minimalist space wrapped in warm wood tones, creating a cosy, speakeasy-like atmosphere perfect for lingering over intimate conversations and well-crafted drinks. (Image Credits: Hotel Irada)
Left: A glimpse down the softly lit corridors of the design hotel, where clean lines and considered details set a tone of quiet sophistication. Right: The hotel design features a minimalist space wrapped in warm wood tones, creating a cosy, speakeasy-like atmosphere perfect for lingering over intimate conversations and well-crafted drinks. (Image Credits: Hotel Irada)

Irada’s transformation feels less like a renovation and more like a conversation between past and present. Its story unfolds through the hands of some of India’s most compelling creatives: wellness by Nyasa Wellbeing, who blend ancient practices with a fresh, contemporary sensibility; interiors by Humming Tree, whose midcentury lines and warm textures play beautifully against the estate’s bones; and an art programme that weaves together the local and the global — from Kala Kerala to Le Puces, Paris, alongside collaborations with Jaipur Rugs and even a lobby photo-gravure by Anish Kapoor.

 

Walk the grounds and it’s like wandering through a living gallery. A tapestry catches the afternoon light, a sculpture peeks out from a patch of wild grass, and the wind carries the scent of fermenting grapes from the winery. Every detail feels deliberate, but never forced.



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Design-Forward Hospitality

A light-filled guest room styled in warm midcentury modern tones by Humming Tree of Calicut. Clean-lined furniture in rich wood, soft woven rugs, and tactile fabrics create an inviting, layered atmosphere. Artworks — from the eclectic finds of Le Puces in Paris to the intricate craftsmanship of Kala in Kerala — punctuate the walls, adding colour, texture, and a sense of place. (Image Credits: Hotel Irada)
A light-filled guest room styled in warm midcentury modern tones by Humming Tree of Calicut. Clean-lined furniture in rich wood, soft woven rugs, and tactile fabrics create an inviting, layered atmosphere. Artworks — from the eclectic finds of Le Puces in Paris to the intricate craftsmanship of Kala in Kerala — punctuate the walls, adding colour, texture, and a sense of place. (Image Credits: Hotel Irada)

Each of Irada’s 32 guest rooms — all light-filled, elegantly appointed, and intuitively planned — is a testament to the value of bespoke design. Regardless of category, every room features a private balcony, a curated in-room bar, and carefully considered details that cater to the sensibilities of today’s conscious traveller. The hotel’s interiors balance tactile richness with clean lines, combining stone, wood, and local materials with a cosmopolitan polish.

 

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Life Between The Outdoor Pursuits

At the heart of Irada is its winery — a 4,500 sq. ft. barrel room where oak barrels line arched ceilings and the air hums with the scent of fermenting grapes. Here, Craig Wedge leads immersive tastings that set the tone for days brimming with possibility. Mornings might start with a doubles match at the Irada Racquet Club, followed by a safari through the grasslands; afternoons could see guests perfecting their aim on the clay pigeon range or learning the art of honey tasting with Moonshine Meadery.

Left: Simple ease unfolds with a glass of the estate’s finest wine in hand, surrounded by warm, understated interiors that invite unhurried moments. Right: The wine cellar — an arched chamber lined with ageing oak barrels — offers a dusky, intimate atmosphere where the scent of fermenting grapes captures the soul of the property’s winemaking. (Image Credits: Hotel Irada)
Left: Simple ease unfolds with a glass of the estate’s finest wine in hand, surrounded by warm, understated interiors that invite unhurried moments. Right: The wine cellar — an arched chamber lined with ageing oak barrels — offers a dusky, intimate atmosphere where the scent of fermenting grapes captures the soul of the property’s winemaking. (Image Credits: Hotel Irada)

Evenings return you to the glow of the estate — the warm wood and low lights of the bar, the gentle clink of glasses, and conversations that stretch late into the night.


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Irada doesn’t just offer a stay — it creates a world. This is a hotel with the energy of a countryside members’ estate, where design is the backdrop to a life well-lived. Think the spirited camaraderie of a Soho Farmhouse, translated into the wild beauty of Maharashtra’s wine country. Here, 66 acres of vines, forest, and considered architecture invite you not to retreat from life, but to fill your days with it — whether on the courts, in the cellar, or around a table that stretches late into the night.