Tag Archives: Sheetal Munshaw

Sheetal Munshaw, Director India, Atout France, highlighted, “There is a renewed focus of Paris Region on India, and the fact that they will have a presence in Mumbai goes to show their commitment to the Indian market. Paris is the gateway for Indian visitors into France and the focus now is to discover different facets of Paris, showcase different areas of the city, including Notre-Dame which will re-open this year. The message is that Paris is so much more than what is already known to travellers.” There are so many unexplored products on the table that need to be promoted and experienced by the travellers.

This March, a delegation of 15 key members of the travel trade fraternity pan India and 2 B2B media will represent India at Marhaba 2022 – a B2B showcase organised by Atout France at the Dubai Expo. The two-day event taking place at the Expo 2020’s Pavillon France and the Raffles Hotel Dubai, is the first of a joint collaboration between the Atout France offices of Dubai, Israel, India and Russia. By bringing together travel professionals from these markets, the event aims to encourage business across the source markets. The attendees will have the opportunity to interact with regional French tourism boards, iconic French tourist attractions, high-end shopping options, hotels, palaces, DMCs, transportation companies and amusement parks. Sheetal Munshaw, Director Atout France India, shares her thoughts, “Marhaba 2022 is indeed special for us as it is the first time after 2 years that members of the Indian trade will network and interact with the French partners in person. In the last 2 years, we have been interacting only virtually with our partners and this event will be a semblance of what we knew in pre-pandemic times. It is also special as it’s a first regional collaboration with our own counterparts. Like most organisations, the pandemic divided us geographically but united us virtually and broke many barriers. This is one such foray into bringing our network closer and proving versatile platforms and opportunities for our key stake holders to engage and enrich their business opportunities. As borders open up and travel resumes, Marhaba is the perfect occasion to revive exchanges between our key stake-holders”. Beside 2 500 scheduled business meetings on the Marhaba platform, Atout France will host two special evenings …

As part of its global strategy, Reunion Island Tourist Board has entered into an alliance with Atout France offices in China, India and South Africa for an effective promotion of Reunion Island. Nestled in the Indian Ocean, Reunion Island is an overseas French island that holds high appeal for adventure enthusiasts, family vacations as well as couples seeking a romantic escapade. Atout France has been given the mandate to lend its expertise towards a holistic promotion of the destination. Commenting on this significant development for the Indian market, Sheetal Munshaw, Director, Atout France India said, “We are very enthused to showcase another facet of France through Reunion Island’s aesthetic beauty and its versatile experiences that will find appeal to diverse Indian travellers. Its diaspora of Indians and strong Indian and French influence as well as its proximity and visa on arrival facility (for stays less than 15 days) are sure to resonate well with our market.” Sharing her thoughts, Lydie Sangarin, Market Manager, Reunion Island Tourist Board said, “We are happy to partner with Atout France in these three overseas markets. We believe that Atout France’s professional prowess and years of experience in these overseas markets will be instrumental in the successful positioning of Reunion Island to our potential overseas visitors.” Located in the Mascarene Archipelago, Reunion Island – a French overseas department – offers travellers the exoticism of a tropical island in the Indian Ocean.  

In the spirit of International Women’s Day, La Vallée Village, the luxury shopping outlet in Paris, France showcased its unique shopping offering to the Indian travel fraternity at Asilo, St. Regis Mumbai. Gracing the soirée with their presence were the Consul General of France in Mumbai, Yves Perrin and his wife Caroline Perrin, Patrick Allais, Business Development Manager, La Vallee Village, and Sheetal Munshaw, Director, Atout France, French Tourism Development Board in India. The soirée began with an interactive and candid testimonial by Caroline Perrin, a veritable supporter of La Vallée Village who has been patronizing the brand since its inception in 2000. The evening was well-attended by key stakeholders of the travel industry who raised a toast to France and its art de vivre. With French luxury brands and international brands on display, La Vallée Village is also well-located en route to the castles of Vaux le Vicomte and Fontainebleau, the famed cellars of Champagne and Disneyland. An ideal haven for shopping, the outlet offers a minimum discount of 33% in each store and up to -70% throughout the year. Add to this the brag value of having bought your merchandise truly ‘Made in France’. La Vallée Village is part of the Chic Outlet Shopping Villages by Value Retail, which has its presence across 9 European destinations a with its flagship store in Marne-la-Vallée, Paris. According to Patrick Allais, ” La Vallée Village is an invitation to “shop differently”, in the company of major brands, and in a conducive ambience like nothing else in France. First of all, the surprise of the environment. The reason behind the “Village” name soon becomes clear: the calming landscaping, the treelined pedestrian streets; …

Honorable Mayor of Paris and Yash Raj Films launched the Ranveer Singh and Vaani Kapoor starrer ‘Befikre’ at the iconic Eiffel Tower in Paris on October 10 evening. Set entirely in France, ‘Befikre’ embodies the French freedom of expression through a contemporary story of two young protagonists. Sheetal Wadhwa Munshaw, Director Atout France India – France Tourism Development Agency, said, “This is the first ever Bollywood movie to have been truly “Made in France” right from romancing at myriad locations in Paris, Picardy and Cannes, to personifying the quintessential French lifestyle. It has been a delightful experience for us to have been a part of this journey right from handpicking and showcasing locations in France with the Yash Raj team to now embarking on this path breaking launch pad of releasing the film’s trailer in Paris as hospitality partners alongside Accor group of Hotels. To showcase the film to a diverse audience, Atout France in association with Accor group of Hotels and Yashraj will organise a special screening for the travel trade fraternity and select media in December. We hope travel companies are motivated to create a Befikre trail which includes destinations shot in the movie such as Picardy, Cannes and Paris which will spur the avid traveller to embark on a new Befikre experience in France.” Full of Parisian spirit, the movie celebrates love – sensual, carefree and focused on living life to the fullest celebrating the renowned French art de vivre or unique way of life. The ‘Befikre’ cast touched down in France in early May and shot the film entirely Made in France for 52 days. The movie is slated to be released in India on December …

Atout France India has announced that Indian arrival figures to France touched the 5,00,000 mark in 2015. Sheetal Munshaw, Director, Atout France India, said, “India’s largest incentive movement to France comprising of 2,200 passengers also took place in December 2015 enhancing France’s positioning as a preferred incentive destination. The growing influence of Bollywood has had a positive impact on tourism. With the much awaited Yash Raj’s ‘Befikre’ shot in its entirety in France to be released in December this year and last year’s ‘Tamasha’ shot partly on location in Corsica, France is steadily gaining favour with Indian film-makers as well.” Atout France’s recently-concluded annual showcase saw a record-breaking participation of 29 French-Indian delegates that was an interesting mix of established partners and new entrants. A large contingent of the delegation was from the Auvergne-Rhône Alpes region that showcased its alpine destinations and activities. Held between September 12-16, the showcase commenced in Mumbai, travelled to Kolkata for the first time with a finale in Delhi. Munshaw also announced the launch of a first ever MOOC (Massive Online Programme) for the French travel industry enabling them to better understand the Indian market specificities and in turn better serving the Indian traveller. Optimizing on France’s popularity as a wedding destination, a destination wedding guide was released this summer in France to better acquaint the French travel and hospitality industry with the nuances of planning the Indian Wedding.