‘He made restaurants brands’: Jagannath Shetty, founder of Pune’s iconic eateries, dies at 89

Jagannath B Shetty, the force behind Pune’s iconic Vaishali, Roopali and Amrapali restaurants, died of age-related illness at Prayag Hospital in Deccan on Sunday morning. He is survived by his daughter, son-in-law and a granddaughter.

“Today, we have lost a doyen of our hospitality industry. Jagannath Shetty had changed the way people perceived restaurants and the hospitality business. At one time, restaurants were looked down upon and diners would order the service staff around. Jagannath Shetty was among those who insisted on respect, going as far as to say, ‘If you speak badly to us, you won’t be served’. He made restaurants brands. Vaishali, for instance, is well-known not only in Maharashtra but also worldwide,” said Ganesh Shetty, President of the Pune Restaurants & Hoteliers Association.

Jagannath’s cousin Shashindra said the 89-year-old was a hands-on entrepreneur interested in every aspect of operating the restaurants. Until last year, despite his failing health, Jagannath would visit Vaishali regularly and stay updated on its operations. “He would be in a wheelchair but would speak to managers and then go home,” says Shashindra.

Shetty was born on October 8, 1932, in Onimajalu Mane, Bailur, in Udupi district of Karnataka. At the age of 13, he left his village to work in Kalyan with his uncle for Rs 3 a month. He arrived in Pune in 1949, when he was 17, to work at the hotel business of his uncle, Late Shridhar Shetty. After Shridhar died, he married his daughter Shakuntala. They have a daughter, Nikita. With his hard work and commitment — he reportedly put in 19 hours of work every day for 20 years— Shetty became one of the most important figures in the country’s hospitality industry.

Roopali and Vaishali restaurants were originally called Madras Cafe and Madras Health Home, respectively.

A much-awarded entrepreneur, Shetty also took on social evils such as dowry, instituting the JB Shetty gold medals for couples who married without dowry. Last year, he donated Rs 1 crore to the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund to help fight the coronavirus pandemic. He was also a keen golfer and captained the Poona Golf Club in 1997-98.

In April 2017, Shetty was embroiled in a controversy when his uncle Shridhar Shetty’s other daughter, Shashikala, lodged an FIR at the Deccan police station alleging that he had taken over her father’s business with the help of forged documents.