Vickum Nawagamuwage is the founder and CEO of Santani Wellness Resorts, Sri Lanka’s first purpose-built wellness retreat to be awarded a Michelin Key. Widely regarded as one of the pioneering voices shaping modern wellness hospitality, Vickum has spent the past decade building a brand that integrates ancient healing wisdom with contemporary science.
The Santani brand is now sought after globally, with new wellness resorts opening worldwide.
In this episode of Masters of Luxury, Vickum Nawagamuwage speaks about building Santani into a globally recognised wellness destination, the importance of adaptive wellness, and why the future of luxury hospitality lies in creating lasting transformations rather than fleeting escapes.
Vickum Nawagamuwage (VN): I really like the way you phrased it as a ‘sustainable wellness resort,’ but to me, in that context, there are two sustainabilities we are talking about. One is the general sustainability we usually talk about — environmental friendliness — but I'm not going to go into that, because a lot of people have already written about it; they know about it and have all the sustainability criteria. What's important is sustainability in wellness. To me, wellness isn't something you simply do — coming to a place like Santani, or any other such resort, spending seven, fourteen or twenty-one days feeling good, and then going back home to find yourself back at square one. That's not sustainable wellness.
So, from a sustainability point of view, what matters more to me is how we make wellness a proper lifestyle. We talk about lifestyle and medicinal lifestyle interventions, but there's really no proper lifestyle toolkit that is holistic — meaning it needs to be physical, mental and energetic. All three components matter, and from a sustainable wellness point of view, all of these need to be present. But it also needs a toolkit that you take back with you after you leave Santani, and that's what we've created. I can explain this in more detail as we go on.
VN: Stress is a reality, and everyone accepts that. What we rarely ask, however, is why we have entered this cycle of stress when previous generations did not seem to experience it in quite the same way.
I remember calling my father while he was in Sri Lanka and telling him, “I can’t deal with this anymore. I’m going to quit and do something different.” His response was simple: “Man up.” He said, “You’re a man. You’re supposed to work hard and provide for your family. That’s what men do.” He simply couldn’t understand what I meant by stress. Stress has always existed, but we have not really examined why it has become so much more prevalent today. For me, the answer lies in evolution.
Throughout history, stress has revolved around survival—finding food and protection. Without either, survival was impossible. The animals that adapted best survived, which is why we speak of the “survival of the fittest.” It was never about being the strongest or the most attractive; it was about physical capability because survival depended on the body.
We rely on our intelligence to earn money, and money provides food, shelter, and security. In other words, our primary survival tool has shifted from the body to the mind. This transition is relatively recent. For millions of years, the body was our greatest survival asset. Yet modern healthcare still focuses largely on physical wellbeing—eat well, exercise, walk 10,000 steps, take supplements. Even the conversation around longevity remains centred on the body.
But today, the mind deserves equal—if not greater—attention. This does not mean neglecting the body. The body and mind function as one integrated system, and both are essential. However, we need to devote far more attention to mental wellbeing than we currently do.
Today, perhaps only 10 per cent of healthcare focuses on the mind, while the remaining 90 per cent remains centred on the body. Then there is the energetic system, which is rarely discussed at all. That, too, deserves a place in the conversation.
VN: I would say the minimum duration is seven days for us to carry out a proper physical detox. The process begins with a preparation phase that lasts around five days. During this time, the body is gradually prepared for the cleansing process. Around the fifth or sixth day, the actual detox takes place, followed by a final day that helps the body transition back into everyday life.
It is a structured process, which is why seven days is the minimum duration we recommend. For optimal results, however, I would suggest a stay of 14 days. I understand that spending two weeks away is not feasible for everyone, but we have consistently seen remarkable results even within shorter programmes. We encourage guests to undergo blood tests before they arrive and again after completing the programme. The results have shown measurable improvements across almost every health marker within just seven days.
To the best of my knowledge, there are very few interventions anywhere in the world that can produce such significant improvements in blood markers within such a short period.
VN: One important distinction I'd like to make is that I'm not saying we need to go back to our roots. I'm saying we need to heal the root cause.
One of the reasons wellness in this part of the world hasn't evolved at the same pace as it has in the West is because Ayurveda has often been practised exactly as it was 3,000 years ago. That simply doesn't make sense today. The world has changed. Communicable diseases are no longer the biggest concern; chronic diseases are. Our lifestyles have transformed, and wellness needs to evolve alongside them.
We have to adapt. We should combine the wisdom of Ayurveda with modern scientific advancements and use every tool available to create better outcomes. That's the future.
When it comes to AI, I actually see it as part of the solution. Today's world overwhelms us with information—our brains haven't evolved to process it all, but AI can. It can help bridge that gap by handling much of the information processing that humans struggle with.
At Santani, we're already using AI in a positive way. Our diagnostic platform and personalised wellness pathways are powered by proprietary AI models trained on our own data. While AI will undoubtedly create social and economic challenges, it also has immense potential to improve healthcare and wellness if used responsibly.
VN: I actually think longevity, at least in its current form, is one of the industry's biggest misconceptions.
The desire to live a long, healthy life isn't new. In Sri Lanka, our traditional greeting is Ayubowan, which literally means, "May you live long." It's perhaps the oldest human aspiration we have. So when people speak about longevity as though it were a new discovery, I find that quite amusing.
A few years ago, the buzzword was anti-ageing. Today it's longevity. In reality, very little has changed beyond adding a few more biomarkers to measure.
Longevity isn't a protocol or a product. It's an outcome. If you eat well, exercise, take care of your mental health, sleep properly, and live a balanced life, you'll naturally improve your chances of living longer. That's what longevity really is.
Unfortunately, it's increasingly being marketed as though it's something you can buy or achieve through a single treatment or supplement. That's misleading. As an industry, we have a responsibility to educate people rather than chase trends.
At Santani, our philosophy has always been simple: focus on the fundamentals, and longevity becomes the natural result. It's a lifelong journey, not a shortcut.
VN: That's a difficult question because my inspiration has evolved over time. Twenty years ago, wellness was still a niche concept. Around the world, there were probably only a few dozen dedicated wellness resorts. Today, almost everything is marketed as wellness—even products or experiences that have very little to do with genuine wellbeing.
That has made education more important than ever. People know they're stressed, exhausted, and overwhelmed, but they often don't understand why. My inspiration today is to create a clear narrative that helps people make sense of what's happening.
Whenever a new problem emerges, there's always a phase where people exploit it commercially before genuine solutions appear. I believe that if you focus on building authentic, evidence-based solutions, you may sacrifice some short-term gains, but you'll ultimately create far greater long-term value. That's what continues to inspire me.