Saree-clad 'Robo Sundari' has customers eating out of her hand at Mysuru hotel

Mysuru: A saree-clad robo waitress at a hotel in this cultural city has become a major attraction for customers.

The humanoid robot, named Robo Sundari, dressed in a Mysore silk saree and sporting a bindi, necklace and bangles, welcomes and serves food to bewitched customers at Hotel Siddhartha.

Made by a Delhi-based firm, the robot is battery-powered and can work for up to eight hours on a single charge. The pre-programmed robot works by voice command. A magnetic stripe installed from the kitchen to each table navigates the humanoid to deliver a tray-laden food weighing 10 kg with ease. The robot can perform multiple tasks like a human waitress like taking back the dishes and cutlery to the washroom. Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Hotel Siddhartha Groups chairman

P.V. Giri said, "Hotel industry needs to periodically upgrade. Labour is the huge problem facing the industry. We'll add more robots to our service based on the customer feedback, The Robo costs Rs 2.5 lakh and we plan to buy five more soon."

Not disappointing the management, the humanoid waitress is attracting more customers and it seems to have become a tourist attraction in the city as well. If the management is to be believed, customers are thrilled with the dining experience and are happy being served by Robo Sundari.

Upahara Darshini restaurant in Shivamogga was the first to introduce a humanoid waiter in the State.