BENGALURU: For old Bengalureans, Christmas holidays have been incomplete without a trip to the annual cake show. Over the years, the show has adapted to the changing city and culture. In line with the issues at the moment, the show which is in its 45th year is based on environment.
Some of the sugar creations include creations which show the St Basil Cathedral Church, which is the main display, an image of Krishna with a flute, an elephant baby, a fashion parade, and the Chandrayaan mission. Also on display is one that showcases popular spots in the state. With Christmas around the corner, there is also a an X’mas book. A bakery cart, floral swing, and jewellery pieces are some of the other works attracting the crowd.
Going back in time, the cake show was started by C Ramchandra, former MD, Nilgiris, 45 years ago, and today, the students, trainers and staff of Institute of Baking and Cake Art (IBCA) spend months working on the minute details of the creations.
For instance, the main display – which uses 3.5 tonnes of sugar –based on St Basil Cathedral in Moscow, Russia, required a lot of planning to duplicate the visual. Five people worked on this for more than two months. “Our team has spent four months on this cake by making the structure in separate parts and finally putting it together just in time for the show. It is a piece of work which we have constructed as single sugar blocks, hexagon-shaped sugar bricks, onion sugar dooms and then assembled it layer by layer to give the look of the St Basil Cathedral,” Manish Gaur, director, IBCA.
With Karnataka being home to various tourist spots, the edible creation of the Gol Gumbaz is also a popular stop among visitors. According to Gaur, the most challenging part of creating this structure was to replicate the detailing to match the actual structure. “The circular domes and intricate designs of the Gol Gumbaz bring out the Indo-Islamic style of design. Hampi is also known as the cultural capital of Karnataka and is famous for its various temples, palaces, forts and old churches. The town is known for being the birth place of various styles of Indian arts and crafts. We have created a detailed structure to bring to life one of the oldest civilisations, which also a UNESCO World Heritage site. This cake is made keeping in mind the details of the structure and using artwork that depicts ruins of Hampi,” he said.
Prabhavati M, a homemaker who has been attending the cake show for the last 20 years, says she looks forward to the annual event. “Every year I find that the designs are different. Coming here gives me a sense of nostalgia,” she says.
The cake show is on till Jan 1, 2020, at St Joseph Indian High School Grounds.