BAMBOO BANKS FARM GUEST HOUSE was started in 1974 by Siasp and Zerene Kothavala. Unfortunately Zerene passed away in 2007 and Siasp in 2018.
Siasp obtained a B.Sc in agriculture in 1952, and made a career as a tea and coffee planter. Having achieved professional success working with major companies and rising to General Manager, he took premature retirement in 1972. Looking for new challenges, along with his wife Zerene, he took the bold step of setting up Bamboo Banks Farm Guest House in a secluded and beautiful environment. It did not take them long to realize that others would love the beauty and peace they had found around them, and that they could provide a comfortable and relaxed environment for visitors and travellers who might want to share it, and so the guest house was born in 1974, making them the pioneers of Wildlife tourism in the area.
Siasp was brought up in different camps across the country as his father was a Collector during the pre-independence years. At a tender age, he was introduced to wildlife and game shooting which was the foundation of his vast knowledge of the jungle. His love for the wild grew with age, ultimately seeing a reversal of roles from hunter to conservationist.
His wife Zerene was brought up in a family replete with legal luminaries with a convention for patronizing the arts and social causes. Her upbringing in a cultured home with a tradition of hospitality and a love for culinary delights ensured her success as a homemaker for Siasp and their children. Her passion for gardening and interior design shaped the landscape, grounds and buildings of the property.
Their legacy lives on in Bamboo Banks Farm Guest house which is now run by their son Zerasp and daughter Shahanaz.