One of Britain's youngest peers, Lord Karan Bilimoria speaks to The Indian Express Editor-in-Chief Shekhar Gupta about how he created Cobra beer brand, why he loves public life and the reason he continues to stay close to India. Excerpts from NDTV 24X7's Walk the Talk.

We have all heard the expression that one shouldn't carry coal to Newcastle, but you did precisely that and when you were barely a graduate... Tell us the story you have told a million times before. How did Cobra beer come about?

I have always loved beer and when I went to England as a student, I used to go to Indian restaurants and pubs a lot. And I found that I really didn't like the fizzy lagers, found them very gassy, fizzy, bland, bloating. But I loved the English ale, English Bitter, very smooth and easy to drink. But I found that Bitter was very difficult to drink with food. It was too heavy and too bitter. And the fizzy lagers were awful with food as well. So that's when the idea evolved as a student at Cambridge: Why don't I come up with a beer that has the refreshment of a lager and the smoothness of an ale combined? That's the idea of a Cobra beer. A very simple idea.

From a young Bawa boy, if I may say so, a brewery version of dhansak... to throw in daal and meat together...

What a good way of putting it! Dhansak is one of my favourite dishes. And Hyderabadi biryani. These are my two favourite all-time dishes.

Because you were brought up in Hyderabad, an Osmania University boy... And then the beer became a rage because you figured that British people like beer and curry was catching on...

Indian food is so popular in Britain that there are over 10,000 Indian restaurants. Over two-thirds of those are Bangladeshi... They all serve Indian food. Indian food is now a way of life in Britain. Everyone goes to Indian restaurants. People cook Indian food at home. The supermarkets, all sell Indian ingredients. And the most popular drink with Indian food is beer. The Indian restaurants have been our base. Now we also sell in all the supermarkets, Sainsbury's and Tesco and Waitrose, we are increasingly getting into pubs and we export around the world.

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