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only very recently, the list of Top 50 Sweets of the World has been released by Taste Atlas and in this list, Mysore Pak has 14th rank with a rating of 4.4, while Kulfi has got 18th rank with a rating of 4.3. Falooda has got the 32nd position with a rating of 4.0. Test Atlas was founded in 2015 by a journalist from Croatia. It is an encyclopaedia of sorts that publishes information and ideas about food and drinks around the world, their tastes and their popularity. Three sweets in this year’s list are from India.
Indians will probably be on the top of the list of those who love sweets. Every state, district and even village has its own special sweets. Similarly, every festival also has its own special sweet. If the sweets of the whole world are put together, probably more sweets will be found in India alone.
Rasgulla of Bengal, Chhena Poda and Khaja of Odisha, Jalebi, Laddu and Imarti of North India, Pateesa of Punjab, Rasmalai of the whole of India and Malaiyo of Kashi. Perhaps, there are as many sweets as there are people! Even cities and small towns have their own idiosyncratic sweets.
Thaggu’s laddoos from Kanpur openly claim on their sign board to cheat everyone but are immensely popular, and people will always be seen buzzing like bees for Dehati’s Gulab Jamun in Prayagraj. Beni’s imarati of Jaunpur are of a strange type—very soft and moist. More pedas than humans will be found in Mathura! Every season also has its own sweets. Ghevar and Sut Feni are available only in Sawan i.e. monsoon month. Karachi Halwa also has its own flavour and so has son papadi without which no Deepawali can be celebrated!
No wonder, India is the diabetes capital of the world. Where so much sugar flows in the veins of the people, one can only imagine the amount of sugar that would have mixed in the Indian blood. But how burdensome, boring and sad life would be if there were no sweets! Life is transient and one
should never forget to eat sweets. Mysore Pak is very special confectionary item. Without a shadow of doubt. Available at Nandini’s stores in Chennai and likewise at many stores in Bangalore. Now some online stores have started selling Mysore Pak, keeping it in attractive boxes and having greater shelf life. But the taste of fresh Mysore Pak prepared at traditional shops is so very special.
Recently I went to Mysore and the famous shops of Mysore Pak were so lavishly decorated there. There were queues at the shops. That eating Mysore Pak while staying in Mysore will be a different experience is a fact that everyone can understand. So we also stood in the queue. The sun was hot and our son was with us. He got impatient in no time. He blew the bugle of rebellion and refused to stand in the queue under the burning sun. In such a situation, due to the tremendous emotional dependence of both father and son, they could not think of abandoning each other, and finally
Mysore slipped away as sand slips away from a closed fist. While returning to Bangalore I thanked the son as succumbing to greed would have resulted in a blood sugar spike. The impatience of the son saved me from health complications. ‘Whatever happens, happens only for the good’, I consoled myself by saying this.
It is said that Mysore Pak was invented in the royal kitchen of King Krishnaraja Wadiyar of Mysore. As mentioned above, Kulfi has secured 18th position in the list. Kulfi too has now been made by foodies in many ways and has also been mutilated beyond recognition. The corporate world has also entered into this. Otherwise, the restlessness that arises in the mind to get the kulfi out of its mould and devouring it before it melts is different.
Now-a-days some companies even make readymade, packaged Kulfis. They are praised a lot, but Phulki with a similar name to Kulfi, is tasty only after being ‘contaminated’ by the touch of the maker’s hands. Kulfi and Phulki lovers will definitely agree to this. Sweets with strange names from
far flung countries are also in the list of Taste Atlas. There is a lot in a name. The very name of Jalebi, gives rise to painful curiosity in the mind. The name of Imarti, evokes an image similar to an imarat or a building. Such sound effects cannot be created by foreign-made sweets. Pestle de Nata, a Portuguese pastry, has topped the list with a rating of 4.8. While Indonesia’s Bali’s Serabi Cream Snack is at number two with a rating of 4.7 and Turkey’s Dondurma Cream at number three with a rating of 4.6. But there is no attraction in their names. The fault is not theirs; it is our Indian
conditioning which has become accustomed to the name and taste of its sweets.
Indian sweets do not need foreign certification. The conditioning of our taste buds is totally different. Our tea is also a kind of sweet and people often demand such tea from the cart vendors that after drinking it their lips stick together! India’s Jalebi, which turns into Jalebba on certain festival, millions of lovers of Petha and ‘Lavanglatta’ will be found.
Significantly, 4 years ago the place of origin of Mysore Pak was supposed to be Tamil Nadu, which was given GI (Geographical Index) tag. The picture of Union Minister Nirmala Sitharaman taking the GI tag also went viral. At that time, Karnataka had strongly protested against the central government and Nirmala Sitharaman. But it has been proved that it was fake news
One such controversy took place a few years back regarding Rasgulla. There was a dispute whether Rasgulla originated in Bengal or Odisha. Personally, despite being born in Bengal, I would give more marks to Odisha’s Rasgulla. But finally Bengal won the race for this wonderful sweet after some bitter altercation. There is a lot of bitter debate these days about the place of origin of a sweet. This is a very complicated matter. I don’t know what people get by proving that in which period of history a sweet was born and at which place.
The Buddha advised us not to ask questions about the origin of suffering; one should just try to understand it. The same principle should apply to sweets. The search for origin of sweets is equally futile. Find the best confectioner in your city, choose your favourite sweet, touch the core of its
precious beauty and enjoy it… Disputes can happen over everything, but save your share of your favourite sweet. Just ensure that the bitterness of any dispute does not touch it!
These pieces are being published as they have been received – they have not been edited/fact-checked by ThePrint.