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Rosy treat
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The Bhagyalakshmi Butter and Gulkand Store sells the best rose-petal delicacy in town.
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Photo: K. Gopinathan
A tradition for over 50 years
THE BHAGYALAKSHMI Butter and Gulkand Store, in Malleswaram, has been a favourite haunt for gulkand lovers for more than 50 years. The store, started by Thiruvengadam in 1953, was a petty shop that sold cigarettes, beedis, and gulkand. K.T. Alagiri Swamy, Thiruvengadam's son who took over the business after his father's death in 1982, decided to make it an exclusive gulkand store, and selling the rose petal delicacy in many variations. Mr. Swamy says that he got the basic formula for his famous gulkand from a chemist. Gradually, with trial and error, he innovated and introduced tempting varieties.
The ordinary butter gulkand here costs Rs. 7 per plate. The store offers its "special" — with banana salad and tutti-frutti — at Rs. 8. Another exclusive to the store is the dry fruit gulkand, which has cashew, raisins, badam, pista, and dates, priced at Rs. 10. The shop also offers a particularly soothing butter gulkand with ice-cream for Rs. 10.
Bhagyalakshmi Butter and Gulkand Store, for many years, was also the only place that served gulkand in the City. Though many gulkand stores have sprouted now, particularly in the Visveswarapuram area, Mr. Swamy says customers consider his the "original" gulkand store. This is quite evident from the fact that people from as far as R.T. Nagar, Indiranagar, and Yelahanka come all the way just to eat his delicacy. Between 10 a.m. and 8.30 p.m., the store attracts 400 to 500 people a day. About 120 kg. of gulkand is sold here daily.
But this "addiction", unlike, say, to chaats and snacks, will not ruin one's digestive system. Gulkand is traditionally known to prevent mouth ulcer, reduce burning sensation in the eyes, and generally serve as a coolant for the body. Ayurvedic physicians prescribe gulkand mixed with other ingredients for those suffering from haemorrhoids. Gulkand is a particular favourite in summer for its cooling properties. The sales reach a feverish pitch between February and June. There is a 20 per cent slump in the sale during the winter, observes Mr. Swamy.
The shop also sells gulkand in bottles, at Rs. 20 for 300 gm., Rs. 28 for 500 gm., and Rs. 50 for a kg. Gulkand, says Mr. Swamy, can be stored for a year.
The gulkand sold at his store is prepared in Nandini Layout. Rose petals for the preparation come from Hoskote and Ajmer in Rajasthan. (Ajmer is known to grow the best roses in the country and the famous dargah there is suffused with the flower's heady fragrance.) The petals are dried and processed by Mr. Swamy himself, who is assisted by his wife. Three helpers take care of the packaging. The homemade butter that goes into the preparation is brought from Nagamangala in Mandya District. Mr. Swamy stocks butter and sells it separately too, priced at Rs. 140 a kg..
Bhagyalakshmi Butter and Gulkand Store is at Rathan Mahal Building, No. 47/1, Sampige Road, Malleswaram. The store can be contacted on 3444247.
M.V. CHANDRASHEKAR
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