Ganpati festival: Meet Mumbai’s edible ‘Bappa’ made of chocolate, millets

After idols made of clay, paper and other materials, a designer from Mumbai has put a delicious spin on the Ganpati festival with a ”Bappa” made of chocolate and varieties of millets.

Every year, people get creative with the decorations and themes for the 10-day Ganpati festival, but Santacruz resident Rintu Rathod pushed the envelope this time around with a beautiful two-feet idol of Ganesha made of chocolate and nine varieties of millets among other ingredients. The finely crafted two-foot ”Bappa” is in ‘Vrischikasana’ or scorpion pose, and is entirely edible.

“This pose finds mention in our Puranas. I completed a course in naturopathy recently, so I have combined both these ideas and have made the idol in this pose,” says Rathod, a commercial designer.

The idol was made of cocoa powder and nine types of millets, as this year is being celebrated as the international year of millets, she says, adding that a paste made of dried figs, cashews, almonds, saffron, cardamom, jaggery and edible gum has been used as a binder. Weighing 40 kg, the idol took 20 hours to make and is being kept in an air-conditioned room lest it melts.

”The idea came to me when I was walking on the beach at Juhu one day and saw pieces of Ganpati idols washed up on the sand. The scene was heart-wrenching, and I just thought of making ‘Bappa’ from something that can be immersed at home and not cause any pollution,” she says.

Rathod has been making chocolate idols for the last 12 years and has also used ingredients like kheer mix in the past. This unique idol will also receive an unusual immersion in milk.

“We do the visarjan (immersion) of the idol in milk on the 11th day and distribute this milk infused with chocolate to family, friends and underprivileged children. In this manner, we follow all the rituals and do not harm the environment. And after staying in this form for 10 days, Bappa transforms to bring smiles to children’s faces,” says Rathod.