The countdown to Christmas and the New Year has begun. It is quite palpable in Doon valley as well as in Mussoorie. Churches are being cleaned and painted. lighting arrangements are also being made at the various churches in the two cities. Preparations at Doon's famous bakeries are in full swing. The air is full of excitement and joy.
A large number of hotels in the two tourist cities are also making efforts to spruce themselves up for the "season" as the tourist season is popularly called. A large number of tourists have begun arriving and many more will come in by Christmas. Mussoorie has managed to retain its old face to a large extent and there are hundreds of visitors who come back here, every winter or summer just to get a feel of their favourite places and keep their long-standing relationship with the town alive.
Though there are a large number of hotels, around 300, the hill town still breathes free as the Supreme Court ban on new construction has proved a blessing for it. The vast open spaces, one witnesses here, make one's visit in vacations worth the effort. Naresh Vachani, an entrepreneur who has been running a popular Confectionery in the heart of Mussoorie for the past several decades said, "The carol singing and the decorations in the beautiful churches bring in a lot of tourists at Christmas.However, a lot more tourists rush in at New Year."
At "Chick Chocolate ", Vachani's famous bakery and confectionery, special chocolates and plum cakes sell briskly in the last week of the year as people pick them up for gifting friends and relatives . The fragrance of baking greets tourists in the streets and bazaars of Doon. Satish Wason of the old "Grand Bakery" in Paltan Bazaar in the heart of the Doon valley says that new flavours had been added to the X'mas and New Year cakes every year. They range from orange, cinnamon and saffron to mango, elaichi and ginger.
Mussoorie and Dehradun, besides having been well-known as twin abodes of natural beauty and tranquillity, have always been associated with a rich and exotic tradition of baking. A tradition which is being carried forward by several families of bakers in the hill town as well as the Doon valley. Tourists who visit the Doon and Mussoorie have been enjoying these baked delicacies over the decades also taking back bagsful of goodies for friends and relatives
The tradition of baking in Mussoorie goes back to the time when landour (old Mussoorie) became a summer retreat for the British soon after it shaped up as a convalescent depot for the British troops in the 1820s. The tradition was given new colour when the American missionaries had a strong presence in landour. landour's bakers, specially the Muslim ones, have been well-known for fudge, stick jaw, marzipan and meringues.
Maula Baksh was the most well-known of them all. These recipes have been passed on and can still be found at various shops in landour and Mussoorie. "Burnt Caramel Cake", "Walnut Cake", "Brown Sponge" and "Coffee Cake" are also among these. From the hills of Mussoorie, the baking tradition spread downwards and was passed on to the Indian population by the Europeans and Anglo-Indians in the valley .Baking is a dominant thread in the fabric of the valley.
You cannot be called a true Doonite if your heart does not warm to the familiar aroma of fresh baking that pervades the bazaars of the valley in the mornings. At OPEE'S (a unit of Ellora's Homeaid), Rajesh Gulati and his wife, Jyoti, are busy meeting orders for the New Year cakes. The Gulati family is one of the pioneers of baking in the valley. Rajesh Gulati tells me the story of Ellora's, My father ,OP Gulati , came from district Gujranwala in Pakistan to Dehradun.
In 1953, he entered the baking trade and we had this shop by the name of Milkmaid on Rajpur Road". Five brothers ( Ahmeds) from Durbali village in Tehri district are the pride of Ellora's. "They are the best cake makers in North India, I claim", says Gulati.And as I look at them working, like fine artistes, at the amazing cakes in the workshop, I can easily believe him.