UK's unemployment rate declines by 5 per cent

Highlights

• Licensing reforms let pubs host events and serve outdoors with ease
• South Asian workers turned pub rejection into a thriving desi pub scene.
• South Asian pubs mix Indian cuisine, Punjabi beats, and British pub culture.

From rejection to reinvention

When south Asian foundry and factory workers arrived in England decades ago, they faced a harsh reality, refusal at the pub doors and their response was by building their own. From The Scotsman in Southall over 50 years old, run by Shinda Mahal, to Birmingham’s The Grove and The Covered Wagon, these establishments emerged as immigrant workers from India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh moved to the West Midlands.

Now, as the UK government launches a fast-track review to scrap outdated licensing rules, these south Asian pubs stand ready to write a new chapter in British hospitality. “Pubs and bars are the beating heart of our communities. Under our Plan for Change, we’re backing them to thrive”, said prime minister Keir Starmer.