Varanasi has a rich tradition of eating sweets(or Mithai, as sweets are called in India) made from milk based products. Like the omnipresent ‘Banarasi Paan’ shops in Varanasi, one finds sweet shops at almost every street in Varanasi. The sight of the varied varieties of sweets displayed at these shops as you traverse the city is a mouth watering experience. Looking back in to the rich cultural heritage of Varanasi, it is easy to understand the reason for the mind-boggling variety of sweets available in Varanasi. Over the past few centuries, Varanasi has been the center of influx of settlers from different regions of India. It is a virtually a mini India of sorts and there are small niche settlements in Varanasi which predominantly boast of the presence of a particular community that settled down in Varanasi. There are the Muslims, the Bengali’s, the South Indians, the Christians, the Sindhi’s, Sikhs, Gujarati’s, Marwaris and the other smaller groups from different parts of India who have made Varanasi their home. As is to be expected, these small, niche localities display a unique lifestyle that still retains the flavor of their original culture and customs of the places they came from including their culinary tradition. For the casual travelers to Varanasi, it would be difficult to notice the difference as these communities have intermingled with the local Varanasi culture and have adopted the ways of Varanasi. However, if you were to take a closer look, you can see the diversity in the unity of Varanasi. The long period of cultural intermixing has created a unique culinary tradition in Varanasi where you would find delicacies from the menu of almost every state of India.
Sweets being part of the menu of almost all Indian cultures, the settlers in Varanasi brought their own unique recipes that gradually became a part of the composite sweet culture of Varanasi. The most popular sweets of Varanasi that are loved by all include the Kalakand,Lal Peda, Parval, Kulfi, Maalpua, Malai Puri and the divine Rabri. And then there is the ‘Lawanglata’ – a sweet that is very well known and really popular among the masses – which you would find in every sweet shop of Varanasi, big or small. If you have a thing for sweets and have a sweet tooth, Varanasi will be a mouth watering odyssey. Feast on the juicy Rosogollas(or Rasgulla), take a big bite of that creamy Barfi or feel the soft Maalpua melting away in your mouth delighting your taste buds. And of course, there is the rich, creamy sweet Lassi of Varanasi– the perfect way to wash down the gastronomical delights. These sweets are made from ‘Khowa’ and ‘Chhena’ both derivatives of milk – that undergo a series of processes perfected by the skilled workers who inherited the art from their forefathers, and shaped into various geometrical forms that adorn the showcase of the sweet shops in Varanasi.
There are many old and good sweet shops that have their own fan base in and around the areas they are located. Some of them are more famous for a particular type of sweet and people would visit the shop from different part of the city to buy. There are some really small shops that have become the ‘go to shop’ if you want to buy a particular variety of sweet. They have a huge fan base in the city and they have become household names renowned for that one special variety of sweet. Then there are the larger sweet shops in Varanasi where you can find almost all the major varieties of sweets you have heard of and some of these shops are equally famous for their good quality and variety. Personally, I love the sweets from a shop called the ‘Chheer Sagar’ that is located close to the Sonarpura chowk on the road to Godowlia.
Changing with the times and keeping in mind the unique needs of the clientele, some of these popular shops also sell the sugar free and low fat versions of their sweets. They claim that they use the sugar substitute that is the choice of diabetics and sugar patients. This has not only increased their client base but also brought back their many fans who had been forced to give up their favorite sweets due to their medical conditions. So even those travelers who may be suffering from high blood sugar or diabetes, can visit some of these sweet shops and savor the many heavenly delights that will sweeten your Varanasi experience. I wonder if some enlightened author would take a cue from the many ‘mithai’ or sweets of Varanasi and compose a ‘Mithaisutra’ on the lines of the extremely popular ‘Kamasutra’ of Khajuraho in India. Not a bad idea, eh? What do you say?