A Lit Fest Centred Around Bengal's Famous Mishti

It's the season for lit fests around the country. And Kolkata is hosting one with a focus on the Bengali obsession with mishti.

Jugal's, a well-known sweet shop in Kolkata, is celebrating its 100th anniversary, and paying tribute to Bengal's most precious culinary treasure, mishti.&nbspThe legacy of the sweet shop was started by a certain Jugal Kishore Ghosh in 1923, when the first outlet was opened in 1, Mahatma Gandhi Road in Sealdah. 

As part of the centenary celebrations, they are organising the world's first literature festival focused on mishti. The Jugal's Literature Festival (JLF) will be held from February 11 to 12 at the Town Hall.

About The Lit Fest

The Jugal&rsquos Literature Festival (JLF) is a two-day long event consisting of panel discussions, open house forums, art and photo exhibitions, and interactive workshops on mishti, a form of dessert unique to Bengal and adored by 300 million Bengalis worldwide.

Each of the sessions at the festival will delve deep into the history, legacy, culinary footprint, economics, socio-cultural impact and most importantly, the future of the dairy-dependent mishti industry. We are bringing together the leading minds in the industry and beyond including food historians, writers, culinary experts, dairy experts, economists and industrialists under one roof to celebrate Mishti. The Jugal&rsquos Literature Festival will be the first literature festival to celebrate the legacy of Bengal through the nuances of mishti.

Showcasing Mishti In Many Ways

The festival will host several panel discussions to celebrate the art of mishti, talk about various issues that the industry is facing, as well as discuss the future of dairy, which is the primary ingredient of mishti. Various artists will submit mishti-related artwork to showcase during the festival and post on social platforms. Photographers will travel to various districts in West Bengal and beyond to create a repository of images primarily documenting the process of making Bengali mishti, thus giving recognition to karigars, as well as documenting various practices in the industry.

The plan is to showcase these photographs, photo essays and documentary narratives during the festival and build social media campaigns around them.

The festival will also aim to document the journey of mishti through Bengal&rsquos history, literature, cuisine, politics and religion, among others. The research activity will continue beyond the festival, with a larger goal of geo-mapping each and every mishti shop across West Bengal, starting with Kolkata.

Collaborative ventures and workshops will be held with food enthusiasts, bloggers, and mishti karigars to educate the masses about the craft of mishti-making.

More info here.