Shambhavi Thakur The Zee Groupâs audacious diversification into cruise shipping in the form of Jalesh Cruises might have ended in misfortune, but a new cruise startup has taken birth in Mumbai, drawing âstrengthâ from this recently shut company. Interestingly, the new undisclosed deal between Zee Groupâs Subhash Chandra and US-based billionaire hotelier Sant Singh Chatwal did not involve the companyâs only visible asset: a 20-year-old cruise ship called Karnika. The ship, named after a mythological apsara known for her beauty and allure, was caught in a whirlwind of arrests and controversies over nonpayment of crew salaries and dues to vendors and the port. As it began its final voyage to a scrapyard in Gujaratâs Alang in November 2020, the Zee Group sold the brand name under which the ship was operated â Jalesh Cruises â to Cordelia Cruises, the company newly set up by Chatwal.