In the age of designer everything, why should your mithai be boring? Think champagne ladoos, and halwas with mulled wine, Old Monk rum, and coconut-tulsi cookies. We bring you a round-up of brands whipping up all things fusion this festive season.
Baked by Sarmi, Chennai
When zeroing in on the theme for her Deepavali collection this year, Sarmishta Baliga decided to bank on her childhood memories of the festival. “I wanted it to reflect snippets of what my Diwali day looks like,” says the Lavonne Academy graduate who kickstarted her brand in 2019.
Comprising three boxes, her collection’s first box, Kovil (₹650), is themed on the early morning temple visit wearing new clothes on Deepavali. Comprising an archanai thattu (coconut and Tulsi cookie), poo (ruby chocolate and rose truffle), and prasadam (a puliyogare loaf), it is packed in a palm leaf box representing the traditional dhonnai prasadams are served in temples.
The second box, Bakshanam (₹450), is an ode to her mother’s preparations. “Every year, she would start making bakshanams at home 2–3 days before Diwali,” says Sarmishta who has included a Mysurpa cookie, ladoo with dark chocolate fudge, and a savoury mixture cookie in the box. The dry fruit box (₹650) comprises pista and white chocolate cake bites, kaju katli truffle, and chilli-lime almonds.
@bakedbysarmi on Instagram
Nihira & Co, New Delhi
Mother-daughter duo Subha and Arshya Aggarwal — the brains behind Nihara & Co — take pride in crafting luxury mithais by blending contemporary elements into classic Indian sweets. The idea for Nihira was born when this mithai-loving family observed that mithai boxes were losing the popularity battle to liquor chocolates, Turkish desserts, and anything non-traditional.
Arshya says, “Mithai is nostalgia, it is our signature dessert. I was very sad to see consumers branding it as boring. That is when my mother and I thought of mithais that would not be boring.” The R&D process had them experimenting with flavours and different combinations in ladoos and peda. “During this phase, we learned a lot about techniques and flavour pairing,” she adds.
In this process of making bespoke mithais, the brand also decided to use popup flavours like gulkand, and kairi. These have gone into creating the gulkand ladoo, almond and raw mango ladoo, pista chandrakala, dry fruit ghewar, among others.
Their other offerings include gin and cranberry ladoos, whiskey ladoos, red wine ladoos, sambuca and grape ladoos and Jägerbomb ladoos (₹400 for a box of four assorted sweets). “We also have non-alcoholic mithais like cheesecake barfi, pina colada ladoos, tiramisu barfi, pista chandan pedas, and apple pie gujiya,” concludes Arshya.
@niharaandco on Instagram
Amintiri, Bengaluru
This festive season, the traditional Kaju katli and carrot halwa get a trendy makeover courtesy Suraj Madhnani of Amintiri. The idea to turn mithais into cakes was a natural choice since the brand “started off as a cake brand and we want to retain that. Our entire play is around cakes,” he adds.
New launches include a kaju burfi and mascarpone loaf cake, saffron boondi and pistachio entremet (upwards of ₹540 for a 250 gm pack). “Our earlier fusion launches have been the rasmalai cake, motichoor ladoo loaf cake, and gajar ka halwa cake,” says Suraj.
Also available are hampers (upwards of ₹1,790) comprising a box four eggless brownies (kaju barfi, motichoor, cookie dough, nutella brownie), nutty cookies, honey dry fruit nut jar, cakes, sesame seed crackers, among other treats.
Shop on amintiri.in
Hatti and Giraffe, Mumbai
Shrikar Bhave and his wife Girija of the Mumbai-based brand continue to draw from their childhood memories for this year’s collection. “Our intent has been to keep the soul of these delicacies intact while presenting them in a more contemporary way,” says Shrikar of their new launches: karanji bon bon, balushahi bites, and thalipeeth crackers.
“For the bon bon, we’ve reshaped the traditional karanji we knew growing up into a cute, bite-sized portion, and baked them for a flakier, more delicate pastry. As for the crackers, traditional thalipeeth has been re-imagined as a cracker,” he says.
Also being offered this year are festive hampers (upwards of ₹1950), but an assortment of sweets are not offered in the same box. “The joy is in savouring each product in its best form and aroma,” says Shrikar.
Shop on hattiandgiraffe.com
Bombay Sweet Shop, Mumbai
“There are some traditions you don’t mess with and Diwali is one such occasion,” believes Sameer Seth, founder and CEO, Hunger Inc. Hospitality, which owns Bombay Sweet Shop. Known for giving traditional delicacies a contemporary twist, the brand’s festive collection this year “showcases mithai that is deeply rooted in tradition but presented in our signature, reimagined style”.
Take for instance the nostalgia-inspired pista khubani cassata barfi, kaju gulab roll, among others. “We couldn’t imagine a Diwali box without something reminiscent of the besan ladoo, and our hazelnut besan barfi is made with jaggery, Kashmiri saffron and crunchy-toasted hazelnuts,” adds Sameer.
Other classics include saffron kaju katli, badam paak, and the mighty motichoor ladoo. Mithai boxes (upwards of ₹800) and hampers are also available (upwards of ₹950).
The collection is available until November 15. bombaysweetshop.com
