We’re just a few days away from Diwali and the air in Delhi NCR already carries with it a burnt smell owing to the excessive crackers being burst all around. That said, one cannot miss the festive cheer that surrounds us. Every year, since the past five years, I make homemade sweets and savoury snacks for our near and dear ones for Diwali.
From namkeen matar, shakkarpare, chiwda namkeen to besan laddoos — the house is enveloped in the aromas that are reminiscent of a halwai shop. While these traditional mithais and snacks are loved in my immediate circle, the same folks have also showed a propensity to pick up a more eclectic collection of snacking gifts — when they aren’t cooking them at home. Through this, came a realisation that Indian mithai, itself, appears to be going through a metamorphosis of sorts.
Luxury mithai makers, for instance, have been taking basic laddoos and barfis a notch up with their contemporary twists, and this makes a big difference in making mithai appealing to the younger generations.
Off the Delhi-Jaipur Expressway stands Bhawan in Gurugram, a restaurant celebrating reimagined Indian regional food, mithai and cocktails. Helmed by Kainaz Contractor and Rahul Dua, this Diwali, they have on offer a range of quirky twists to their mithais — alongside the traditional ones.The range here, for instance, includes jaggery cardamom and almond biscotti, which has a typically Indian flavour profile — but are actually thin Tuscan cookies that would go perfectly with a cup of hot masala chai.
Also available are chilli cheese namak para — which is cheesy and spicy, and is one of the most innovative takes on the traditional, addictive namak paras. But, what is truly appealing about Bhawan is that it does not completely abandon traditions and continues to serve delicate motichoor laddoos, barfis and even gulab jamuns that are doused in chashni.
Delhi-based Arq, by chefs Neha Lakhani and Ashay Dhopatkar is another artisanal mithai brand that celebrates the rich Indian heritage and craft of mithai-making by incorporating a modern outlook. The resultant are caramel pedhas, besan truffle, almond rose and nut brick boxes — and even savouries like crunchy chana dal, and what they call a ‘golden crunch’, made of the quintessential moong dal.
A particularly intriguing new dessert recently caught my eye on social media. Made by Khoya, one of the finest mithai ventures by Sid Mathur, this was a traditional besan barfi turned into a slab and garnished with pistachios — and then aptly renamed to chana barfi slab. It also promotes a regional speciality—the Jammu chocolate.
Why, though, are these sweets important? Off the top of the head, these are obvious marketing campaigns — an attempt to stand out from the crowd amid the social media-driven festive craze. While that isn’t new at all, what’s interesting to note is that in the quest to find unique items to strike out on social platforms, chefs are rediscovering niche ingredients and relating them to our nostalgic memories from three or four decades ago.
In this process, what is taking shape is a resplendent new palate of festive desserts that can likely be classified as a genre itself. It is this that I am the most keen about — for going forward, we’ll hopefully see the same form of innovation spread to beyond sweets as well. It already is, to some extent — showcasing the increasing maturity of chefs in India.