This weekend, a sweet shop in Byculla welcomes kids to drool over Christmas-inspired confections, enjoy a tour of the outlet and soak in the history of the neighbourhood
Moments from a previous children’s mithai tour
Wouldn’t you be delighted to know that kids in the city can win the golden ticket to step into Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory? You read that almost right. The Bombay Sweet Shop’s upcoming Merry Lil Christmas Party offers a chance for children — aged between five and 13 years — to participate in a sensorial tour of mithai-making.
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The shop’s interiors were spurred by Roald Dahl’s luxurious descriptions of Wonka’s factory space in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Adding a local spin to it, the tour will begin with a walk in the lanes of Byculla and then proceed to meeting the mithai-makers who weave magic on a daily basis. Kids will also get to mould pedas and festive goodies at this session.
About the significance of starting the tour with a city walk, Yash Bhanage, founder and chief operating officer at Hunger Inc. Hospitality, says, “We want kids to know that they are in a cool neighbourhood. Byculla is steeped in history. This unexplored locality in Mumbai has inspired us in many ways. For instance, a lot of our packaging has a touch of Rani Baug owing to our proximity to the zoo. The feature extends to our sweets, too. Our malai peda is topped with a peda-shaped flower as a nod to the thriving botanical gardens.” He adds that the walk has been thoughtfully curated to balance bits and pieces of knowledge with fun. “There’s a segment where the kids get to roll laddus, cut cookies and shape barfis with our halwais. They experience joy in being able to physically connect with something they watch elders doing at home.”
Little creations by a young attendee
The young participants can play carnival games and watch an enthralling magic show. While they have a fun time, the team at the sweet shop will prepare refreshments and sweets for them. Their chief mithaiwala, Girish Nayak, tells us about how the festive season is being rung in with an ode to winter vacations and childhood treats, packing in a drizzle of excitement. “We have all eaten coconut candy in some form or the other while growing up, and that inspired us to create Nana’s coconut ice. Our version draws from an old-school coconut candy made with zingy lemon zest and Jain friendly silver-warq,” he mentions. Chocolate rummy balls, spiced caramel bon bons, pecan and peppermint barks and chocolate butter cookies will also be on their menu. The magicians at the shop tell us that a surprise awaits the kids towards the end of the tour. If only we could turn time, join the gang of tiny explorers and witness the experience!
On: December 18; 11 am to 1 pm; 2 pm to 4 pm
At: Bombay Sweet Shop, Byculla East
Log on to: Obombaysweetshop.com
Cost: Rs 599 (per child)
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