Luthra Brothers
The story of Luthra Brothers is similar to how the dream that started from the streets of Delhi spread across the country and then suddenly got engulfed in controversies. Saurabh and Gaurav Luthra started their restaurant journey about ten years ago with Mama’s Buoi, a casual-friendly spot on Hudson Lane. He quickly gained recognition among college students, but the real change came when Romeo Lane stepped in.
Luthra Brothers’ Romeo Lane becomes popular
The initial success from Delhi encouraged the brothers to do new experiments. Then came Goa’s Vagator Outlet, sea views, open air, explosive Bollywood nights, fire shows and powerful party vibe made Romeo Lane a favorite spot of tourists overnight. Romeo Lane became an Indian flavor in the rapidly growing Goa nightlife circuit, which stood out due to its large size and grandeur. There was talk in the industry that wherever the brand goes, the crowd will automatically follow.
Luthra Brothers came into limelight
According to a TOI report, Saurabh Luthra, who describes himself as a ‘gold medalist engineer’, has fast become a renowned restaurant entrepreneur. Mall developers started getting ready to bring Romeo Lane, because this brand used to brighten the nightlife of any city. From Indore, Nagpur, Agra, Dehradun to Dubai, a flurry of outlets sprang up. The group’s momentum increased further through franchise fees, royalties and stringent contracts.
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In some places Romeo Lane could not open, so there they also launched alternative names like Birch by Romeo Lane. More than 25 outlets became operational across India and more than 20 were said to be in the pipeline.
Cracks started emerging amid rapid success
But with every rapid growth also comes challenges. Many franchisees did not get sales as per expectations. Some alleged that despite paying huge fees, they were not given proper operational support. Complaints about not getting meetings with brand heads and not getting answers from consultants started increasing for months. Industry insiders said that the brothers had built a brilliant, aspirational brand, but their focus on day-to-day monitoring and quality control began to wane.
Goa nightclub incident shook everything
Then came the accident which shook the foundation of the entire brand. One of their outlets in Arpora, which was being touted as ‘India’s first island bar’, was violating several rules according to the local panchayat. The biggest question raised was that when the outlet was running from March 2024, why were the shortcomings in the rules not noticed earlier? After the accident, the only thing echoing in the industry was that Luthra Brothers should come forward and take responsibility, help the victims’ families and clarify how the outlet was running without security clearance.
Threat to the future of the brand
Some franchise partners now want to drop the Romeo Lane name and run their outlets independently. The questions raised on the brand after the Goa incident have dulled its shine. It can be said that the once star brand of the party scene is now going through the toughest test of its existence.