Sweet paradise

The first time I took a bite of Dadu’s Sweet Emporio’s Motichoor Laddoo was at a friend’s place. I must confess that I hadn’t tasted anything like those laddoos before. The melt-in-the-mouth laddoos, made in desi ghee, left a lingering aftertaste and some sweet memories. So ahead of Diwali, we decided to visit the sweet shop in the city to understand what special treats they are offering. 

We visited their Baner outlet, and were amazed at the sprawling store and its rich interiors. Dadu’s Sweet Emporio, which also has outlets in Camp and Westend Mall in Aundh, is a swanky shop with beautifully decorated walls and counters serving an array of sweets. Now with Diwali around the corner, the store has various types of hampers made with dry fruits, sweets, confectionery items, and namkeens as well. And we must tell you, the hampers do look grand.   

Giving us a tour of the store, Rusheel Dadu, owner, Dadu’s Sweet Emporio, informs that they make more than 250 varieties of sweets. While they are a firm believer of keeping Indian traditions alive, they do not refrain from experimenting and giving Indian sweets a modern twist.  
Talking about what’s popular during the festive season, he says that people are interested in gifting items that have a longer shelf life. “Since we do a lot of innovation, we have something for everyone. We’ve started serving Baklava in Pune, which has a shelf life of 30 days if kept at room temperature. We make a lot of dry fruits-based sweets — sweets made with cashews, figs, walnuts, which last for seven days, and sweets made with dehydrated fruits like kiwi, mango, oranges. In fact, we are also making sweets made with ginger which is an entirely new concept,” says Dadu adding that until last year, there was a demand for gift boxes, but now hampers are in vogue.  

Dadu’s Sweet Emporio, which has completed 25 years since its inception in Hyderabad, has been in Pune for about three years now. They recently started an outlet at Westend Mall where they serve sweets, snacks and chaats. Sharing the history behind the brand, Dadu informs that it was started by his father and uncle in 1993 with an 800sq ft store. Now, the plan is to increase the number of stores in the city and also open outlets for sweet loving Indians living abroad. 

“Back in the day, the concept of a sweet shop was limited to a small counter. My father and uncle wanted to change that and wished to give customers an experience when they visited a sweet shop. They  decided to call their store Dadu’s Sweet  Emporio because we follow spiritual guru Dadu Dayal ji Maharaj. People also relate the word ‘dadu’ with grandfather, some even associate it with an elder brother, hence there is this sense of belonging to the brand that people have developed over the years,” adds the owner.  

The hampers available at Dadu’s Sweet Emporio include a combination of sweets, dry fruits and bakery items. “We have an in-house bakery and our cookies are made with white butter (loni). In fact, the ghee, malai, paneer and many other ingredients that go into our sweets are prepared by us,” he says. 

And it is not just the purity of the ingredients and quality of sweets that are his priority, the environment is also kept in mind while selecting the packaging. “Our PET jars for namkeen is quite popular. When the ban on plastic was implemented, we upcycled plastic PET bottles to store and sell namkeens so that those who buy can reuse those bottles at home,” he shares.   

Innovation is Dadu’s Sweet Emporio’s mantra. “We have more than 250 varieties of sweets. While some are filled with dark chocolate, others are almond based and filled with caramel. We also have varieties that have gulkand and then Matcha Green Tea, which is the newest health fad,” he says. When asked if health conscious people consume Indian sweets, Dadu says that there’s nothing wrong in consuming Indian desserts because they are healthy. Health issues like cholesterol, obesity and high blood pressure are caused by our unhealthy lifestyle, increased stress levels and lack of physical activities, and not by consuming desi mitahi. “If you compare the amount of proteins and nutritional benefits in Indian sweets with Western desserts like Waffles, Donuts, Churros etc, you’ll realise that our sweets are much healthier. We have conducted a study on the nutritional values of Indian sweets and we are planning to give our customers all the information,” says Dadu. 

But do youngsters prefer Indian sweets over Waffles or Donuts? “We always think ‘mithai kaun khayega?’ but trust me, nothing can replace the feeling of savouring Indian sweets. Nobody can resist a Laddoo, Gulab Jamun, Jalebi or Rasgulla. Just like Waffles and Churros, youngsters do like to try our desi sweets, but we have to present them well and recreate something new out of traditional desserts. At our Camp outlet, we’ve started offering Mootichoor Pastries, Ajmeri Kalakand Pastries, Rasmalai Pastries. We should experiment with new flavours to put Indian sweets on the 
global map,” he concludes.

ST READER SERVICE 
Dadu’s Sweet Emporio 
Outlets: Shop No 3, Deron Heights, Baner; 
Westen Mall, Aundh; East Street Camp, MG Road.
Timings: Open from 8 am-10 pm.  
Home delivery: Available on www.dadussweet.com