LAL TOOFAN RED STORM PREMIUM BEER PINT GLASS

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Curiously though”, he added, “a majority of the so-called ‘Indian restaurants’ that were in the popular hub of the British public dining-out experience were actually Bangladeshi.” Wally, who is half- Maharashtrian and half- Bengali, explained that he identifies strongly with his Bengali heritage, stemming from his mum’s side of the family. Though born in Jaipur, he completed his schooling and college in Calcutta, and was principally brought up by his Bengali maternal grandparents.

He joined their UK agents, BE International Foods Ltd, focussing on their Rajah brand spices along with imported Indian brands like Hima, Kissan and Dippys. Here he also got the opportunity to help start up a subsidiary company called Crown Noodles, manufacturing instant noodles in Crumlin, South Wales. Apart from making instant noodles his company developed the UK’s first ‘cup noodle’ – a precursor to the ubiquitous “Pot Noodle” developed by Golden Wonder after they took over the company. He said: “I thought that the role of Bangladesh had to be recognised in some way by the consuming public and from a marketing point of view. I wondered: ‘why not have a brand of beer that echoes a connection between the country where the owners, managers, chefs and waiters come from?’” He said: “I took a special interest in learning disabilities as my eldest son has learning disabilities and autism. I took up the chairmanship of the management committee of St Joseph’s Pastoral Centre, which provides courses and activities for adults with learning disabilities for the RC Diocese of Westminster until 2006. Eloquent, organised and engaging. These are the words which best describe Surojit Walawalkar, who considers his 11 years with United Breweries Group to be the “pinnacle” of his long career in marketing. As he tells CurryLife his story, successes and failures included, it is clear that every single moment of his career and life has been a dream. It is a story to which young, budding marketeers would do well to listen to and learn from. Mr Walawalkar – or Wally, as he likes to call himself – is the true definition of a role model. Wally left United Breweries Group in 1992 to become Managing Director of their Shaw Wallace Overseas Ltd. Using the tried and tested formula of joint venture brewing, he started a new joint venture between Shaw Wallace Overseas Ltd and Ushers of Trowbridge called Ushers Shaw Wallace (USW Ltd). It was under this company that he in 1993 launched Lal Toofan and Bangla three years later.I’m currently the Chairman of CAPE, an association of carers and parents of persons with learning disability in Enfield, and I am also on the Learning Disability Partnership board for Enfield Local Authority.

With the passage of time, Ushers of Trowbridge closed down its brewery in 2000 and the ownership of the brands moved on to Refresh UK and now continues to be well nurtured and supported by the successful company LWC in Manchester. Throughout the decade, Kingfisher, brewed under license in the UK, mainly dominated the market. Then, as the 80s came to a close, a new bottled brand imported from India called Cobra Beer was launched in by Karan Bilimoria CBE – with the claim of being ‘authentically Indian’ and being less ‘gassy’ – it established a growing share of the market. Sure enough, the prestigious Hindustan Lever Ltd hired Wally as Product Manager in the New Foods Division of their Mumbai Head Office in 1968. As anyone associated with its parent company, Unilever, will know – this is a truly ‘once in a lifetime’ opportunity to work with a world-class company at the forefront of brand marketing.Soon enough, Cobra followed the inevitable steps of being brewed in the EU under license and, by introducing a draught version, the market for Indian beers in the 90s became bigger and fiercely competitive. This is where Surojit Walawalkar’s marketing ingenuity came into play. As time progressed, many enterprising people from the Bangladesh especially from and around Sylhet and Dhaka emigrated to the UK. They helped expand exponentially the growing ‘Indian’ restaurant trade. Restaurants serving Indian food began spreading into every nook and corner of UK: from leafy suburban towns to remote villages in every part of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. His journey begins in 1961 when, following his BSc in St Xavier’s College in Calcutta, he studied a postgraduate diploma in Business Studies at the Scottish College of Commerce in Glasgow, winning the Turnbull prize as student of the Year. He then completed a three-year graduate apprenticeship in Wolverhampton engineering firm Joseph Sankey and Sons Ltd (GKN), before returning to India as Product Sales Manager at GKN’s subsidiary in Mumbai, Guest Keen Williams Ltd. Cobra was established in London in the late 1980s. Since then it has expanded its range from the original 5% ABV lager to include fruity, light and super premium 8% products, along with a non-alcoholic brew. Islands - Postcode Locations IM, JE, GY, BT, BT1, BT10, BT11, BT12, BT13, BT14, BT15, BT16, BT17, BT18, BT19, BT2, BT20, BT21, BT22, BT23, BT24, BT25, BT26, BT27, BT28, BT29, BT29, BT3, BT30, BT31, BT32, BT33, BT34, BT35, BT36, BT37, BT38, BT39, BT4, BT40, BT41, BT42, BT43, BT44, BT45, BT46, BT47, BT48, BT49, BT5, BT51, BT52, BT53, BT54, BT55, BT56, BT57, BT58, BT6, BT60, BT61, BT62, BT63, BT64, BT65, BT66, BT67, BT68, BT69, BT7, BT7, BT70, BT71, BT74, BT75, BT76, BT77, BT78, BT79, BT8, BT80, BT81, BT82, BT9, BT92, BT93, BT94, TR21, TR22, TR23, TR24, TR25, IV41, IV42, IV43, IV44, IV45, IV46, IV47, IV48, IV49, IV51, IV55, IV56, HS, KA27, KA28, KW15, KW16, KW17, PA20, PA41, PA42, PA43, PA44, PA45, PA46, PA47, PA48, PA49, PA60, PA61, PA62, PA63, PA64, PA65, PA66, PA67, PA68, PA69, PA70, PA71, PA72, PA73, PA74, PA75, PA76, PA77, PA78, PH42, PH43, PH44, ZE