L O V E A C T U A L LY
CHANDANI AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY
This Valentine’s Day gift your loved one a homegrown box of happiness, says AYANDRALI DUTTA
A
generic chocolate bar has upgraded itself to become an artisanal home-grown brand which could be classified under one or all of the following — organic, vegan, single-origin, infused with bhoot jolokia chilli or other unique flavours that are particular to the country. Let’s take a big bite into the domestic artisanal chocolate industry. Chocolate is that happiness which you can eat. It offers comfort without words. And the Indian market is seeing a visible change when we talk about homegrown artisanal chocolate. These small batch chocolates are at par, in quality and flavour, with your favourite Belgian bar. While brands like Soklet, Mason & Co., Barcode, Pascati
and more have marked their presence in the market, there’s another one that has been quietly making waves. Rushk is the brainchild of Rushdah Humaira, a professional chef, who calls herself a chocolate activist and also Kolkata’s first woman to pioneer as the ‘bean to bar’ chocolate maker. She says, “Everyone knows chocolate but only a few understand it. I have always wanted to educate people on how to eat and find the right kind of chocolates. With cocoa directly sourced from South India, our chocolates have no artificial flavour or preservatives. Each ingredient is specified and we believe in keeping the list as small as possible.”