DHABA
Inspired by the punjabi roadside resting place, DHABA is a podcast that invites pause, perspective, and peppered wisdom. Each episode brings together cooks, caretakers, bridge-builders and makers whose craft speaks louder than credentials. DHABA is a resting place for restless minds, where experience is the spice and conversation the fuel.
DHABA
Steve D Sailopal Co-Founder Curry Smugglers- Snacks, Story, And Swag
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A lost snack pack finds its way to the mic and opens a bigger story: how a Punjabi family turned street memories into a modern brand that won Fortnum & Mason and claimed a Piccadilly window. We sit down with Steve from Curry Smugglers to unpack why a can of Bombay Mix can do what a plain bag never could—stand tall on shelves, spark nostalgia, and carry culture with pride.
We trace the journey from Delhi airport heat to train vendors at Chandigarh, from aunties pressing chakli to a Spotify playlist on the can. Steve connects the dots between music scenes that “weren’t ready yet,” his early house bhangra on John Peel, and the grind that later helped pioneer the UK’s alcohol‑free beer wave. That same graft shows up in snacks: 36,000 cans filled on a manual line, buyers who love that cans don’t topple, and the clean, recyclable logic of aluminium over plastic. Retail strategy meets design swagger, and the shelf becomes a stage where Desi heritage is the headliner.
The conversation turns to care and community. The designer who inspired the brand’s look passed away in 2012, and that loss deepens the mission: normalising mental health talk in communities taught to shrug pain off, and exploring gentle, Ayurveda‑inspired products that sit naturally beside everyday snacking. We swap stories of growing up in East London in the 80s, finding belonging, and why London’s multicultural energy still sets the table for food, music and identity to thrive.
If you love brand building, CPG, South Asian culture, or the craft of turning memory into a product that moves, this one hits home. Press play, share it with a friend who needs the inspiration, and if it resonates, subscribe and leave a review so more people can find these stories.
DHABA
Brewed slowly. served warmly. crafted with care
From Lost Snack Pack To Rave Review
SPEAKER_01Steve. Curry smugglers. Curry smugglers. Insane, insane. Right, this is an audio only podcast for now, okay? But Steve was good enough to send me a Disi snack pack, right? Um, which did get lost in the post. Thankfully, the neighbors where I am are reasonable most of the time, and it did eventually find its way into my mitts. And no word of a lie. It's four cans, which is awesome branding, by the way. So you've got this snack pack, right? And you've got Bombay Mix, you've got Pukora, you've got what else we've got? We've got Chuckli and Masalacorn. My personal favorite, masal alcune, right? Which I don't think I'm gonna be alone there. Um it it literally was less than less than 24 hours. Oh it is so good. This product is so good, and by the way, I have not been paid to say any of this, right? Um Pandabi, right? That's my heritage, so I will say it like it is. And Steve, you guys, you and Ruby, right? Um this this is insanely good.
SPEAKER_06Insanely good. You're very kind, sir. You're very kind, bro. You're very kind. It's uh it's it's it's uh it's been uh it's uh been an interesting journey so far.
SPEAKER_01Always is. Always is. So you can hear me okay. I guess I can you can see me and everything else. As I said, it is going to be audio only for now. Um thank you so much for agreeing to come on, Tabara. Um I did contact you a while back, and apologies from my side that this has taken a little bit too long. Thank you. Um I was seriously kicking myself when you guys were on your your one of your marketing campaigns, and it was where I saw all of a sudden so much promotion, and rightly so. Um you talk about that. Where where was this big, big reveal in a very, very famous famous space?
Winning Fortnum’s And The Big Reveal
SPEAKER_06You know what happened? Um we entered a competition. Well, we launched last November, and then I think it was about August of this year, we entered a competition at Fortnum Mason. That um very posh shopping Piccadilly circus.
SPEAKER_01Institution, the institution that is Fortnum and Mason, globally renowned and recognized on Regal Street London.
SPEAKER_06The place where Ramta used to sing about Piccadilly. Yep, yep. And um, yeah, we entered this competition and um we were well, we won. We were one of the 10 winners of Fortnamakers um competition, which showcased up and coming exciting brands. And um, so we went down there, me and Ruby, and yeah, it was great meeting everyone. And then they told us that, oh, by the way, we've given you an exclusive window in Piccadilly Circus for three months. Oh, so what the hell? You know what it was? It was like that moment when you're be again, you know, punching it.
SPEAKER_05You know, Piccadilly. And beautiful. That was a big one. Beautiful.
SPEAKER_01I I've gotta say, right, I've not seen an event like that, a campaign like that, and just the visibility.
Rebranding South Asian Snacks With Swagger
SPEAKER_06It was, you know what, I think it it um it shows you that you know our culture can, you know, shake things up. Because what the buyer said to me, one thing, she goes, Steve, you know, all the mission you and Ruby on is that the snacks, South Asian snacks, they are, you're right, Steve, they are sold in boring plain bags in the supermarket. They don't depict your culture, you know, your desi swag, you know, the Bollywood Byroncy, you know. And, you know, people used to say to me, Joey, you know, when I started the project, I mean we were really like, oh, Bombay mixed the you can get anywhere cheap, you know, pound a pound a bag and all that. But, you know, I said, you know, it's it's not an experience, you know, just picking up a bag of co-fresh and all, you know, all that. I, you know, you gotta be, you, you gotta do something because, you know, we're in the day of you know social media and you know, it's all about experiences. So, you know, we got that Punjabi attitude, you know, gotta get the corner, you know, you know, right. It's all ironic. Yeah, exactly. Yeah, we started it, man. You know, and um so far it's it's been good. It's um it's it's been taken really well by all areas of the community, you know, not just up and air, you know, uh, you know, quite a lot from you know the you know, the English, our English customers, and you know, even we've had inquiries now from Belgium and Spain, you know, it's like I think it's it's also the fact that a lot of people love journey, traveling to India and you know, all the spiritual part of it, and you know, the noise and you know, the hustle and bustle of India. And and we thought, you know, when we're creating this can, we want people to reminisce about hiya. You remember there was that cow walking in the middle of the road, and you know, when I was walking in Jalandari, you know, there's all this going on, and you know, and and you know, we wanted to create that, but at the same time, Joe, it was very important for us that, you know, because like yourself, we we grew up eating this, you know, these snacks, you know. Our mum and our mums, our aunties, you know, puppies, and you know, used to make these semya and you know, all this, you know, while while we were growing up. And um, I'm first generation, yeah, you know, I was born in England, and my kids now, second generation, they're saying, like, when we go at the supermarket, you know, you've got the Asian snacks, the English snacks, and nice branding on Mexican and Korean, but our Asian branding is just so, you know, so crap. So um, you know, and we don't want to lose that with our second generation as well, you know. So it was so important that, you know, we we worked on this idea and uh and and helped to, you know, take our identity a little bit further, you know, um, not just with how we're seeing with current music um collaborations, etc., you know. Um, you know, and um other things I'm hearing in the media at the moment, you know, Prada are working with Jubal guys in India to call upals and all that. So you know, our fusion is always gonna be here to stay no matter what, you know. I mean, you know, it's we're part of furniture now, you know.
Travel Memories That Shaped The Concept
SPEAKER_01I think it's been sadly lacking. I think you've hit on a very, very important thread, Steve. Um because we have as a community been focusing so much on draft because that that is just ingrained in us. Yeah. You don't work, you don't eat. It's simple. It's it's it's it's a very, very simple philosophy. Um we kind of forgot to to celebrate who we are, exactly, what we've done. Um, and that's one of the reasons. I mean, I've said this so many times on on the show, you know, why? Who needs another bloody podcast? Right. This is exactly, exactly why I wanted to do, right? Um because I don't see enough people like us, and I'm not just talking about you know, Pundubbans or South Asians and that broader spectrum. Um I've got girls who are trying to be F1 drivers. Yeah. Uh Michelin Chef, we just had in in season one, um, brilliant uh Peter Joseph. And it's that diversity. I'm being very, very selfish. Yeah. I I I literally just sat down and I thought to myself, maybe I'm looking in the wrong places, but I don't see folks like you, Steve. I just don't. It's right, it's and these stories are so, so, so important.
SPEAKER_06Important. They are very important. You know, it's like it's you know, we I like I was saying, I'm I'm born in England, and you know, I used to go quite frequently to India with my parents, and and we always, you know, obviously we went to Punjab. And those memories of, you know, jumping on a train in Chandigar and while the train's running, somebody's trying to flog you something through the window. Yeah. You know, and that's why, you know, these things, you know, when we talk about it to our children, you know, it's like it's a story which you don't ever want to end.
SPEAKER_01Let's let's explore that, right? Because you know for me, I was very, very lucky. Yeah, I didn't think of it at the time. I had to wait until I got into my mid-late teens when I thought, yeah, man, this is my pin. This is awesome. Yeah, right? And before then, it was all of my school friends with, oh, where did you go for your summer holidays? Oh, we went to Greece, oh, we went to Spain, oh, we went to Italy. And I'm what was your journey though, right? So imagine um you land, I'm assuming, in Delhi, right? Yeah, yeah. Yeah, whichever airline. I'm not plugging anybody, but how did you get from Delhi to Punjab?
SPEAKER_06What what was that journey like? Oh mate, I think the first time when I went, me and my mum, we we flew on this airline which doesn't even exist anymore called Pan Am. Pan American. Yeah, that shows you my age, and um, yeah, you land at the airport, you walk through, and it's like you know, a young eight-year-old Eastern boy, walk out at uh Delhi airport, and then whoosh, that he hits you, then the noise hits you, then the spell hits you, and then uh, you know, um Uncle G comes and you haven't seen saying, Oh, here, come and you know, we've got to get into this little Maruti van, you know, and then you've got that five-hour journey to Gendigar or Ludhiana, you know, and um that whole journey as a as a young kid, you're looking out the window, you know, it's like what the hell? You know, it's like and you're taking it all in, and all you've ever been used to is driving down the M1 in a straight line, you know, if you're going on a long journey, you know. But but that I think that experience at a certain age, you know, just builds you with so much confidence because when you see people doing that hard graft, you know, in the streets in India, you know, first you do look back a little bit, but then you say you nod your edge, you say, you know what, mate, you know, good on you, you know.
SPEAKER_00You're doing it. Yeah.
SPEAKER_06Good on you. Because that's what our parents done when they came here, you know. And that's why, like when you mentioned earlier, you know, we we don't see much of all of all this exciting branding that's possible that potentially possible, is because our previous generation was just totally grafting, you know. They were just literally, you know, they were working so hard, bless them, you know. Um, and it's now time for us set first generations to you know, hopefully, you know, still capture that uh excitement that we had for our second generation.
False Starts In Music And Cultural Crossover
SPEAKER_01Um I I think there's there's forgive me, there's there's a slight nuance there for me. Right? Because when I was in high school, I'd bunk off, go to a daytime gig, yeah, and that's how I got into music and you know, playing with some really, really nice people. Yeah, yeah. And I can remember Giles Peterson, for example, Acid Jazz.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. And there was some press conference and he was bigging up like um Bangaro was just coming up, and you had Apache Indian, this is before PMC, right? Punjabi that kind of era. And then he he he took me to one side privately and he said, Yeah, we're not ready for it yet. Right? And I didn't understand, but years later I did understand. Because there have been several false starts, let's put it that way. Many where, you know, we as a community have done our own thing, but we've done that in isolation because genuinely we didn't care. It was just okay, Ronuk, Mela, this is what we're going to do, whether it's somebody's wedding, a celebration, whatever it was, or you know, the Wali, um, whatever festival. And we would do that on our own.
SPEAKER_05Yeah. Yeah.
SPEAKER_01I don't think the host population was ready.
SPEAKER_06No, no. And and it frustrates. What do you think? Well, no, it it frustrates me because you know, our music in the 80s was as loud as the reggae music, which was crossing over. Yes. You know, and just as exciting, and they uh and everybody was having the same amount of fun. Yeah. Um, but we we as an Asian uh Bangra genre found it very, very difficult to come through. Um my background um uh Joel is obviously mu music as well. And you know, in the early, I think it was 84, we I was part of a two-man uh, me and my cousin, we had a band called Culture Shock. Culture Shock. And we really we released a track back in '84. Uh 85, I can't even bloody remember the year now. It'd be so long. Um, called House Bunger. And um we were signed up with Morgan Kahn, who was uh the guy who done the compilations of the hip hip hop compilation Street Sounds.
SPEAKER_02Yeah.
SPEAKER_06So we we had just signed signed up with him, and you know, we we managed to you know get on the John Peel show, which was like I iconic. And when we used to go to the Street Sound studio, we were the only Asians going into that recording studio in Ealing, and and there were so many other you know guys doing the rap music, and um you know, and we're and they used to say to us, you know, we don't see many Asians in this in the in the studio here, guys. Great to see you, man. You know, we love your music, you know. Um, so yeah, that was that was uh that was an interesting time, but it's taking so long, and I feel next year with what Daljit's doing, what Garan's doing, I think finally, and and it breaks my heart that you know we lost a great one with Siddhumusiala, you know, and hopefully his parents will release some tracks next year. I think we're gonna we're gonna see some exciting um Asian uh tracks in the in the mainstream next year. I think it's it's starting to happen, mate. Punjabiaga, yeah, man.
Naming The Brand And Iconic Snacks
SPEAKER_01It's like it's it's no longer like car degrees, right? It's it's it's propagating, it's really, really spreading its wings. But as I said already, um I don't see enough. Yeah, and it's not just Asians, it's it's it's multiple types of people um doing amazing things and who have stories that matter, right?
SPEAKER_06So there's a lot of exciting brands coming through. Uh Jake, watch this space. I was at an event in um in London just recently, and there was um there's about six, seven food snacks coming through next year, which is exactly on the same sort of level as what we're trying to create. Not snacks, but another another thing. There's a young lady, a young girl, she's launched a Panid brand called All the Yunties. So, you know, it's really exciting. You know, um, there's another, there's another lad I bumped into the other day. He's got a range of spices called Tuck Tuck, you know, which is really cool, scandy sort of branding, you know. Okay. And it's showing, you know, that our brands don't need to look like all that. Um, what's the word? You know, they're they're very luxury-aimed, some of these up-like brands, you know, the old school ones. And now they're all, and now we're getting a bit edgy, you know. It's gonna be on the street, you know?
SPEAKER_01Going going back to our essence, right? Because with the best will in the world, there was, and you've you've touched on it really, really nicely, Steve. We grew up with, you know, our mums, our boas, our like mussies, all of them. They'd all be in the kitchen, you know, they'd all be yapping away, as they do, right? About everything and everyone. Um, and cooking, and cooking these amazing, amazing snacks and everything else. Um now I think the the timing was right before, but everything's you know, cyclical. What you guys have done is it's just brilliant. I love your branding, I love your entire concept. Thank you. And um I can't wait to see what's next. How did you start though?
SPEAKER_06I mean, what was that what what was that moment when was it yourself and Ruby or was it, you know, yeah, well it it like you're saying, um it started last November and it was it was mainly my kids, you know. It's like why why are these snacks so boring? Boring. Why is Asian snacks not as good as all these other, you know, you know, Mexican Korean branding and all that? Um I'm I for the last 15 years I've been in the beer industry, so I'm a I'm Also, I'm a brewer. So cans are around the house all the time. So Ruby said to me, She goes, Why don't we, you know, we know how to make these snacks. Ruby's mum, you know, bless her, you know, was with us that day. And she said, you know, we we can do that. And we said, okay, let's pop them in a beer can. And, you know, just like that. And we thought, why the hell didn't we think of this before? You know, Ruby's happy now. There's more snack cans in the house than beer cans. You know what I mean?
SPEAKER_01You've taken an artisan craft because simple ideas sometimes, isn't it?
SPEAKER_05You know?
Scaling Up: Cans, Shelf Logic, And Sustainability
SPEAKER_01Exactly. It's the same idea. And you've just mashed up. It's it's if you look at the whole design premise, the whole marketing aspect of it, you you've taken so many different elements. Yeah. And you've created almost like this Tully. This is like for a single product. The the visualization, the the packaging, the whole thought process, just a naming convention as well. Yeah.
SPEAKER_06And it's a strong name. It's a strong name. What do you think of the name? There's a story behind that. Go on then. You're reading my mind. It's those journeys again from India. It's those journeys. So like whenever we go out there, Mum, and now recently my wife, we always like, you know, let's get some masalah grounded up. If you can't get any masala in England, you know, it's like, no, let's get some masala ground up or whatever, and a chart and all that. And our suitcase would be used to be bloody full of it. And then once the customers, obviously, customs officers are going to pull us up. And he opened it up and he was actually having a laugh. He wasn't very serious about it. He goes, Oh what, curry smuggling? This was years ago. Brilliant. And never forget these moments. And I remember once we were coming back, and Mum had brown sugar. Right. The legal brown sugar. Yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Customs officer said, What's this? And Mum said brown sugar. And I was going, Oh no, Mum, don't say that.
SPEAKER_05So funny. Oh my god. And uh yeah, how did you get out of that? Oh mate, it's so funny. And uh getting any red, like, yeah, this is just dirt der of sugar, isn't it? You know, but it was so funny.
SPEAKER_06But that that whole thing when the guy said curry smuggling, it it stays in your mind, and it's a great conversation. We always talk about it, you know, and and we thought we'd use that because we've all experienced it, not just me and my wife. I'm sure you have, you know. And we we wanted to create the box with the four iconic snacks. So, you know, you touched earlier regarding the masala corn.
SPEAKER_02Yeah.
SPEAKER_06You know, they tried to put you in, you know, that little newspaper cones they make and through the through the train window. That and that, and that's the one I used to always go for. The the Chuckley, you know, um, I'm sure you've got one at home is that brass device with the handle at the top. Yes, yes, yes. Yes, and we've been making it with that, and you know, now we don't have that much of that interaction at home because I remember when I was growing up, there was my like I say, aunties and my puppies and everyone used to get together and make it, and now they just get them from outside and they don't even make them anymore, you know.
SPEAKER_01Um and you think that's that's just the way of the world, or or do you think we we should be encouraging that more?
SPEAKER_06I think we should be encouraging that because that was a that was a it's it's a bit of a skill set, you know. It's very much a skill set.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, tasted enough where shall we say the less experienced puppies and aunties have had a go and it hasn't really turned out what you think.
SPEAKER_06I've tasted some really funny tasting gorglia, mate, in my life.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I think we've all been there. But these these cultural artifacts, yeah, they yeah, we we we need to be thinking inwardly, I think, as well as outwardly.
SPEAKER_06We we do, we do, and hopefully, you know, with this sort of snacking experience, you know, with what's going on in the world at the moment, it's very what we're seeing in the UK as well, you know. Hopefully we can all get together, enjoy and share our culture, you know. 100%, you know, and and and you know, and spread the love, man, you know, because this is not just a Desi snack box, you know, it's it's full of memories, not just of my family, of every single Asian in this country. Exactly.
SPEAKER_01Well, anyone who's been to the subcontinent.
Experience, Graft, And Pioneering Alcohol‑Free Beer
SPEAKER_06Oh mate, it's all in that box. Yeah, it's it is it is, it's full of full of so many memories of so many people. We we got a lot of ideas, um, for for what we want to do next, you know, with the curry smuggling, um, you know, different types of products, and and there's so many products that we enjoy as South Asians that are not really in the in the UK market, you know. And um, not gonna drop anything at the moment what we're planning on doing, but early next year, man. I'm working on a couple of other other other other products. And hopefully we can grow. Um, our dilemma at the moment, Joel, is that um we're we've been making these snacks at home. And now as we're expanding, we're you know, we've found an up and uh uh manufacturer who can do that as as we grow. Um we're getting a lot of interest you know from uh online supermarkets and uh high street supermarket, but we potentially we want to grow, and you know, we're just trying to raise funds at the moment to you know get an automated canning line because there's nobody in the UK who will fill dry goods into beer cans. There's no one, nobody, yeah. So I I got a machine um which you know we've been doing manually for the last yeah, and we've done over so since November last year, we've done 36,000 cans.
SPEAKER_03Whoa.
SPEAKER_0636 I couldn't believe it. When we looked at the machine the other day, because every time we fill a can, a number on the LED comes up. Bloody hell, 36,000 cans. There's 36,000 cans out there, man. People have enjoyed. And um, you know, there was so much we can do. We just need to raise funds at the moment, get a proper canning line put in and you know, premises and all that sort of stuff, and take the snack brand to the next level, you know, and um hopefully everybody can enjoy it.
SPEAKER_01It's it's it's brilliant to to listen to you share your brand's evolution.
SPEAKER_06Thank you, thank you.
SPEAKER_01Right? I mean, last November, which isn't that long ago, it's no, it's literally a year, man. A year.
SPEAKER_06Yeah.
SPEAKER_01Right? And you've killed Fortnum and Masons, you've got like a huge amount of press, and the product is the end of the day. If your product is crap, it doesn't matter what kind of brand, what kind of marketing, what your go-to-market strategy happens to be, it it's it's nonsense. Your product is so powerful. The story is amazing.
SPEAKER_06You need a brand that will stand out from the rest of the crowd. Only then people are gonna bloody notice you.
SPEAKER_01But it's your story.
SPEAKER_06Yeah.
SPEAKER_01It's your story, and it's so relatable.
SPEAKER_06This is this is uh we we had a we had on my Instagram in um January last year, I got a text message um from a young lady. Uh she probably I shouldn't say her name, but uh a department store in London. Um, I'm I'm so and so I'm the buyer of this department store. I loved what you're doing. I thought you're pulling my leg. This can't be that buyer from that department store. Uh so I called up a few friends, yeah, she definitely is. So within January, we were in Oxford Street in that lovely orange store there, you know. Nice. And it just shows you it it clicked something with her as well. She goes, It's so exciting, you know, what we're doing. Um I I don't want to, you know, put a darkener on what the previous snack brands in the UK have done. They've built an audience for us already, which is probably last time I I I Googled on Mintel was a rough the Asian snack. I think it was about 20 million or something like that. So if those sort of brands are already doing about 20 million, we can only grow grow, mate, you know.
Mental Health, Seva, And Community Care
SPEAKER_01Um and there is room because as as you said, and you know, the observations from your family. Yeah, I think it's a combination of complacency and um just lack of awareness. Um, but you and Ruby and everyone else who's involved with curry smugglers, um, you you're you're just smashing it. And I can't wait. I can't wait to see what's next. I really, really can't wait.
SPEAKER_06I mean, I'm naturally uh impatient, but we get a lot of people still, still Joe, we still get people saying, Oh, what beer is this? It's like it's not a beer. Yeah, I mean, it's it's a Bombay Mix flavoured beer. I had the other day, I thought, you know, you are gonna get that though.
SPEAKER_01But having said that, it is if you look at the practicalities of it, right? It's easily stackable, it's visible. You imagine this on the shelf, right? And you've got the cross-product aspect of it as well. People, you know, when are they gonna have this? Okay, you sit in front of the TV, you open a can of beer, whatever, you could be with your mates, you could be on your own. And it's when you think about it, it's logical. It's totally logical. Where's okay, where's my curry smugglers can? Cans, I should say. Um, because if anyone's like me, they don't just want one flavor. I want several flavors all at once. Thank you very much. Um and it's the usability of it.
SPEAKER_06It's it's so easy. So a buyer said to us recently is that when they've got when they have to put their bag snacks on the shelves, the bags fall down. She goes, Steve, your can stay upright. Of course. You know, which makes life so easy for us. Plus, we don't have to get little cardboard boxes made as well. So, environmentally aspect, the aluminium can is 100% recyclable to plastic bags which end up in landfills. You don't have to have all these little cardboard boxes on the shelves as well. These cans fit in your car coffee mug thing, so you don't spin them all obviously. You know. Absolutely. They they fit in there, and you know, it it it's it there's this the the word at the moment, Instagrammable. Yes, which has come into the Oxford Dictionary, I hope so far, you know, it is Instagrammable. You know, snacking should be an experience because there's so many about it, you know.
SPEAKER_01It is, it is, it is, it is, and uh you've just elevated something which uh everyone has done generationally. Yeah, yeah, and it's just executed beautifully. Thank you.
SPEAKER_06Well done. Well done. Thank you, man. We we just wanted to create a brand that just makes puts a smile on everybody's face when they look look at it. You know, um we've done a dissipation. We've done a dissy playlist on the back if you scan the shop uh Spotify on there, you know. And and and that's so far, you know, we've had all the good vibes, you know. Everybody's picked it up and said really good things about it. Like yourself, my friend, you know, it means a lot to us. You know, we're we're a tiny brand, but you know, we're we're bringing some good vibes to the market, you know. We're getting some positive.
SPEAKER_01It means a lot to so many people. Right? That is 110% reciprocated to see this evolve and the manner in which your team, you Ruby, and everybody else have you know worked really and and thoughtfully.
SPEAKER_05Yeah.
SPEAKER_01Thoughtfully, it's it's another aspect I want to touch on as well. Because with your permission, of course. You've been in the trenches. Yeah? You've been in the trenches, you are an experienced practitioner. Goodness mate. And it it is it is the collection of your experiences, your knowledge, your skill. Yeah, everyone hears about oh, young so-and-so, um straight out of school, this thing, that thing, da da da da da. And you're successful, that's fine, but you are still rocking it.
SPEAKER_05Mate, I'm gonna be 60 next year. Bale.
Growing Up In The 80s And Belonging
SPEAKER_06I'm gonna be 60 next yeah. So um, you know, it's been it's been an interesting journey. Um yeah, you can say it takes a few knocks to get your experience. Of course. But you know, I've I've been I've you know I've been fortunate to be in a position in the UK where in the beer industry, you know, um, I I helped create the UK's first alcohol-free beer in 2016. Um I'm still and uh, you know, people um I work with a lot of breweries as as a consultant uh for alcohol-free. Um prior to that, um, I helped bring the UK's first organic beer into the UK, uh, which we sold in Waitros, um, you know, which was a lot of fun. But with with the beer side of things, you know, there's a there's a lot of microbreweries out there now. Um and me and Ruby were contemplating probably about a year ago that there's gotta be another route out of this now. I've got to gotta think of something new. And that and you know, this was this was just sitting there to happen, you know. Um but you know, having the opportunity, look how big the alcohol-free industry is now. It's massive. It's massive. And and and people in the industry know what I've done, and you know, and there's a lot of love, and you know, um, and you know, and I and I look back and I'm and I'm pleased to see that how you know I was probably helped pioneer it, you know, and and and and see what where it is now, you know. Um and hopefully we can grow this the dissi snack scene in that sort of um uh way as well, you know. Uh the figures that are figures that are happening in alcohol free at the moment, you know, um you know, because everybody's drinking is changing, everybody now, like when we were growing up, you know, it was like glossy and you know, pop up on it, parties and all that sort of stuff.
SPEAKER_00Yes.
SPEAKER_06You know, it's a totally different vibe now, man. You know, um, and um, you know, we're not saying people in the alcohol free when I was doing it, I wasn't telling people not to drink, you know. People saying, look, you know, you can also have this alongside your normal drinking as well. You know, it's all that because I had a lot of friends who are who are brewers, and they when I started the alcohol free, they were saying, Steve, look, man, you bumped your head or something, you know, everybody can start drinking alcohol free. Pubs are gonna close, breweries are gonna close, you know. And it's and now those same brewers, my friend, they're also making alcohol-free fear bag and dust as you know, you know.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, yeah, you won't disappear.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, it's it's funny how that that happens. Yeah, it is. But it's it's it's going back to that whole aspect of grafting. Yeah, it's not about sitting on your laurels and thinking, okay, yeah, done it. It's never there there's there's never a done it. It is always okay, what's next? What's next?
SPEAKER_06We saw our parents grafting. Exactly. And um, you know, fortunately for me, my my father was also an entrepreneur as well. Um, you know, he was a tailor from profession. And in the early six, in the in the so he came over in 57. So in the early 70s, you know, he built up a really nice um fashion brand at in those days, you know. So he was in the rag trade. I think that also rubs off as well, you know. So um, you know, seeing these, and and you know, you just want to do something, and and it is great to do something for your society, you know.
SPEAKER_00It's that whole Seba.
SPEAKER_06That's it. That's it.
SPEAKER_00Seba mindset.
London’s Multicultural Energy And Food
SPEAKER_06That's it. That's what it's all about, mate. You know, that is plan A on the table, you know. And um, you know, we we've got some exciting plans for next year, and I hope we can still continue the love, man. You know, but uh we're we're we're just so blessed that, you know, uh Jay, you're giving us a platform here on the on your podcast, man. It means a lot to us, man, you know, and um big love to you, bro.
SPEAKER_01Look, thank you. Thank you so much. Um where do you see I mean you've already mentioned you've got other irons in the fire, right? But clearly it's not just about fast moving goods, it's not just about you know snacking. Um I mean you've got legacy, legacy in in, you know, the brewery side of things. And what else is what else is piquing your interest? Because yeah, it's it it's strikes me that you love exploration, adaptation, um you see an opportunity and then you just kind of okay, well let's try to emphasize.
Closing Thanks And Social CTA
SPEAKER_06Yeah. I I I got out of alcohol free because that industry to so many people came into it. And when so many people come into an industry, it just you know, is there any point here now? You know, let them get on with it. Plus, a lot of players came in with a lot of money, so they just went boom, you know, and they took over the scene, whereas all these indie brands and inside suffer. What we want to do now is capture, you know, the the mental health is a huge problem. It's it's an issue. It is it's you know, we're all we have all of us in some way or another, you know, have thoughts in our mind, you know. We as a brand, um, the young lady who created our logo 2012 took her life. Um and we didn't know that uh she was struggling. You know, um, she's always happy, always talking about our trips to Goa and you know, a love for trans music and um house music. But we didn't know. So I think with I don't know whether if it's the pressures we have now than before, you know, we we are we a lot of us we do struggle and a lot of us are not able to cope. So we are now looking at next year or how we can help. And I think there's an old Ayavida. You know, I think we're going to delve into that a little bit next year. There's a couple of products that I've already seen out in India that I think, you know, we can bring to the UK market um and you know and and put it on the health food shelves, you know. I think um and and talk about this without being because you know when we were growing up, uh I don't know if it's with yourself, my friend, but with a a lot of people I've seen growing up, you know, or goigali, you know, and just it's like it was different with Asian, with boys especially, you know. Oh my god. You know, it's yeah, don't worry, don't worry. It's Gui Gali, you know, man up, a la glassy la la water, you know, and all that sort of stuff. It's it's not the vibe, it's not the cool vibe, man. You know, it's not what you know it was all about. But they didn't know any different because they were our parents were working hard, you know. So, you know, different different set of uh priorities.
SPEAKER_01It's uh it was that simple.
SPEAKER_06Exactly.
SPEAKER_02So survival.
SPEAKER_06Yeah, yeah. So I think more we talk about it and not shy about not talking about it, I think is a really good thing. And I'm and I say that to our community, to wherever we speak. And I was speaking to a friend of mine who's got a drinks brand called Nicta, you know, and um, you know, he talks about that as well, and also about you know, mental health. And I think it's very important, especially in our age South Asian culture, we need to talk about it, you know.
SPEAKER_01So important. I mean, this is why I I diversified the conversation, right? Kind of handbrake turn. Um because you're not this isn't something that's just popped into your head, Steve, right? And this isn't something that you and your brilliant team are are kind of giving, you know, minimal copy to. You've got a huge presence on on your website, which celebrates the person who came up with the designs, who begins rather, it begins to tell that story um about mental health and how important. And and for me, yeah, probably yourself, but I'll say it out loud again. This goes back to Sever. Yeah, yeah, right, looking after not just ourselves, but everybody.
SPEAKER_02Everybody.
SPEAKER_06You know, we we d excuse me, during COVID, at that time we all said, Oh, let's call up our friends. We should have been doing that anyway, you know. And I hope and I hope people are still continuing to do that, you know. Just check up on someone, man. You know, don't know what shit somebody's going through. You know, we all put a smiling face on that, you know, we got up and you'll be our South Asian attitude. We're we're trying to keep a smile on our face, but you don't you're going through a lot of stuff, you know. We all go through a lot of things, you know.
SPEAKER_00Smiling's going up in the 80s.
SPEAKER_06Look, look, I yeah, I was growing up in the 80s. Yeah. You know, what we went through at that time, but do your parents understand about bullying at that time? No. No, you know. Um, so you know, the fact that our neighbors used to knock on our door and say, Yes, your curry, mate, it's coming out from you know, it's it's smells, you know, and all that sort of stuff, you know. So going to school as an Asian in the 80s, skin eds, all that sort of stuff, you know. How do you then come back home when your parents have come home after a hard graft as well to discuss all these sort of things, you know? It's times have changed, but it leaves its mark.
SPEAKER_01It it was normalized. Yeah. It was normalized, yeah. And I think there are a multitude of reasons why maybe we didn't want to bother our parents with it. Maybe well, like I said, load loads of reasons. But for those folks who might be listening to this show, I mean, Steve and I clearly we we grew up the same kind of time frame. And me, born and raised in Plasto, and you know, we had some sports teachers, bless them, who were aware of it. And they'd send us they'd send us home. Me and the handful of other non-white, shall we say. With rounders bats.
SPEAKER_06I was in East Ham. I was in East Ham.
SPEAKER_01I was in Plasto, mate.
SPEAKER_06Yeah, around the corner. Yeah, yeah. Yeah.
SPEAKER_01And they they send us home with rounders' bats.
SPEAKER_06That's it.
SPEAKER_01So and hockey sticks. So so we at least had somewhat of a chance to defend ourselves because it was normal. And there was no thing, no going to the police. They they they did nothing.
SPEAKER_06No, no, no. It was very difficult who you could trust in those days. And the fact that we used to I used to go to Langdon School. Uh, and obviously when you used to come outside, there used to be a huge mob standing outside just waiting. Yes. To do the pea bashing. And um, and uh, you know, it was uh yeah, it was it it makes you it makes you who you are, you know. Um but you know, those were those were the times now, and and and what I love about what we're seeing in England at the moment is that we are a very happy multicultural country. You know, the ones that want to make this a happy multicultural country, they are loving it here, you know.
SPEAKER_01It is an amazing country. I mean, everyone wants to put down London, everyone wants to put down any inner city, they want to put down the United Kingdom.
SPEAKER_06It's a brilliant place, so it's uh it's a cauldron of so much culture, you know. I was reading the other day, but somebody was saying, oh, London's becoming a bit boring. Um swinging 60s was great. Um uh, you know, we don't see the fun in Soho anymore and all that, you know, the music scene was great. There's so much more to see now, man. There's so much more.
SPEAKER_01Everything evolves, everything changes, and it's one of the few places where you know you can eat any cuisine, literally, um that you like. One night you could, and and it's it's diversified. You know, we we've got okay, specifically Indian subcontinent. If you wanted to have South Indian, that's there's a place for that. If you wanted Punjabi North cuisine, there's a place for that, you know. Um and it's great when I go to places like you know, in other European cities. You know, you you see such a proliferation of Indian restaurants who are head and shoulders above everywhere else. Yeah. There wouldn't necessarily be a Greek restaurant there, there wouldn't necessarily be an Italian place there. There'll be local, whatever the cuisine is, but invariably you will find an Indian restaurant. So that food, that culture, that whole essence of bringing people together with awesome flavors, yeah. It's all about community. It's all about it's one of the most natural things you can do.
SPEAKER_06It is and and the success of the Asian restaurants is because people enjoy them. They enjoy the food, they enjoy the culture. So what's not to love, man? What is not to love?
SPEAKER_01Absolutely brilliant, Steve. Look, it's I'm so glad that we've had an opportunity to speak. I'll definitely be bothering you, right? Um about other stuff as well. Um, because what I could keep saying, yourself and Ruby and your whole team have done and are doing, it needs to be celebrated, it needs um to be more visible. Yeah, and anything that I can do, just let me know. I mean, I haven't got a clue right now. You guys seem to be doing brilliantly on your own.
SPEAKER_06We're trying, we're we're a small team, we're a small team, and literally doing everything. Um, but you know, please do, you know, everyone just hook up on our Instagram, you know, our social media, and just help us make some noise, you know, and have some fun and uh bring back those memories of our trips to India.
SPEAKER_01And and loads of trips that will that will be coming in the future as well. Indeed. Steve, this has been super good, super big love to you. Um, thank you. Thank you, bro. Thanks very much.