Shardul Bayas Singh is an entrepreneur with varied interests. From having a strong footing in the Fin-Tech and Advertising segment, he is growing his portfolio as a restaurateur this year.

After launching and successfully running his first restaurant, Nawab Asia, in 2003 in Pune, October 2021, he begins his fine dine journey in Mumbai with Wakai. The high-end restaurant offers authentic Japanese cuisine in a premium speakeasy ambiance.

“An entrepreneur may work in many fields but he always has his passion hooked on one particular trade. Hospitality is that for me,” he says.

A sharp business sense and an ardent appreciator of Japanese cuisine, he identified a void in options for good Japanese restaurants in Mumbai. “Audiences have learnt to appreciate its nuanced flavours and ingredients over the years. Wakai, which means young and fresh, has been created to offer a superlative setting for diners to come out and celebrate,” says Shardul.

Shardul believes a restaurant is a balanced combination of quality flavours, aesthetic design and impeccable service. The art, he says, lies is in creating a concept that comes together to form an elevated, high-end experience for the guest. “Today, going to a restaurant is not just about eating a meal. Wakai will impress diners with an experience they will want to savour more than once,” says Shardul.

The brand logo, a rising sun, is created in circular brush strokes known as ensō. It also stands for circle of togetherness, drawn in a single stroke in meditative practices. A sliced tuna has been represented in the central circle. It has gold in its veins to represent Kintsugi, the Japanese art of enhancing broken pieces of pottery. “Wakai philosophy is to rise above and push the envelope for the cuisine in India,” says Shardul.

The entrepreneur already has two more restaurants planned for the city. In the next two years, he will venture into two other cities. “The hospitality industry has seen its tough days in the pandemic but it has also paved way for a new way of dining out. We want to be spear headers who fill the void of experiential and quality-driven dining in India with our unique offerings.”