Reshmi Singh, a doctor, was attending a marriage party of her colleague. It was an elaborate affair consisting of delicacies from all over India. Being a foodie she was enjoying every bit of her gastronomical experience.

“But what came as a surprise was the dessert: traditional Bengali sweet Malpoa served with Brandy sauce! Though I knew about Bengali sweets gaining international flavour lately - but Brandy sauce! Simply out of the world,” she enthuses.
This kind of happy surprise is becoming common these days at opulent parties. With increasing overseas travel by Indians, food - along with many other things, are acquiring an international aura. Bengal sweet is not lagging behind.
From the archaic to the ultra modern, from the rich to the plebs - and from the veggies to the non-veg, sweets - typical Bengali sweets have successfully wooed them all. That includes celebrities, Bollywood stars to international sportspersons visiting Kolkata. Few can withstand the temptation of savouring a hot rosogolla or a Nalen Gurer sandesh (with a jaggary made from date palm). This item hits the menu during winter when this jaggery makes its appearance.
Rosogolla is believed to have been first made by Nabin Chandra Das, father of Krishna Chandra Das (the original owner of the famous sweet joint K C Das) in 1868, though some say that the rosogolla actually originated in Orissa and is as old as the Ratha Yatra in Puri. But sandesh was in vogue even before that. Though it is hard to determine exactly when the term ‘sandesh’ came to indicate a sweet made of chhana (sweetened cottage cheese) rather than kheer (thickened milk), it is reasonable to assume that the term became quite common by the later half of the 19th century.
Sanjay Budhia, managing director, Patton Group, is a self confessed sweet lover. “I must confess I have a sweet tooth. In spite of restrictions – self imposed or otherwise, I take full advantage of the special occasions and gorge on sweets on special days like – Raksha Bandhan, Diwali, etc, when you get an official license to indulge in.” Though he has tasted some of the new innovative sweets like the Black Current sandesh and liked it too, he confesses that “I prefer to stick to the traditional stuff when it comes to sweets.”
Indrani Mukherjee, a young entrepreneur who runs a boutique, loves sweet in any form. “I have tasted the strawberry and papaya flavoured sandesh and loved it. But the mere mention of Bhim Nag’s (a famous sweetmeat shop in Bowbazar area) Abar Khabo sandesh or the Jawl Bhora sandesh of Surya Modak of Chandannagar, makes my mouth water. Still I feel that the experimentations are good, especially the recent innovation of low-calorie ‘Diabetic sandesh’.” This sweet was born out of both necessity and demand by diabetic patients who love sweets but are forbidden to take them. With India arguably the diabetes capital of the world, the reason is not difficult to find.
However, for the renowned writer Mani Shanker Mukherjee of ‘Chowringhee’ fame, experimentation with Bengali sweets is a no-no. He believes that there are certain things in this world like classical music, where there isn’t any scope for experimentation, Bengali sweets should stand firm against the tide of interference. He insists that nothing can substitute a rosogolla or a Nalen gurer sandesh. “Traditional Bengali Sweets”, Shankar says, “are so rich and satisfying in taste that they don’t need to be changed in any way.”
Nevertheless, Bengali sweet is now spreading its wings to woo the new generation with its many variations. Savour these mouth-watering items: Parijat (a mix of pista, nuts and kheer), Moushumi (sandesh stuffed with nuts and coconut), Golapi Pera (pure chhena rolled in rose water), Dilkhush (kheer, chhena and pista) and Sourabh (chhena with sugar globules and pista).
Maestro Satyajit Ray was a frequenter at Nokur, so now are his son Sandip Ray and Tollywood director Rituparno Ghosh, often billed as Ray’s protégé. Singer Manna Dey has a sweet tooth; so do actors Vidya Balan, Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai who try out the Bengali goodies when in Kolkata.
“Bengali sweets are now travelling beyond Bengal. This recent gourmet trend is aimed at keeping sweets of Bengal contemporary and relevant to younger people,” says Prashanta Nundy of Nokur. Therefore, to tempt the new palate, the 165-year old Nokur is adding new flavours—orange, pineapple, mango lichi, black currant and kiwi—to its sandesh. Nokur already ‘exports’ its sweets to various parts of the country and abroad, from its base in North Kolkata.
What used to be a mere family-based industry is now looking beyond the horizon and talking of export markets and patents, terms unthinkable in the past. But their primary focus is to strengthen their footing to the other parts of India.
Globalisation together with the new market reality has resulted in a change in the character of Bengali sweets which now come with a blend of nuts, pistachio, rose water and cardamom. The enterprising confectioners are honing the desi spread with some internationally preferred flavours like black current, kiwi and strawberry.