About Us

About Shondesh Boutique

Shondesh (shon-daesh), the 'heart stealer' dessert from Bengal, has carved a niche in the Indian gastronomical world with its swirls of textures and flavors.

Historical References

Historical references to shondesh go back to the fifteenth century Bengali translation of the epic Ramayana by Krittibasi Ojha. Historians believe these sweetmeats were made with ‘kheer’ or condensed milk. Anecdotes have it that the practice of using ‘chhana’ or cottage cheese was introduced by Portuguese settlers in the Bandel area near present-day Kolkata. Shondesh however earned its place in Bengali social life only after the emergence of Kolkata as the second city of British empire. In 1851 Bhola Moira opened his sweet shop and took the dessert to a commercial level. Since then, shondesh , which literally means ‘message’ in Bangla, has been the harbinger of good news and become an integral part of Bengali social life.

Who We Are

Raised in a traditional family of North Kolkata, Mousumi (Mumu) Choudhury has successfully transported this age-old delicacy to USA. Operating from her home in Sugar Land, Tx., Mumu makes shondesh for various social occasions. From a casual house party to mega social events like the North American Bengali Conference, she enthusiastically supplies the ‘ shondesh’. Her amazing melt-in-the-mouth treat is homemade from scratch. She is fortunate to have observed and successfully learnt the techniques from childhood in her parental home during the festive seasons.

Mumu’s shondesh come in colorful and delectable assortments with seasonal fruit flavors on one hand and the traditional ‘nolen gur’ or jaggery on the other. To make her fruit flavors unique, she uses only homemade fruit juice and pulp, and not store-bought alternatives. With her characteristic artistic flair she offers exotic decorations catering to every occasion, thereby taking her culinary skills to a boutique level.

In her pursuit to promote the ethnic shondesh among the next generation of Indians raised in the US, she has taken upon herself the challenge of improvising with a medley of flavors and myriads of designs for graduations, bridal & baby showers and birthdays. Come, savour the flavours of Mumu’s shondesh boutique.

Parambrata & Raima Sen
Shondesh Boutique by Mumu was the Official Confectionary Provider for events surrounding the launch and making of the first USA-India joint venture English-Bengali film “Mi Amor” by director Suman Ghosh and starring Parambrata and Raima Sen. Cakes and special logo-emblazoned sweets were provided to filming and event locations at Miami and Orlando....Read More.
Rahul Chakraborty
A culinary anthropologist in disguise, specializing in Bengali sweets – that’s what came to my mind when I had Mumu’s sandesh on the dorsum and her 2-minutes snippet on the ‘origin, etymology and development of sandesh.’ Interestingly, for obvious market demands, when big establishments in Kolkata have started preferring fusion forms of sweets over the age-old recipes....Read More
Abhijit Pakrashi
Mumu’s sweets took me back to some of the happy memories of my long gone childhood and for that I thank her from my heart. I wish her success in all aspects of her life.
Partha Sarathi Chatterjee
I am so glad with Mumu's venture, many more will savor those delicious sweets. Best of luck, Mumu and looking forward to sweet memories.
Mahamaya Bandyopadhyay
As I approached the dessert table at a friend's house party, the unique display of party favors had me spellbound. Her creative decoration coupled with the deliciously tasty sweet is appealing both to the eyes and the taste buds.