Sweet shops across Calcutta gear up with delicacies for victory celebrations after poll results
Telegraph | 4 May 2026
Wait-and-watch — that seems to be the mantra for sweet shop owners across the city.
Sweets or mishti are an integral part of victory celebrations for political parties in every election.
A mix of saffron-coloured sweets, including laddoos and barfis, is usually a staple order from the BJP quarters.
The Trinamool Congress, on the other hand, banks on rosogolla, sandesh and other traditional sweets.
But on the eve of the election results, a tour of the city suggested that traders had not stocked up as they had in previous polls.
Bulk orders from party functionaries are missing, betraying nerves across rival political camps. “It seems the election is too close to call. We have not stocked up on sweets and savouries for political parties as we used to,” said a leading retailer with several sweet shop outlets in and around Calcutta.
Another retailer said: “We have received verbal communications from party functionaries. But the callers said they will confirm the orders after the counting trends emerge on Monday.”
The Bhabanipur outlet of Balaram Mullick and Radharaman Mullick displayed a variety of giant sandesh with symbols of political parties. Each sandesh was priced at ₹250.
At another shop on Justice Dwarakanath Road in the Bhabanipur area, as well, a shop was preparing giant motichur laddoos.
“We have orders for 220 such pieces for Monday,” said an employee at Jamnagar Sweets.
A couple of retailers in north Calcutta, known for their sweets made from cottage cheese (chhana), said they had not scaled up production since there weren’t too many buyers.
“It is difficult to preserve mishti made from chhana. There aren’t enough orders. If the orders come on Monday, we will prepare the sweets,” said one of them.
The owner of a sweet shop in central Calcutta said he got informal messages — from two rival political camps — to keep stock ready for green and saffron rosogollas, also called kamalabhogs.
“Whatever I do, I will not do it before the trends emerge on Monday,” said the trader.