“My mother, Kamala Bai, started this sweet bandi more than 70 years ago in the lanes of Begum Bazar Chatri. She set it up near the Bhagyalaxmi Mandir and served her homemade sweets to the people who walked through these busy streets. I grew up beside her, watching her stir the milk, shape the peda and prepare every sweet with patience. That is how this became my life too.

Even today, I run Kamala Bai Sweets Bandi in the same area, following the same tradition she created. We open at 7 in the evening and serve till midnight. These five hours feel alive because of the people who keep this place special.

Among everything we make, our Gajar halwa and kalakhand have a separate fan base. During winter, people come from long distances just to eat our halwa. Some travel from the other end of the city, some even come after finishing late-night duties. They say the taste here reminds them of how sweets used to be at home. Hearing that always makes me think of my mother.

Our Ajmeri kalakhand and white kalakhand also have loyal customers. Many say they haven’t found this taste anywhere else in Hyderabad. Some regulars tell me, ‘I travel all the way only for this,’ and moments like that show how much these old recipes still matter to people.

Along with these, we serve rabdi and peda, all prepared fresh in small batches. But more than the menu, what stands out to me is the way people gather here. Hyderabad has a special love for sweets, and this small bandi becomes a happy corner every night. Some customers treat it as their cheat-day stop, some come with their families, and many have been eating here for decades.

When people tell me their parents brought them here years ago and now they bring their own children, I feel my mother’s presence in every bowl of halwa we serve. For us, it’s not just a sweet stall. It’s a tradition that has continued through the hands and hearts of everyone who walks up to this counter.”

— Anand, Kamala Bai Sweets Bandi