GUWAHATI: From her roots in a remote Arunachal Pradesh district, the flowers have bloomed all the way in Paris, but Liter Basar, 35, wants to harvest the fruits back home. The young woman from India’s ‘Land of the Rising Sun’ went a long way from schooling back home, graduating in Delhi and finally, learning to bake in the land of Michelin Stars. She has a diploma in patisserie from the Le Cordon Bleu in Paris, the food capital of the world.
Today, she is the proud owner and head chef of the LIBA Cafe and Patisserie in Arunachal’s capital city, Itanagar. Basar has always been a creative person who struggled to bake. So, she flew to Paris in 2016 after graduating in political science in Delhi to learn the nuances of baking. Once she gained the knowledge, she saw a career in it. “I had previously vacationed in France, but living there like a local during the one-year training really made a difference.
While I was there, I had backpacked across Europe, savouring their food and absorbing their culture. It gave me a new set of eyes to see the world,” says Basar, recalling how she was taught how to break an egg, hold the whisk, use the oven correctly, peel fruits in a certain way, plate a dessert. with perfection and excellence. “I learnt to bake biscuits, cakes, bread, to the fanciest plated dessert one can imagine and eat anywhere in the world. The use of the best and quality ingredients made the difference.
This is what I do at my cafe too. I never compromise on the quality,” she says, adding that during apprenticeship, her work days began at 6:00am and sometimes end at 11:00pm. But she never felt tired or exhausted. Basar belongs to the Galo tribe and is the third of the six children in the family that hails from Basar in Lepa Rada district. With Arunachal often viewed as a ‘backward state’s given there are not many women entrepreneurs, Basar’s journey is truly inspiring.
“Being a woman entrepreneur poses many challenges, but challenges are meant to be overcome. I always wanted to shatter the glass ceiling and be a person who in her own capacity brings about a small change. I hope my story will inspire at least one woman to become financially-independent and create waves as an entrepreneur,” says Basar. The Itanagar outlet is now a year old and Basar wants to continue adding more elements to it, but with patience and proper planning.
So, what’s her USP? “I bring in the best of French desserts using the local produce endemic to my state and the Northeast. Be it oranges, kiwis, mangoes, wild berries.I try to bring in the union of the East and the West, very evident from my pastries and baked goodies,” she signs off.