The launch comes after ‘The Zora’ completed its first year of operations, during which it hosted more than 125 events
Driven by growing demand for weddings, corporate gatherings and private celebrations, Delhi’s event industry is seeing new venue formats. The Zora Delhi Convention Centre has pre-launched ‘The Zora Estate’, a venue developed with Abhinav Bhagat that will host a limited number of events each year.
Located within the Open Canvas venue at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium on Lodhi Road, the project combines venue infrastructure with a design-led event format for weddings, corporate events, social gatherings and large-format celebrations.
The launch comes after ‘The Zora’ completed its first year of operations, during which it hosted more than 125 events. With The Zora Estate, the company is adding a venue that will operate on a smaller scale, with a limited number of bookings each year.
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Speaking at the launch, Bhagat said the project was conceived to create a venue that combines Indian design references with influences drawn from other architectural styles.
He said the intention was not to replicate the appearance of a single region or country but to create a venue that could accommodate different event formats while retaining a consistent identity.
The Zora Estate’ will begin at approximately INR 25 million, excluding catering, entertainment, décor and other event services
Bhagat explained that weddings today often involve guests across multiple generations, requiring venues that appeal to different preferences within the same family.
According to him, the design therefore combines carved surfaces, Indian craft traditions and contemporary event planning to create a venue that can be used for weddings, receptions, sangeets (music programmes organised during weddings), corporate functions and private celebrations.
The company has also introduced flexibility within the permanent design.
Although the overall venue structure will remain unchanged, several elements including furniture, selected wall treatments, hanging installations, linen and decorative features can be replaced or customised depending on individual events.
This allows organisers to personalise functions without rebuilding the venue from scratch. Bhagat said this approach responds to changing client expectations.
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Many clients continue to want personalised weddings, but they are also increasingly looking for venues that already provide a complete setting rather than beginning with an empty site that requires weeks of construction.
According to him, a permanent venue also reduces the amount of temporary material required for repeated installations.
The Zora believes the venue addresses another trend emerging in Delhi’s wedding market.
The venue has been designed to support weddings as well as corporate events and exhibitions
Destination weddings remain popular, particularly in locations such as Udaipur, Jodhpur, Goa and Kerala. However, many Delhi-based families continue to organise one or more functions in the capital before or after destination ceremonies.
Receptions, cocktail evenings and larger gatherings involving office colleagues, business associates and extended family often remain in Delhi because of the larger guest lists involved.
Bhagat said many of his clients now divide celebrations across multiple cities, holding destination weddings for a smaller group while organising larger receptions in Delhi.
He believes central Delhi continues to remain an important location for such events because of its accessibility from different parts of the National Capital Region.
According to him the location of ‘The Zora’ inside Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium also plays into this strategy.
The venue is already part of an established event destination that includes multiple event spaces catering to different audience sizes. The Zora Estate becomes another offering within this ecosystem rather than functioning as an independent property.
The venue has been designed to support weddings as well as corporate events, exhibitions, curated brand experiences and social gatherings. Another aspect highlighted during the launch was sustainability.
The venue is already part of an established event destination that includes multiple event spaces catering to different audience sizes
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Instead of creating and dismantling complete venue structures for every booking, organisers said a permanent venue allows many structural elements to remain in place for repeated use.
Bhagat said this reduces the need to manufacture and transport temporary décor for every event.
He also said the company intends to work with Indian artisans for wood carving, embroidery and decorative elements instead of depending extensively on imported materials.
According to him, floral installations will also be designed to reduce dependence on floral foam wherever possible. The project is expected to be completed before the upcoming wedding season.
Organisers said construction is scheduled to conclude by the end of October so that bookings can begin from November onwards.
The pricing reflects the venue’s positioning within the premium events segment. During the interaction, company representatives indicated that rentals for ‘The Zora Estate’ will begin at approximately INR 25 million, excluding catering, entertainment, décor and other event services. Existing venue spaces continue to operate under separate pricing structures.
The company said that clients will have the flexibility to choose their own caterers, entertainment providers and event partners depending on individual requirements.
Rather than offering a fixed event package, the company intends to provide venue infrastructure while allowing organisers to build the remaining elements around it.
The launch also reflects broader changes taking place in India’s events industry.
Venue operators are increasingly moving beyond simply renting space and are attempting to differentiate themselves through planning, visitor experience, design and operational flexibility.
For Delhi, where demand for weddings, corporate events and private celebrations remains strong, the introduction of venues operating on limited annual bookings represents a different approach to event management.
Whether this model gains wider acceptance will depend on how clients respond to the idea of a permanent venue with selective customisation instead of designing an event entirely from the ground up. For now, ‘The Zora Estate’ is entering the market with a limited annual calendar and a design-led concept aimed at a segment willing to prioritise venue experience over volume.
Vivek Tyagi
“The first feeling we want guests to have when they enter is that they should feel the luxury in the air. The venue has been designed to feel breathtaking from the very first moment, with a beautiful entrance and courtyard. The aesthetic works for corporate events, weddings, sangeets, and every kind of celebration. We wanted to create something Indian, but with a global approach. The Zora and I go a long way. I have seen this venue built from the ground up, and we have created beautiful events at Open Canvas even in its early stages. It’s a prestigious venue in central Delhi, and I am glad to be pre-launching this new experience with them,” says Bhagat.
“The Zora has always been built as a canvas for imagination. With ‘The Zora Estate’ designed by Abhinav Bhagat, we are creating a new venue experience that brings together premium infrastructure, central Delhi accessibility, and one of India’s most recognised design visions. After a strong year across Ballroom, Myst, and Open Canvas, this collaboration marks an important next step in how we see event spaces evolving in Delhi and the NCR,” says Vivek Tyagi, General Manager, Operations.
