If you’ve been searching for your favorite beers like Budweiser or Kingfisher in Delhi lately, you’re not alone — and you’re probably noticing some new names instead. Popular brands are disappearing from store shelves, making way for lesser-known beers, many of them either locally brewed or imported from Nepal and Bhutan.
As a result, brands like Barahsinghe, Druk, and Le Chilldoz are becoming more common than the usual crowd favorites. This sudden shift has left both beer lovers and major brewers puzzled — and it’s already hurting liquor store sales.
According to Vinod Giri, Director General of the Brewers Association of India (which represents big players like Heineken, AB InBev, and United Breweries), most of Delhi is now flooded with cheaper, lesser-known beers. “Cheaper imports from Bhutan and Nepal are entering the market and crowding out the familiar brands,” he explained in a statement to Mint.
And it’s not just Delhi — a similar trend is unfolding in places like Tamil Nadu, where government-run liquor stores are squeezing established beer brands out of the market.
The changes are raising serious concerns across India’s beer industry as consumers and brewers adjust to this new reality.
