Deepak Kuntawala was enjoying one last cup of tea with his father in the Taj Mahal Palace hotel in Mumbai when terrorists stormed in and started slaughtering people.

The businessman was due to fly home to England that night and originally thought the gunshots were part of a celebration.

But the gunmen’s intention soon became clear and after shepherding 150 terrified people into a room and barricading the doors, Mr Kuntawala, 36, began to plan their escape.

Four hours later, after listening to grenades shake the building and gunfire get closer, he had led them all to safety.

He said: “We turned the lights off and told everyone to lie on the floor, away from the windows.

“We heard grenade blasts and gunshots and thick black smoke began seeping into the room.

“One of the other guests, a European man, helped me move a large chest in front of the door, which we also bolted. There was just a lone door separating us from the terrorists.

“Had they gotten inside, they would have had a field day. It would have been complete slaughter.’’ Smashing open a window with a metal bar and tearing down curtains, Mr Kuntawala instructed other guests to build a rope to climb down from the first-floor room.

During the escape Mr Kuntawala’s father Vinay, 68, who also lives in Cheam, lost his grip and fell breaking his leg.

He said: “It was like in the film Titanic, when everyone was clawing over one another to get to the lifeboats.

“That's how people were fighting to go first, because, at this point, the terrorists were really close.

“I was actually worried that, after all our efforts, they'd just break in the door and shoot us all in the back as we prepared to escape. I and a few others made sure the elderly and women went first."

Since the terrorist attack on Wednesday, November 26 Mr Kuntawala, the London-based owner of a private equity company, has spent every day and night by his father’s bedside at Bombay Hospital.

On Saturday he was one of more than 20 people honored by city officials for heroism during the attacks that left almost 200 dead across India's financial capital.

He said: “The real heroes were the Taj staff - they were just fearless.

"As for what I did, it was the only logical thing to do.

"It wouldn't have made any sense to lie down and just wait for them. I wasn't going to let the terrorists win so easily."

• What do you think? Let us know in the comments section below.