How Lair In Delhi Became India’s Top Bar

As soon as you enter Lair, located in Vasant Vihar in New Delhi, your eyes will automatically squint to take in the low lighting. A few seconds later, the space will open up in front of your eyes to reveal a modern speakeasy bar with its monochrome design language with black concrete, glass and carefully cut corners to accentuate the space. 

“Lair means a cave, and the idea when we began conceptualising the bar in 2019, was to create an immersive space with the best of food, drinks and ambience. Back then, there were only two-three places that were doing a proper cocktail menu,” says Jairaj Singh Solanki, managing director and co-founder of Naaya Hospitality that owns Lair.

Along with his co-founder Dhruv Raj Vij, they began scouting for a bar manager to lead their cocktail programme. The duo were recommended by Navjot Singh, a bartender who was working at a place called Pra Pra Prank And Prankster in Gurgaon. 

While their initial reaction was mixed, Singh was hired within the hour after Solanki and Vij ran up a bill of INR 25,000 just trying all of the cocktails. Solanki, with a background in hospitality consultancy with brands in India and abroad as well as a Cordon Bleu chef’s course to his name and Vij, with his background in real estate, had found their beverage director in Singh and Lair was a go – until Covid-19 stopped everyone in their tracks. 

“It was a tough time for everyone. Our rents were on and it was a tough time for everyone in the industry along with us. We had launched just before COVID-19, so we used the time to perfect our menu. We opened with restrictions for a month later and then the second wave came,” Navjot Singh recalls. 

When Lair finally opened, it was with government-mandated restrictions, so it couldn’t stay open until late. It took another two months for the rules to be lifted and for people to start hanging at bars before Lair picked up. 

In 2021, after completing its first full year of operations, Lair became a hit with everyone and recovered all of its investment. It also got a spot in the 30 Best Bar rankings at Number 5. It has kept ranking higher with each passing year, reaching Number 4 in 2022, Number 3 in 2023 and finally ranking Number 1 in 2025. Lair was also ranked at #68 in the Asia’s 50 Best Bars 2024.

Vikram Achanta, co-founder of 30 Best Bars says that Lair has been relentless in perfecting their bar program ever since they began operations. “The bar team has a lot of depth since most of them have stayed with the brand for a while, the design of the bar is interesting as well and they have a loyal set of regular customers. All of this has helped to put Lair on the map.”  

“When you taste the fruit of your hard work, you understand its true worth. If we had become the top bar right away, we wouldn’t know the hustle and hard work that comes with running the bar,” Singh says. 

For a few months in 2022, Singh also went to Canada to open a new bar but quickly felt disillusioned with their work culture. “The essence of hospitality is not there. People work there for tips, but there’s no heart or soul. In India, the bartending community works with passion. I decided I had to come back,” he says. 

Singh quit within a month and came back to India to scout for opportunities but quickly teamed up with Lair to give space to his vision and ideas. Over its short period, the bar has shaped trends for the industry, from introducing edible paint in glasses, unusual garnishes to going all in on Picantes that are found in every bar today. 

“At Lair, innovation never stops. We keep doing the same thing every day but with a little more perfection. For example, people ask me when I’m launching the new menu but they don’t know we’ve been working on it for the past eight months already,” Singh says when what makes Lair the top bar in India. 

Ask him what future trends we will see and Singh has a ready list to go. “You will see a steady rise in mezcal drinks. I am also expecting Highball cocktails to trend again,” he says and adds, “In our new menu, you will also see a new innovation in the form of unbreakable glasses. Imagine eating a cheesecake in a Cheesecake Highball cocktail. Mixology needs to be more immersive where you can touch more than just the glass.”

As for Solanki, the idea for Lair was to tick five main boxes, namely food, service, music, ambiance and cocktails. The team worked on all five aspects relentlessly since their opening and the results are there for everyone to see today. “We are a forward-thinking brand with a different vision from others. The awards are an acknowledgement of the team’s hard work,” Solanki says. 

With a new outpost in Gurgaon and shouldering the responsibility of living up to India’s best bar, the team at Lair has its hands full currently. It’s a price any bar would happily pay.