Reader ASHWIN RAO emails a photo of a bus in Udupi (South India) which sports the LuLu logo. Has the LuLu conglomerate moved into transport business or is this is a case of an enthusiastic bus owner trying to show off his Gulf roots?

If you travel in the Malabar region of Kerala, a lot of businesses — from bakeries to restaurants to buses to barber shops – have taken a fancy for names from Gulf countries. So next time you bump into a Muscat Bakery or a Doha Motors, don’t get awed. With every household in the Malabar region having a person employed in GCC, it can’t get better than this. Last time, I almost fainted looking at a shawarma counter in Kannur, Kerala. Someone told me there is a milkshake called “Sharjah Milk Shake”. Malabar shall not forget its bread-butter roots, after all.

Related link: LuLu website