Mumbai: The aroma of freshly fried curry leaves, slivers of golden coconut and peanuts dissipates in an air laden with the sweetness of sugar syrup and roasted besan. The Diwali faral factory is a melange of flavours and colours that proclaim the arrival of India's biggest celebration.
A small army of workers wearing shower caps, but no gloves, deftly assembles these ingredients to prepare familiar sweets and savouries, either using mechanised methods or handmade entirely.Batches of hot chivda, karanji and laddoo are laid out in large ‘thaals' to cool before they can be packaged for distribution.
With barely a week to go for Diwali, sales of homemade faral snacks are gathering pace. Women-led establishments employ 8-10 workers to manufacture besan and rava laddoo, chivda made of poha, corn and puffed rice, apart from anarse, chirote, chakli, karanji, sev and shankarpali.
Prices of faral have risen by 10-25% this year though, given rising costs of edible oil, maida, spices and sugar. Most faral items such as laddoo, chivda, chakli and karanji are priced between Rs 100 and Rs 180 per quarter kg. Anarse is more expensive.
Mini packs are the preferred choice, with several consumers opting to buy 100gm packs of multiple items as assorted hampers.
In Jogeshwari, Amruta Kolhatkar has invested 33 years in faral manufacture, winning awards along the way. "We also supply to shops from Bandra to Borivli. This year all raw material including oil, ghee, chana dal, plus labour, is more expensive. We have had to increase rates by 10%. Demand is there but buyers are purchasing less quantity," Kolhatkar said.
Sisters Sangeeta and Suvarna Gokhale of Chembur specialise in 12 items including kadbol, chirote and anarse. "We also offer 1 kilo hampers containing an assortment of ten 100gm packs for Rs 725. Elders, small families and diet-conscious youngsters find them useful," said Sangeeta.
Suvarna said, "This year, orders have reduced by 25% as compared to last Diwali. Many people are buying lesser quantities to suit their budget."
In Andheri (East), Madhavi Chavan of Modak Sweets and Savouries is juggling home delivery with shop sales. She said, "There is so much competition that each vendor tries to sell Diwali faral at cheaper rates. And customers unfortunately focus on pricing. Instead, it is the quality of ingredients, level of hygiene, nutritive value and packaging that is important. So we who focus on all this, have to advertise harder to new buyers. Many people expect prices to be the same as the previous year, which is not practical."