TIRUCHY: Amid new delicacies, food-trends and franchise cultures cropping up in just about every street, this 105-year-old sweet shop in Tiruchy continues to attract customers to its ‘bamboo koodai boondhi,’ which according to patrons, is made even now just the same way it was a century ago.
The boondhi in Yanai Mark Nei Mittai Kadai on Big Bazar street are also known as periya boondhi as they are not your regular ones. Instead of the usual thermocol-bead size, these are almost the size of small gravels. While you get plastic bags or boxes in other shops, this shop offers bamboo baskets that can hold upto 1 kg of the sweet.
The shop owner, B Kannan (63), says the recipes have been passed over three generations without any alteration and that’s what keeps their patrons returning and pulling in more. “Prices of several ingredients have risen sharply over the decades. Though many challenges were thrown at us, we never compromised on the quality of our products.
The proportion of ingredients and the preparation has not changed at all from how my grandfather, Natesan Pillai prepared boondhi 100 years ago at this very same shop,” Kannan told Express. Though many new shops have cropped up on the street, Kannan says they haven’t lost any patrons. “Those who love our sweets introduce us to their children.
Its not uncommon here to hear a customer introduce themselves as ‘I am so-and-so’s son.’ They may have settled outside this district. But when they visit Tiruchy, they make a stop at #228, Big Bazar Street.”
More customers are witnessed during Deepavali and Ayutha Pooja, and most of them buy in bulk. Another event that attracts more sale is the fortnight-long Kanduri festival at Nagoor Darga.
“Many Muslim pilgrims who come for the Kanduri festival make a stop in Tiruchy just to pick up our boondhi. They love it. I don’t exactly know how this started but it has become a tradition for the pilgrims and we welcome them by preparing more boondhi during those weeks.” The decades have also given rise to some traditions involving the boondhi.
“Many families during marriages, both Hindu and Muslim, give ‘koodai boondhi’ as ‘seer’. Some families give seven koodai (bamboo baskets) some give nine koodai. They have found it to be auspicious,” says Kannan. The name Yanai Mark Nei Mittai Kadai (elephant mark ghee sweet stall) reveals Kannan’s grandfather’s love of elephants. Kannan’s father Bakyaraj managed the shop until 1980 and after his death Kannan took over. His brother Ravichandran (55) also helps out with the sales.