sweating-to-make-the-sweet-flaky-soul-of-patna

Patna, Bihar

Nov 10, 2025

Sweating to make the sweet, flaky soul of Patna

In every delicious baqar-khani bread, pappa biscuit and khaja sweetmeat made in Bihar’s capital city, lives a recipe for survival. The toil and skill of artisanal bakers is easily forgotten, but their devotion to the craft and tradition endures

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Author

Ali Fraz Rezvi

Ali Fraz Rezvi is an independent journalist and theatre artist. He is a PARI-MMF fellow for 2023.

Editor

Kavitha Iyer

Kavitha Iyer has been a journalist for 20 years. She is the author of ‘Landscapes Of Loss: The Story Of An Indian Drought’ (HarperCollins, 2021).

Photo Editor

Binaifer Bharucha

Binaifer Bharucha is a freelance photographer based in Mumbai, and Photo Editor at the People's Archive of Rural India.

Video Editor

Shreya Katyayini

Shreya Katyayini is a filmmaker and Senior Video Editor at the People's Archive of Rural India. She also illustrates for PARI.