Born and bred in Mumbai, Vicky’s wit and charm has a duality that is reminiscent of natural Indian spice. A foodie at heart, he is a heady cocktail of flavours, some still undefined. The initial explosive burst of personality and flair is followed through with a wild imagination, delicately layered with sensual middle notes, being excitable, entertaining, inviting, spontaneous and devilish. Through his culinary journey, Vicky taught at the White Star Chef’s Training School onboard QE2, in Manila and St. Nazaire, training over 180 chefs. Currently, Vicky consults as a Culinary Director with GIPL and conceptualises restaurant menus and food concepts for places such as Pizza Express, The Runway Project, The Market Project, The Poona Project, Ministry of Crab and Nihonbashi. He is most recently revamped The Bandra Project, which is a communal style, casual-yet-chic, all-day eatery serving global cuisine. Vicky’s travels and his knowledge of global trends have led him to develop a web series called Vicky The Gastronaut, which is streaming on his Facebook page. The series has gained over 10 million views. He has filmed in Peru and Australia and is now filming the third part of the series at Chiang Mai in Thailand.

The Stanislavsky and Nemirovich-Danchenko Musical Theatre, one of Moscow’s leading cultural institutions, is renowned for its world-class ballet and opera productions that blend Russian classical traditions with innovative contemporary works. For the first time, the theatre’s most celebrated dancers Evgenii Zhukov, Ksenia Shevtsova, Polina Zayarnaya and Elena Solomyanko will be performing at Soneva Fushi in January. Evgenii, a leading soloist since 2018, has earned acclaim for his versatile performances in classical roles like The Nutcracker’s Prince and Albert in Giselle and his works across acclaimed contemporary projects. Ksenia, the theatre’s prima ballerina since 2019, has starred in major roles including Odette/Odile in Swan Lake and Juliet in Romeo and Juliet, also making her mark as a guest artist with the Bayerisches Staatsballett in 2024. Polina, a first soloist since 2020, is known for her dynamic interpretations in both classical ballets such as Don Quixote and modern works by Jiří Kylián and Akram Khan. Elena, a leading soloist, has captivated audiences with her performances in Swan Lake and The Nutcracker while excelling in modern pieces like Wings of Wax and Suite in White. Guests at Soneva Fushi can experience the magic of ballet with spectacular performances and specialised workshops by Evgenii Zhukov, Ksenia Shevtsova, Polina Zayarnaya and Elena Solomyanko.

Entrepreneur and top chef Tim Raue is one of Germany’s best-known chefs. And with good reason, because the Berliner, born in 1974, has redefined German top gastronomy and made a name for himself internationally as one of the few German chefs. For example, Tim Raue’s restaurant has not only been awarded two Michelin stars and 19.5 Gault&Millau points, as well as the title of Restaurant of the Year 2019 by Feinschmecker, but it has also occupied a permanent place on The World’s 50 Best Restaurants list since 2016 – currently ranked 31st in 2021. In addition, Tim Raue is the only German chef to date to whom the world-renowned series Chef’s Table on Netflix has dedicated its own episode, and you can also watch him on MagentaTV in his own series HERR RAUE REIST! SO SCHMECKT DIE WELT on his gastronomic discovery tour around the globe. Tim Raue has also established a firm place for himself on German television: He regularly appears in front of the camera on the hit VOX show Kitchen Impossible and is a jury member on the SAT1 programme The Taste. In the past 15 years, Raue has also published four books – including the autobiography “Ich weiß, was Hunger ist“ and the cookbook “My Way“. In addition to his work as a star chef, Tim Raue is also active as an entrepreneur. For this activity, he was named „Restaurateur of the Year 2014“ by the renowned gourmet guide Gault&Millau. Raue himself says: “With the TIM RAUE restaurant, I have fulfilled a lifelong dream – but my other projects mean culinary freedom for me and the opportunity to fully live out my many ideas with the help of my chefs.“ He already operated restaurants in Dubai and a Michelin starred Pop-up in Switzerland. In his role as culinary consultant, he, therefore, oversees now the Brasserie Colette Tim Raue in Munich, Constance and Berlin as well as Villa Kellermann in Potsdam. In 2016, he also created the Asian restaurant concept HANAMI by Tim Raue on TUI Mein Schiff 5, which has since opened on three other ships in the fleet.

Michael Ballack is an iconic figure in German football, widely regarded for his exceptional skill and leadership on the field. Ballack’s football journey began at a young age and saw him rise to become one of the most accomplished midfielders of his generation where he was known for his incredible vision, precise passing and powerful shots. Over the course of his career, he played for top European clubs such as Bayer Leverkusen, Bayern Munich, Chelsea and Kaiserslautern. Additionally, Ballack was a pivotal player for the German national team, representing his country in multiple FIFA World Cups and UEFA European Championships Since retiring, Ballack has stayed connected to the sport, sharing his expertise as a pundit, commentator and ambassador. This festive season in the Maldives, guests will have the rare opportunity to train under his guidance, learning valuable skills during an exclusive football camp.

Dr Armin Kleinböhl is a planetary scientist at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. He is also the Deputy Principal Investigator of the Mars Climate Sounder instrument on the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, which has been operating on Mars for over 16 years and established the longest time series of global atmospheric measurements on Mars to date. Since 2008, he has provided landing support for all landings on Mars conducted by NASA and his scientific work focusing on the structure and dynamics of the atmospheres of Mars and Venus led him to author or co-authored more than 100 scientific publications. Dr Armin is also the Participating Scientist in Residence for the Japanese Akatsuki Venus Climate Orbiter mission, which leads him to spend several months of the year in Japan. His work also includes managing the “Cloudspotting on Mars” citizen science project with more than 8,000 registered volunteers, which allows members of the public to contribute to planetary science by analysing real data from a spacecraft in Mars’ orbit. During his visit, Dr Armin will be hosting after-dinner stargazing sessions with a focus on Mars and Venus, which will be prominent in the evening sky and will share stories about planetary science and exploration.

Coming from a well-travelled, foodie background, Carolina Bazán Bañados chose to devote herself to gastronomy. After finishing her studies in Chile in 2003, she opened the first Ambrosia restaurant with her family in downtown Santiago. From there, she trained in restaurants in Peru, Brazil, Italy and France, where she worked with Chef Gregory Marchand at his award-winning Frenchie Restaurant in Paris. Back in Chile, Chef Bazán and her partner, sommelier Rosario Onetto, started the first Hidden Kitchen movement in Santiago in 2012, which led to a new location and a new concept for Ambrosia. The result is a modern family restaurant, where fresh market produce leads a menu that changes daily according to what’s in season. Her goal was to create an amazing dining experience, where great food is paired with fine wines, music and good old hospitality. By 2017, Ambrosia was joined by Ambrosia Bistro, a smaller, vibrant, more personal space that brings the concept of bistronomy to Santiago, with a focus on seasonal produce and delicious dishes. Ambrosia has been consistently included in Latin America’s 50 Best Restaurants since 2014, which also named Chef Bazán Best Female Chef in 2019.