A Leader's Journey: EaseMyTrip's Nutan on Mastering Travel Leader

By: Nutan Gupta, COO, EaseMyTrip | Tuesday, 23 June 2026

Leadership is often not a linear journey, especially for women leaders. EaseMyTrip COO, Nutan Gupta would agree. Now a seasoned aviation, tourism, and travel-tech leader with over three decades of experience, Nutan once had to restart her career from scratch post getting married. The experience taught her critical lessons on humility, perseverance and more.

Team Women Entrepreneurs Review spoke to Nutan, to further understand her leadership insights as a travel leader. Speaking candidly, she shared her thoughts on leadership resilience, credibility, foresight, adaptability, and the importance of maintaining dignity during difficult life phases. Nutan also shares insights from her experience of championing one of India’s first customised outbound travel.

To learn more about Nutan’s views on travel leadership and growth as a woman leader, read the full article below.

Q. You led teams at a very young age in established travel companies. How did you earn credibility in senior rooms where experience often outweighed gender confidence?

A. Leading teams early taught me that credibility is rarely claimed and is always earned through consistent outcomes. In senior rooms where experience often outweighed gender confidence, I focused on doing the work well and staying close to results. When effort translated into visible progress, conversations shifted naturally, and trust followed. I learnt to prepare thoroughly, understand the business in depth, and speak with clarity rather than force. Listening carefully helped me respect experience while strengthening my own judgement.

Over time, success itself became the strongest validation. It allowed confidence to grow quietly and credibility to be built on substance, reliability, and shared progress rather than assertion or perception.

Q. You introduced customised outbound travel before personalization became mainstream. What helped you spot opportunity early, and how can women leaders sharpen this foresight?

A. In my experience, opportunities often become visible when you pay attention to what people genuinely need.

Early in my career, working with different travel companies, I noticed that travellers wanted more flexibility than standard packages offered. Acting on this insight, I pioneered customised outbound travel under “Plan Your Own Travel” at a time when such ideas were still uncommon. That experience showed me how careful observation and decisive action can turn an idea into reality.

For women leaders, foresight grows from observing closely, understanding context, and acting on informed judgement built through hands-on experience.

Q. You helped establish historic international air routes between countries. What leadership skills are essential when aligning governments, airlines, and stakeholders with competing priorities?

A. Leading initiatives to establish historic international air routes required patience, strategic thinking, and the ability to build consensus across diverse stakeholders. Aligning governments, airlines, and management with differing priorities meant listening carefully, understanding each perspective, and finding common ground.

While charting India’s direct route from Toronto to New Delhi and later the shortest route between Kolkata and Kunming, I relied on clear communication, foresight, and persistent follow-up to ensure all parties stayed aligned. These experiences taught me that leadership in complex projects comes from collaboration, trust, and a focus on long-term impact, allowing ambitious goals to succeed despite competing interests.

Q. You re-entered work by walking streets for sales before rising to CXO roles. What did those early struggles teach you about self-worth and long-term leadership resilience?

A. Those early years shaped how I view self-worth and leadership even today. Walking the streets for sales taught me that dignity comes from effort and not from titles or designations. Starting again after marriage was challenging, yet it strengthened my belief that resilience is built through action taken every day, even when recognition is absent.

The experience grounded me in humility and patience, while reinforcing the value of persistence over shortcuts. It also helped me develop empathy for people at every level of an organisation. Over time, these lessons became central to my leadership approach, reminding me that lasting success is rooted in consistency, confidence in one’s abilities, and the courage to keep moving forward despite uncertainty.

Q. At EaseMyTrip, you moved across roles before becoming COO. How did adaptability strengthen your leadership, and why should women embrace lateral growth, not just titles?

A. Adaptability shaped my leadership by helping me stay open to learning and change as responsibilities evolved. Moving from President Alliances, a role I held from 2018, to Chief Operating Officer in June 2023 allowed me to build continuity rather than disruption.

Working closely on supplier relationships and brand building gave me a grounded understanding of the business, which proved valuable when overseeing broader operations. That journey showed me the importance of growth through experience rather than position alone.

 It allows leadership to develop steadily, supported by understanding and readiness rather than title progression alone.

Q. From being judged to leading with dignity, what one core lesson from your journey should women leaders remember during difficult phases, and why should they consciously practice it?

A. One lesson that has stayed with me through every phase is the importance of fighting without losing dignity. Difficult periods can test patience and belief, especially when judgement replaces understanding. I learnt that responding with calm, discipline, and self-respect creates strength that no external validation can offer. Practising this consciously helps women leaders remain centred, even when progress feels slow.

Dignity shapes how others engage with you and how you view yourself during uncertainty. Over time, it turns endurance into quiet authority. Choosing this approach allows challenges to be faced with grace, while ensuring values remain intact and leadership grows from character rather than reaction.