The sports bar as a concept is not new to India. The match-day crowd, the shared screen, the collective eruption when a wicket falls or a goal goes in: all of that has existed in some form for decades. What has been missing is the space that holds all of it together with the kind of consistency, craft, and genuine hospitality that turns a venue into a destination. Miten Shah, Co-Founder and CEO of The Studs Sports Bar and Grill, saw that gap and decided to fill it. The result is one of India’s most recognised sports-led hospitality brands, built at the intersection of investment discipline, global F&B expertise, and a belief that the best sports bars are, first and foremost, great places to be. We sat down with him to understand how it was built and where it is going.

The Studs is building something that did not really exist in India before. Take us back to the very beginning. Where did the idea come from?

The idea came from observing a clear gap in the Indian market. There were places to eat, places to drink, and places that screened matches, but very few spaces that genuinely brought all of those elements together in a way that felt consistent, welcoming, and repeat-worthy. We believed a sports bar in India could be much more than a venue people visited only for a big game. It could be a place woven into everyday urban life: for casual dining, after-work unwinding, weekend energy, and shared moments around sport. That belief became the foundation of The Studs.

You bring a background in investment banking and financial strategy. Your co-founder Abhilash brings 18 years of F&B and global hospitality experience. How do those two worlds actually work together?

It works because both sides are equally important in scaling a hospitality brand. My background helps us stay disciplined on growth, capital allocation, unit economics, and long-term brand building. Abhilash brings deep operational understanding: product quality, guest experience, kitchen systems, service culture, and global benchmarks. One side ensures the business is scalable and financially sound. The other ensures it is truly worth scaling. The combination helps us make decisions that are both commercially smart and experientially strong.

Abhilash has worked across international cruise liners, TGI Fridays, Olive Bar and Kitchen, and more, across over 60 countries. What does that kind of global exposure do to your standards when you are building something for India?

Global exposure raises your standards permanently. It makes you less willing to accept mediocrity in food consistency, service, bar craft, design language, or guest experience. It teaches you that details matter: the speed of service, the energy in the room, the way a drink is presented, the way teams are trained, and the emotional recall a guest leaves with. For us, that experience ensures The Studs is not just locally relevant but benchmarked against the best hospitality experiences globally while still being deeply rooted in Indian consumer behaviour.

The Studs was featured on Star Sports’ London Relay during the ICC World Cup 2019 and 2020 broadcasts. What did that moment of national recognition feel like?

It was a proud validation moment. When a platform like Star Sports recognises your brand during one of the biggest sporting spectacles in the world, it reinforces that what you are building has cultural relevance, not just commercial potential. It gave us greater visibility, credibility, and confidence. More importantly, it confirmed that sports-viewing destinations in India could become meaningful brand properties in their own right, not just anonymous venues.

India loves sport, but the sports bar culture here is still finding its shape. What are you seeing shift in how younger audiences want to experience live sport socially?

Younger audiences want more than passive viewing. They want atmosphere, community, identity, and occasion. They want to feel the pulse of a game in a space that is social, expressive, and memorable. They care about good music, strong food and beverage offerings, design, content-worthiness, and the vibe of the crowd around them. They are also more open to celebrating multiple sports, not just cricket. The shift is from where can I watch the match to where do I want to experience this match with people and energy I relate to.

You have spoken about building spaces people visit not just for big matches but for casual dining, after-work hangs, and everyday moments. How do you design an atmosphere that holds all of that at once?

That balance comes from intentional design and programming. The space cannot feel one-dimensional. It has to work for different moods across the day and week. That means the food has to stand on its own, the drinks programme has to be credible, the service has to be warm and efficient, and the environment must be energetic without being exhausting. Screens matter, but so does acoustics, lighting, layout, menu engineering, and staff culture. The goal is to create a place that feels just as right on a quiet weekday evening as it does during a major final.

Great food, well-crafted drinks, sharp service, and the emotion of sport. That is a lot to get right simultaneously. What has been the hardest part of delivering on all four consistently?

Consistency at scale is always the hardest part. It is relatively easy to create one exciting evening or one successful outlet. The real challenge is building systems, training, culture, and leadership strong enough to deliver the same quality repeatedly. In our category, guest expectations are dynamic because the emotional intensity of sport changes the environment instantly. You have to stay operationally tight while still feeling spontaneous and exciting. That balance is one of the hardest and most important parts of what we do.

If The Studs were a match, any sport, any era, which one would it be and why?

It would be a high-stakes final that combines pressure, drama, momentum shifts, and unforgettable atmosphere. The kind of match where the energy in the room becomes part of the story. That is what The Studs aims to feel like at its best: competitive yet welcoming, emotionally charged yet polished, and memorable long after the final whistle.

What is the one thing about India’s sports-led hospitality space that you wish more people were paying attention to right now?

That this space is not only about sports screening. It is about community-building. The bigger opportunity is not just monetising match days. It is creating habit-forming social destinations around shared passion, identity, and experience. The brands that will win are the ones that understand hospitality first and sport second, not the other way around.

What is coming next for The Studs and why should India be watching closely?

We are focused on building The Studs into one of India’s most recognised sports-led hospitality brands by deepening our presence across key markets, refining our guest experience, and continuing to raise the benchmark for what a modern sports bar can be. India should watch closely because this category is only just beginning to evolve, and we believe The Studs is helping define what its future will look like: more elevated, more lifestyle-led, and far more culturally relevant than ever before.

Follow The Studs Sports Bar and Grill on Instagram at @thestudsindia for match-day energy, signature food and drinks, and updates on new locations and experiences. For collaborations, media, franchise, and brand inquiries, connect via Instagram DM or at thestudsoffice@gmail.com.

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