THERE is no dearth of stories of immigrants succeeding and flourishing and amassing significant wealth in the process but among all these narratives, the tale of Dolar Popat, a peer in the House of Lords, stands out. Not that many Lords are refugees or start their working lives in a burger bar. Born in Uganda, Popat was only 17 when he reached the UK with just £10 and a cardboard suitcase to escape the grasp of Idi Amin’s brutal regime.

“I got on that plane less than a month before my 18th birthday. I brought with me £10 of my own money…..and a suitcase made of cardboard,” he said about his journey into the unknown. But the youngster had a fire in him to prove himself and he embarked on a relentless journey towards success in his new country of residence. He started out as a waiter at a Wimpy Bar, and rose to prominence as a business magnate and ultimately secured a seat in the House of Lords. The path was not easy or smooth but Popat, who is the first person with origins in India’s Gujarat to become a Conservative member of the House of Lords, found a strong backing from the former prime minister and now Foreign Secretary Lord David Cameron – besides his spiritual mentor Pujya Morari Bapu. Popat, whose autobiography A British Sub ject chronicles his remarkable journey and underscores the significance of integration in Britain, is a tireless servant of international trade and passionately works towards serving both the UK and Uganda – the two countries that he holds close to his heart. While Lord Cameron made him a peer in 2010 and also appointed him the trade envoy to Rwanda and Uganda with the Democratic Republic of Congo. Popat’s effectiveness in his role