My mother enjoys eating traditional Indian mithai. To the point where watching her eat her favourite boondi laddoos is like witnessing an out-of-body experience. Every bite is savoured with closed eyes and the occasional head nod. But every time she finishes a laddoo, she resolves to swear them off forever.
My mother, like most of my family, finds herself at odds with her sweet tooth and her seasonal craving for mithai. And she is not alone. When the modern consumer comes face-to-face with a mithai, the happy occasion is often clouded by the worry of large amounts of preservatives and sugar. For the sake of good health, it’s inevitable that the mithai is the first to be axed in the new year’s resolution.
Khoya manufactures premium mithai and luxury confectionary products.
But, to the relief of many (my mother included), brands are stepping up to the plate to offer a healthier avatar of the traditional sweet. Khoya Mithai, moves away from the machine-made and mass-produced sweet to instead revive artisanal traditions of mithai-making. Founded in 2016 by Sid Mathur, the brand offers classic mithai that is hand-rolled and made with high quality ingredients and no artificial colouring or preservatives. The brand also prides itself on seasonal menus with signature mithai and snacks that are perfect for the weather. For Khoya, the mithai truly takes centre stage as they consistently make the effort to share with their audience the origins of each sweet and why they are culturally significant (as is apparent from their Instagram account). They also offer a selection of sugar-free options that include a Roasted Besan Laddoo, Kesar Barfi, and more.
Founded in 2018 by national awardee, food designer Gaurav Chauhan, Gur Chini provides this desi necessity i.e. mithai to its growing health-conscious audience. The brand offers mithai that is made with natural sweeteners such as stevia, sugarcane, natural honey, date palm and other organic ingredients. They also have separate low and no sugar mithai collections.
In all honesty, I did not inherit my family’s sweet tooth, but mithai is significant to me in a different way. I associate the memory of a mithai to any special occasion — a hello, congratulations, or see you again, is always accompanied by its sweet taste. To me, mithai represents indulgence and celebration, a luxury in itself.
Over the last few years, the taste of the mithai has evolved with us. While a healthier mithai holds high value, it’s safe to say that the Masterchef-enlightened modern consumer desires an elevation. Unique flavour pairings with an attention to texture and mouthfeel does not go unnoticed. It introduces a layer of sophistication and wonder to the experience of unbridled joy that comes from enjoying a mithai.
Blueberry swirls through traditional Indian barfi by Nihira Mithai.
With a deep-rooted respect for the tradition of mithai-making, brands across India have stepped up to give the Indian mithai this welcome transformation. Established in 2017 by mother-daughter duo Subha and Arshya Aggarwal, Nihira Mithai takes the traditional Indian sweet to a whole other (and very adult) level with their line of alcoholic laddoos. “At the time, there was a reluctance to explore new and creative ways to make a mithai because it was entirely uncharted,” says Arshya Aggarwal. These laddoos became an innovative solution to a worrisome reality for the industry — young people seemed to be gravitating towards experimental desserts that were more western. These liquor-spiked sweets can be invited to not just the annual festivities but monthly get-togethers with friends and can be how you treat yourself after a long week at work. Some of their most popular alcoholic laddoos include the Gin and Cranberry Laddoo, Whiskey Laddoo, and Red Wine Laddoo.
They also offer customisable mithai. Be it a jasmine or lavender-flavoured laddoo for a floral-themed wedding party or tropical-themed laddoos like the Pina Colada Laddoo for a pool party in the summer.
An exhibition of ‘international by design, but Indian at heart’.
Saugaat by Bikanervala offers bespoke mithai in packaging that’s nostalgic and customisable. Named after the Hindi word for ‘gift’, Saugaat is a luxury boutique that specialises in the experience and process of gifting. Established in 2019 by founders Renuka and Sanjay Aggarwal, the brand combines the legacy and experience of Bikanervala with patissier and chef consultant Sahil Mehta’s French training to create a signature line of mithai that is “international by design but Indian at heart” according to a feature by Condé Nast Traveller. Saugaat brings exciting international flavours like matcha, lychee and tiramisu to the mithai we know and love.
Bombay Sweet Shop views the traditional mithai and the act of gifting from a novel lens of play. It was established in 2020 by Hunger Inc. Hospitality, the folks behind some of the country’s best restaurants such as O Pedro and The Bombay Canteen. “We wanted to make Indian sweets exciting again, especially for the newer generation,” says Sameer Seth, Founder and CEO of Hunger Inc. “We opened our first shop in Bombay inspired by the thought — what if Willy Wonka had a mithai factory?” Bombay Sweet Shop “brings the magic back” to mithai by infusing non-traditional flavours like coffee, chocolate, and dulce de leche to mithai that is in some sense already familiar to their customer. They shall continue to take up space in at least this modern consumer’s brain if they keep introducing memorable collaborations such as the nostalgic Parle G Fudge or the barfi inspired by the Amazon Prime Video series Mirzapur.
It’s clearly an exciting time for the modern consumer, or in other words, you and me. The last few years have brought innovations that make it seem impossible to imagine a time without them — QR codes, AI, gulab jamun churros… Who can say what we’ll see next? As always, the proof will be in the peda.
Words by Meghna Nair.
