New Delhi, March 19 -- A faraway war may squeeze margins for one of India's biggest beer makers just as the summer season begins.

After two tepid quarters, demand is finally recovering but profitability could be under pressure amid rising input costs due to the ongoing war in West Asia, Vivek Gupta, managing director and chief executive officer of Bengaluru-based United Breweries, which makes Kingfisher and Heineken, said in an exclusive interview.

"The growth of the beer category is dependent on not just favourable weather but also on affordability, local policies and raw material supplies," Gupta told Mint. "Our margins will surely be under pressure as there will be some impact from the war. We can already see a 5-6% increase in our c...