AN INDIAN takeaway run by a young man and his uncle has recently opened in Newport city centre. 

Masum Ahmed has opened Bombay Kitchen on Chepstow Road alongside his uncle Ponki Miah, who, with 15 years of experience in the Indian food industry, has become head chef at the takeaway. 

Mr Ahmed said he and his uncle had always wanted to open their own business, and "jumped at the chance" when they saw the takeaway arrive on the market. 

He explained: "My uncle already has 35 years of chef experience and is award-winning across South Wales. 

"He was already semi-retired but I managed to persuade him to come out of retirement and join me. We'd always wanted to go into business together, and we've formed a brilliant family partnership." 

According to Mr Ahmed, the business's name came from when India was colonised by Britain and Mumbai was known as Bombay, and reflects how they wanted to provide a traditional and authentic vibe for their menu. 

He added: "We believe that bringing a traditional menu of one of Britain's most favourite cuisines is really important. 

"We found that a lot of Indian takeaways are actually catered more to the British palate, and we wanted to respect that with our authentic meals but wanted to make sure they would be suitable for our clients."

Mr Ahmed and his uncle have big hopes for the business, with plans to turn the company into a big franchise with the headquarters based here in Newport. 

He said: "We chose to open in Newport, in a prime location as we live here, so the commute would be easy. 

"While we realise that there are a lot of takeaways and restaurants already here, we truly believe that if the food quality is there we can make this work. 

"We've had a really excellent response since we opened, and it's really a dream come true that we've finally been able to make this happen." 

With the festive season approaching, Mr Ahmed has decided to have a charity event on December 3, by donating Indian meals to the homeless and vulnerable people within their communities by working closely with registered charities such as Solas, Food Cycle Newport and the Salvation Army  that do fantastic work with the most vulnerable and destitute people.

Mr Ahmed explained: "Between us, we're hoping to organise enough meals to feed more than 100 people spread across the whole city through these charities. 

"We hope this endeavour in the winter months close to Christmas will be appreciated and be something that other food establishments routinely carry out. 

"We would be immensely gratified to see the implementation of this practice by lots of other takeaways, restaurants and food outlets across the city.

"If our event goes well, we will consider doing a similar thing again in the run-up to Christmas."

Bombay Kitchen is open 5-11pm seven days a week.