Ganesh Chaturthi is a festival where people celebrate Lord Ganesh and enjoy eating modaks and laddus. In Hyderabad, modak is becoming more popular among residents, even though laddu is usually the main attraction during the festivities. Modak is a steamed rice flour dumpling with a delicious filling of freshly grated coconut and jaggery. It is offered as a divine treat in homes and pandals during the nine-day celebration of the festival.
Making modaks is not easy. The challenge lies in creating the perfect rice flour dough for the delicate wrap. Due to the high level of skill required, many households in Hyderabad are turning to modak experts to ensure that they make this sacred treat perfectly.
The Joshi family has been making modaks for ten years. Jyoti Joshi started making them after receiving praise from festival-goers who couldn’t resist her modaks. As demand grew, she gladly made modaks for friends and family. During Ganesh Chaturthi, their home is filled with the divine aromas of coconut and jaggery. They receive many orders throughout the nine days of festivities.
Nilam Lahankar, another modak maker, receives a large number of orders every year. She is happy to see that not only Telugu-speaking residents but also Tamil and Kannada-speaking communities are interested in this delicacy. However, accepting all the orders can sometimes be a challenge.
Meena Khandekar and her sister-in-law, Prachi Khandekar, are also busy making modaks and serving customers. They offer a variety of modaks tailored to their customers’ preferences, made from different types of flour. Since 2019, they have been catering to larger orders as well. This year, they have received an astonishing number of orders, with some intended for gifting and requiring careful packaging. Their most significant order weighed 600 kilograms of fried modaks.
