Founder of Ideal Ice Cream Prabhakar Kamath no more

Mangaluru: Founder of Ideal Ice Cream S Prabhakar Kamath passed away in the wee hours of Saturday, November 6. He was fondly called ‘Pabba Maam’.

He was 79 and is survived by his wife, son, and two daughters.

Kamath had suffered severe head injuries when he was hit by a scooter in Bejai on October 28 and was being treated at the hospital.

BJP state president Nalin Kumar Kateel MP, state ministers S Angara, Kota Srinivas Poojary, MLAs Vedyavyas Kamath, U T Khader, Bharat Y Shetty and former minister B Ramanath Rai condoled the demise of Kamath.

S. Prabhakar Kamath, the founder of Ideal Ice Cream started out in business dealing in general items. Seasonal fluctuations in the business got him thinking on a more secure line of business that would be in demand throughout the year. So, he decided to start an Ice Cream parlour in spite of there being fierce competition in the segment.

Setting out to make the best Ice Cream possible, he taught himself the art of Ice Cream making and conducted experiments at home, testing his creations on enthusiastic neighbours. Three months later, he launched Ideal’s Parlour on Market Road in Mangaluru on May 1, 1975 with 14 flavours. The rest is history.

In two short years, the Ice Cream that he manufactured so tantalized the taste buds of Mangaloreans that people were willing to wait in queue, just to get a chance to savour the Ice Cream. With the growing demand, expansion was inevitable. Today, Ideal’s has five parlours in Mangaluru city, one of which is the largest Ice Cream parlour in the country.