The best week | The shrinking and fading of Bengaluru bakeries

Bengaluru, my home for almost a decade, is a vibrant melting pot of cultures, bursting with energy and flavor. What makes this city even more special is its quirky and diverse food scene. Udupi style darshini to Ambur Biryani joints, Bengaluru is full of places where people not only grab a cheap bite but also meet, mingle and soak up the local atmosphere. These restaurants are the heart and soul of the community-oriented urban lifestyle.

Among these gems, Iyengar bakeries hold a special place in Bengaluru’s cultural and culinary heritage. Last week I visited one of the most iconic and probably oldest bakeries in the city: VB Bakery in Basavanagudi. With over 70 years of history, this is more than just a place to eat – it’s a piece of Bengaluru’s past. The bakery is especially famous for its beloved “Khara bun Congress”, a snack as delicious as its name is interesting. Legend has it that this spicy cracked peanut snack gained its name in the 1960s, after the division of the Congress Party.

But like the city itself, even these old favorites are not immune to change. What struck me most during my visit was the marked “shrinkage” of VB Bakery’s famous “nut butterscotch.” These cashew and almond sweets have long been a favorite of many people growing up in Bengaluru, and bring back childhood memories for loyal customers. However, they are now about three quarters of their original size! And to make things even more heartbreaking, the traditional paper packaging has been replaced with plastic.

As Bengaluru accelerates with the rise of fast-commerce, places like bakeries and iconic hot chip shops are slowly disappearing. Once symbols of the city’s laid-back charm, they are now fading in the face of a faster, hectic lifestyle.

Fortunately, at Mint we still believe in spending time delivering well-researched and thoughtful stories.

Here are some of this week’s best stories:

🎯 The Competition Commission of India is nearing the end of its four-year antitrust investigation into Amazon and Flipkart. Online marketplaces have been asked to hand over their financial data, which could result in heavy fines based on global sales if they are found guilty of anti-competitive practices such as favoring certain sellers and pushing aggressive discounts. The move came as CCI wanted to ensure fair play in India’s fast-growing digital market. Because the law now requires a thorough hearing before a final decision is made, all parties involved will have the opportunity to present their case, ensuring the process is transparent and fair. Gireesh Chandra Prasad informed about the antitrust authority’s efforts to ensure a level playing field where small companies can compete fairly with large e-commerce platforms.

📢 In India, the push for inclusivity in advertising is gaining momentum, challenging traditional beauty standards of fair skin and conventional looks. Experienced advertising expert Sandeep Goyal argues that advertising should reflect society’s aspirations and reach consumers quickly, suggesting that the main purpose of advertising is to sell, not to lead social change. However, Manisha Kapoor of the Advertising Standards Council of India notes that younger, progressive consumers are demanding representation and rejecting ads that cling to outdated stereotypes. This tension highlights a broader debate: should advertising lead social change or merely reflect it? As brands navigate this landscape, the challenge is to balance true integration with commercial success, writes Gaurav Laghate.

👨‍🏭 📱 Hundreds of Samsung India workers wearing factory uniforms are on strike near the company’s plant in Sriperumbudur, protesting against low wages and unfair labor practices. The strike, now in its second week, has halted production, affecting nearly 30% of Samsung’s annual revenue from the plant. Samsung, which faces other significant challenges including falling smartphone sales and competition from both Chinese and luxury brands, responded by hiring contract workers to ease production losses. This labor dispute comes at a critical time as the holiday season approaches, which typically brings an increase in sales of consumer electronics. Meanwhile, broader business concerns include global restructuring that could lead to job cuts in India, deepening worker unrest. N. Madhavan and Sumant Banerji delve into the issues facing the Korean tech giant.

🛂 🌎 Mint Money’s Neil Borate wrote about an intriguing travel trick for Indian travelers: using a Schengen visa to gain access to multiple countries. The Schengen visa not only allows you to travel freely within 26 European countries, but also opens the door to several non-Schengen countries such as Bosnia, Cyprus, South Korea and even Saudi Arabia, under certain conditions. This is especially useful when the waiting time for a US visa is long and a British visa involves high fees. In April, Schengen rules became even sweeter, allowing frequent travelers to obtain multiple-entry visas for up to five years, making it a strong competitor to other major visas.

🇱🇰 The rise of Anura Kumara Dissanayake (AKD) as president of Sri Lanka marks a major political shift away from established powers in favor of the National People’s Power (NPP), a socialist alliance advocating the fight against corruption and economic reforms. Rising from a modest 3.2% of the vote in 2019 to the presidency, the AKD campaign resonated with the working class in the face of economic turmoil, advocating tax cuts, increased social welfare spending and the renegotiation of IMF loans. His victory was influenced by mass protests in 2022, which demanded significant political and economic changes. Shweta Singh, associate professor at the Department of International Relations at the University of South Asia, explains how an AKD presidency could change Sri Lanka’s relations with its neighbors, especially India, given India’s role as a first responder during Sri Lanka’s economic crisis.

🏃‍♂️🚪 Accel, an early-stage venture capital firm, plans to sell portions of its stake in several of its well-known portfolio companies, including Swiggy, Urban Company, BlackBuck and BlueStone. The proposed sale is expected to occur through pre-IPO secondary sales and sale transactions during the upcoming IPOs. The move is particularly timely as Accel pursues its fundraising goals, looking to leverage secondary market opportunities to exit long-term investments. Ranjani Raghavan and Priyamvada C. present a strategy report that not only reflects Accel’s proactive approach to portfolio management, but also highlights the broader VC industry trend toward structured exit processes in the face of strong pre-IPO equity demand.

🚘 🤝 Mahindra & Mahindra and the Volkswagen Group are in advanced talks to intensify their partnership. The two companies aim to leverage joint investments in future technologies rather than engaging in cash transactions. Sources told Alisha Sachdev that Mahindra could make significant investments in platforms and technologies to gain a significant share of Volkswagen’s India business, with a formal deal likely to be finalized in early 2024. This collaboration focuses on leveraging Volkswagen’s underutilized plant in Pune, which has significant scope for expansion.

🔋 The Indian government is steering state-owned utilities towards public listings of their renewable energy segments, with the aim of increasing asset values ​​without privatization. For example, NTPC Green Energy Ltd is ready for ₹Rs 10,000-crore IPO in November, while SJVN Ltd and Solar Energy Corp. from India are also planning public offerings. The move is part of India’s broader strategy to monetize assets and reinvest in emerging green technologies such as solar power, hydropower and battery storage. Rituraj Baruah and Gulveen Aulakh report on how these companies are meeting the challenge of attracting investors and scaling their operations to achieve ambitious renewable energy goals.

🎥 The Indian film industry is grappling with systemic issues of sexual harassment, as evidenced by revelations in the Hema Commission report in Kerala and similar accounts in various regional cinemas. These reports have catalyzed a broader reflection reminiscent of the MeToo movement, calling on other states such as West Bengal and Karnataka to consider similar investigative mechanisms. Despite the formation of the commission and promises of scrutiny, the Telangana State inquiry into sexual harassment in Telugu cinema remains unpublished, highlighting the political complexities and slow pace of institutional accountability. Compounding continuing problems is the unstructured nature of the industry, which complicates the implementation of protective measures such as Internal Complaints Committees, often reducing them to symbolic gestures. Lata Jha examines in detail this extremely sensitive issue plaguing the Indian cinema industry.

🏥 The National Medical Commission of India, which oversees medical education, is facing some internal challenges. The commission’s four autonomous committees are reportedly not cooperating with each other, which has led to the cancellation of several public announcements due to poor coordination. The problem has become so serious that the NMC has sought help from the Union health ministry to resolve the internal conflicts, sources told Mint’s Priyanka Sharma. The problem arose when the boards made conflicting decisions when considering applications from medical schools. For example, while one board sanctioned a college, another approved an increase in the institution’s capacity. This inconsistency is a concern, especially in the wake of recent controversies such as the leak of NEET exam papers.

That’s all for this week. I hope you have a nice weekend!

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