Experts Call For Unlocking New Frontiers – MICE, Weddings, Golf, Films -- To Boost J&K Tourism

By Deepak Arora

SRINAGAR, July 1: As part of the Jammu and Kashmir Tourism Revival Dialogue, a meaningful panel discussion was held on "J&K Tourism: Unlocking New Frontiers – MICE, Weddings, Golf, Films & Beyond." The discussion that was held at at the Sher-e-Kashmir International Convention Centre (SKICC), Srinagar, focused on rebuilding trust and rejuvenating tourism in this breathtaking region.

The objecive was to explore the emerging opportunities and strategic potential of Jammu & Kashmir as a multi-dimensional tourism destination.

The panellists included D P Singh, Chairman SARA Group; Ashwani Khurana, Founder and CEO Karma Lakelands; Naveen Kundu, Managing Director, Ebix Travel Services; Shahnawaz Ahmed Shah, Manager Operations SKICC; Anil Sharma, film producer and director; Asif Iqbal Burza, MD Ahad Hotels; Chetan Vohra, wedding planner; and Waseem Raja, JKAS officer and Joint Director, Tourism Kashmir.

The session highlighted how J&K was evolving beyond traditional leisure tourism to become a hub for high-impact sectors such as MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences & Exhibitions), Wedding Tourism, Film Tourism, and Golf Tourism.

The panelists called for positioning J&K as a Premium MICE Destination and sought infrastructure readiness for conferences and exhibitions Role of hotels, convention centers, and allied services.

Ashwani Khurana, CEO (Chief Eternal Optimist) of Karma Lakelands, said "Kashmir doesn’t need sympathy. It needs our belief. And that belief is being restored — one step, one story, one visitor at a time."

He said “We must not let fear hijack the future of tourism in Kashmir. Confidence grows when we show up, stay, and speak up.”

Ashwani Khurana emphasised “Responsible tourism means being present when it matters most. That’s why I’m here.”

Rajan Sehgal, who is also President, Indian Golf Tourism Association (IGTA), moderated the inaugural and panel sessions. Rajan Sehgal said the main objective of the conference was to bring back confidence among the travellers.

He said the experts from most of the travel segments like Mice, Wedding, Films, Golf attended the conference and they interacted in the presence of the Chief Minister along with senior officials from the Travel and Tourism industry and stakeholders.

Chetan Vohra said Jammu and Kashmir can be a great wedding tourism destination. It's venues range from heritage to experiential celebrations which showcases J&K’s scenic and spiritual locations as wedding hotspots.

He exphasised on logistics, permissions, and vendor ecosystem development and role of influencers and planners in promoting J&K weddings.

On film tourism, Anil Sharma emphasised on turning landscapes into locations to make J&K as a preferred destination for Indian and global cinema.

He emphasised on fast-track film clearances and single-window facilitation and incentives for production houses and OTT content creators.