BENGALURU: Simba from The Lion King, Nemo from Finding Nemo and a teddy bear, all under one roof. The second edition of The Great Bengaluru Bake Show saw all these characters in different delicious forms of cake. The two-day event took place over the weekend, at the Fern Citadel Hotel, Anand Rao Circle, where more than 180 home bakers participated while 90 took part in the contest.
One step into the hall where all the cakes were showcased and one was greeted with the sweet aroma of fresh bakes and flavoured icing. The showcase for the competition had a varied spread, from three-tier wedding cakes and cupcakes to healthy cakes. One of the show stoppers, however, was the cake inspired from West Bengal’s Dhokra art, making the cream and bread version a sight to behold. There was also a five-tier white Victorian wedding cake, with a velvety texture and minimal small floral work and another dedicated to the former president of India, APJ Abdul Kalam.
Basabi Sakar and Sowmya Bhat won the highest amount in cash price: `60,000. Bhat, who is self-taught, was inspired by her mother to become a baker. “For past two years I have been baking professionally from my kitchen,” say Bhat, who stood first in the healthy bite category and 1st runner up in the non-fondant section. She aspires to have a studio of her own someday.
What made the event sweeter was that all the cakes, cupcakes and brownies showcased went towards charity. “Even though the cakes look tempting, we aren’t allowed to eat it because we are donating everything to The Robin Hood Army, a non-profit organisation that will distribute it among nderprivileged children,” says Anjana Lath, one of the directors and co-founder of Homebaker.co.in. The event also had demos on icing and masterclasses on baking.