The Architect of Movement: Inside the Mind of Closequarters' Founder, Ashwin Tanikasheryl

A Hospemag profile of Ashwin Tanikasheryl, a creator redefining travel not as consumption, but as transformation.
By Editor Prabhjot Bedi.

Most travel companies sell destinations. Closequarters sells transformation.
Ashwin didn't set out to disrupt an industry. In fact, the path here was anything but linear: from rendering CGI for The Hobbit films in Chennai to designing corporate events, and eventually spending seven years building a travel agency into a respected name in curated experiences.
But something shifted.
"After a point, it felt like we were just selling shiny new things," Ashwin reflects. What began as creative fatigue became a year-long sabbatical, a period of deep reflection that would reshape an entire philosophy around travel.

The Epiphany: Designing Circumstances
The breakthrough came from looking backwards. Scanning through years of client experiences, certain moments stood out. Not the obvious ones like exclusive access or five-star amenities, but something more elusive.

It's a deceptively simple insight. A client who extends a two-week trip to three weeks. A couple from a joint family finally getting juvenile recreation at Venice Carnival. A seasoned traveller sent to the Scottish countryside for what Ashwin calls "an Aha moment." These weren't accidents. They were the result of understanding desires that clients themselves couldn't articulate.

The Reading: An Onboarding Unlike Any Other
Closequarters doesn't start with "Where do you want to go?" or "What's your budget?" Instead, there's what Ashwin calls "THE READING": a sophisticated conversation that leads to unearthing the deep down and the soar.
"We want to understand how celebrated your life makes you feel," he explains. "How people spend their birthdays tells us a lot about how their lives go."
It's travel planning that borrows from therapy, design thinking, and genuine human curiosity. Often conducted by Ashwin personally via video call or in-person meetings, the reading unearths the unspoken. The stillness a fast-paced executive actually craves, the space a couple desperately needs but won't admit to wanting.
One memorable example: a family of eleven travelling to the UK. Beyond ticking off London landmarks and Scottish highlands, Closequarters orchestrated a traditional Gaelic wedding ceremony at Loch Ness for newlyweds in the group. A moment for family members who'd missed the original celebration.
"It's not about checklists," Ashwin says. "It's about what you didn't know you wanted."

From Visual Effects to Designing Lives
The journey to this point reads like its own form of wandering. Fresh out of college in Manipal, Ashwin landed work in some Hollywood Projects at a Chennai studio. But the dream job quickly revealed itself as the wrong road. "I would look around at my peers and they would be so happy with these moments and I knew it wasn’t something I wanted to do”. Advertising came next, then events. Building concepts for automobile launches, crafting cohesive experiences across execution. The skills accumulated: design, direction, understanding how ideas manifest in the physical world.
Then came the pivot into travel, initially conceived as a crowdsourced information platform ("a giant Reddit for travels all over the world") before evolving into a travel brand, designing experiences curated to people's tastes and quirks. Seven years in, Ashwin hit a wall. Not burnout exactly, but saturation. The sabbatical that followed became the crucible for Closequarters.

A Philosophy Rooted in Prehistory
Ask about a transformative personal travel experience, and Ashwin's eyes light up. "I am very fascinated by prehistory: the origins of our civilisation." The destination: Göbekli Tepe in southeastern Turkey. A man-made structure built 13,000 years ago. Before the wheel, before written language, before anything we consider foundational to civilization. "As I drove in, it felt like alignment. Like every minute gear in your system, all fell into sync. You are exactly where you're supposed to be." It's this same feeling (alignment, presence, being exactly where you should be) that Closequarters now designs for clients.

The Business of Movement
Closequarters recently completed its soft launch phase, currently handling one to two clients per month. The clientele is approximately 80% Indian, 20% international, with experiences primarily focused on international travel, though domestic options remain on the table. The company is deliberately location-agnostic, working with hosts and partners across the globe rather than limiting itself to personally-visited destinations. Budget conversations happen subtly through scenario-based questions during onboarding, allowing clients to reveal their expectations without the awkwardness of direct price discussions.
Ashwin maintains a refreshingly peaceful stance on competition: "The world is large enough for all of us to exist."

If Not Here, Where?
Currently based in Goa, the ideal location is elsewhere. Buyukada: an island off the coast of Istanbul, part of the Princes’ Islands cluster. "Time has decided to be gentle with its impact on the island. It's still in the 90s in some ways." Until a few years ago, only horses. Now, electric buggies. Walkable, gorgeous, unhurried. It's telling that even in fantasy, Ashwin gravitates not toward the spectacular but toward the still. Toward places where time moves differently, where presence becomes possible.

Travel Designed to Move You

In an industry increasingly defined by Instagrammable moments and cookie-cutter luxury, Closequarters represents something rarer: bespoke in both process and philosophy. This isn't mass-market. It isn't scalable in traditional terms. It's travel as it might have existed before packages and algorithms. Intensely personal, meticulously crafted, designed not around where you go but around who you are and who you might become.
"If there is no real value exchange, isn't that a monumental waste of time?" Ashwin asks.

In a world where we're sold everything from productivity hacks to wellness retreats, Closequarters asks a simpler, more profound question: What circumstances do you need to feel moved? And then, quietly, deliberately, it designs them.

Closequarters is currently accepting select clients. Those interested in experiencing a Reading can register their interest here: https://form.typeform.com/to/gBLlpryu

For Ashwin, each engagement remains personal: often conducting initial consultations directly, crafting glimpses (mood boards with broad estimates), and iterating like a tailor perfecting a suit. Contact: +91 92095 69367 Register interest: https://form.typeform.com/to/gBLlpryu
Website: https://www.closequarters.club

Editor’s Note:

This feature is part of our “Experiences That Stay With You” series. Stories chosen because because they left an impression.
Every place, person, or conversation featured here has earned its space by offering something genuine, memorable, and worth sharing.