The bustling cosmopolitan city is brimming with vegans, vegan restaurants, online vegan food and product delivery services, vegan markets and new vegan brands that take wing almost every day.

◊ By Bhumika K

Visit ORGANIC SHOP by Pure & Eco India

Bengaluru, hands down, is the vegan hub of India.

If the third wave of the Covid 19 pandemic has kept us all homebound till mid-February, on February 26 and 27, 2022, the much-awaited  fourth edition of Namu Recommends Vegan Market drew people out, and saw them putting away their fears and apprehensions, and enjoying themselves, tasting new foods, trying new products, meeting fellow vegans, and just enjoying the sun and fresh air.

The fourth edition of the market was a success, held on the terrace of the beautiful Bangalore International Centre (BIC) in the heart of the young and happening Indiranagar. The lovely tiered terrace was where the 60 stalls were spread out.

Vegan cheese, kombuchas, hemp products, vegan chocolates, mock meats, nut butters and spreads, dips and sauces, desserts, coconut sugars and flours, gourmet products, farm fresh organic vegetables, plant-based supplements and nutraceuticals, baby products – you name it, and it was all there.

In the personal care range, there were several stalls that covered everything from vegan makeup products, hair care, sustainable menstruation products like cups and reusable pads. Pre-loved clothing, and plant-based clothing brands also participated.

Apart from already popular Bengaluru-based vegan enterprises showcasing their products in large numbers and newer ones also making an appearance, there were companies from Hyderabad, Mumbai, Chennai, Auroville (Puducherry), Gurugram and Kerala participating. Some things that caught my eye – mushroom popcorn, un-meat shawarma, cashewnut-based shrikhand, zero alcohol artisanal craft beverages like beer, rum and gin (yeah, that’s right!)

Namu Kini, Founder, Namu Recommends Vegan Market

Namu Kini founded the Namu Recommends Vegan Market to popularise veganism and make it a household concept. Footfalls over the two-day event were over 2,000, says Kini, adding that the buzz was created purely through the vegan community on social media. The proceeds she makes from the event will go to charity, she says, though she still hasn’t zeroed in on the beneficiary.

The event also brought together the LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer) community, with many vegan enterprises owned by the community showcasing their products and many folks turning up to participate and support their enterprises.

Brands like ‘Amazing Greys’, ‘Anuttama’, ‘Copper + Cloves’, ‘Loafer & Co’, ‘Deep Rooted’, ‘Flyberry Gourmet’, ‘Hibiscus Heroes’, ‘Hello Tempayy’, ‘Jar’ganic’, ‘Lucky Vegan’, ‘Ooka Baby’, ‘Rakkaudella’, ‘Sattva Fermentary’, ‘The Perf Ice Candy’, ‘Vegan Vogue’, ‘Plum & Plush’, ‘Zero Percent India’ and many others participated in the market.

A vegan for more than five years herself, Kini says she initially did it “for the animals” and later discovered the health benefits of veganism. “I live with a clean conscience,” she says as she stands amidst the buzzing crowd on Sunday afternoon, the second day of the event. “I want to support the vegan community. My skillset is to bring people together and curate things,” points out Kini, who is also co-founder of the KYNKYNY art gallery in the city. “Bengaluru is the vegan capital of India because it’s a combination of a vibrant community, a cohesive voice, the growing number of vegan brands, products and new vegan restaurants, vegan potlucks and brunches, etc. Many regular restaurants are making an effort to create vegan menu options.”

Deepak Pinto, a 55-year-old businessman, and a sworn non-vegetarian said he had come to explore the market and support friends who had vegan enterprises. “While I consume very little vegan products at home, I am convinced it is a healthier lifestyle choice. I wanted to see what the whole deal was about mock meats; I tried a mock meat burger and it passes a lot of tests. I’m amazed to see the range of possibilities in vegan products,” he says.

Nayana Premnath is a 31-year-old zero-waste vegan YouTuber who never misses such an event. “At such events I don’t have to worry about what I eat; any place else you have to ask so many questions to ensure the food is vegan. I’ve brought along my husband, who’s not vegan, to prove to him that there’s tasty vegan food to be had,” she laughs. Among the things Premnath and her husband Sooraj tried at the market was a new brand of kombucha. “I’ve tried making it at home and it was a failure,” she admits.

COVID-BIRTHED ENTERPRISES

Many of the brands showcased at the market are family enterprises, with all their manufacturing happening in the home kitchen. Chef Zehn Laliwala was there with his eponymous brand ‘Chef Zehn’ – a range of 16 vegan stirfry sauces, pasta sauces, salsas, curry pastes, spreads for sandwiches, rolls and wraps in Korean, Thai, Portugese, Japanese and Moroccan flavours. He had just returned from culinary school in the USA, when the pandemic hit India. Before that he had worked in some of the finer restaurants in Bengaluru, including Olive Beach. On day 1, he had already sold 100 bottles in a matter of a few hours, and Sunday saw many more flying off the shelf, as his mom, Monica Laliwala, CFO of the company, oversaw sales. “Half the people who come to such events are anyway vegan; that’s why they show up. Many are well travelled and exposed to such food and understand when we explain things. There were also those who couldn’t believe such products can be vegan,” says Laliwala.

Chef Zehn Laliwala, Founder, Chef Zehn

Abhiram Sridhar, Founder, Podi Nan Maga

Aditya Angelo Fernandes (in the apron), Founder, Angelo

The very Bengaluru-sounding brand ‘Podi Nan Maga’ (playing on Kannada slang) was started by Abhiram Sridhar, a home chef who, pre-Covid ran a catering business. But a quick reorientation meant that his brand of pickles, puliogre gojju (a tamarind rice premix), and savoury powders (podi/pudi) are now flying off the shelves. By default, this category of products in India, are naturally vegan! By Sunday evening four of their five spicy powders had sold out.

Aditya Angelo Fernandes launched his vegan cheese brand ‘Angelo’ in early 2020 when Bengaluru went into Covid 19 lockdown mode, creating what he claims is India’s first vegan mozzarella with local ingredients. The vegan mozzarella, made with cashew and peanut, sits smug in a marinade of extra virgin olive oil, garlic and herbs. “The response at such an event is always fabulous; people come in with an open mind and a desire to try something new. Bengaluru is especially very health conscious,” he observes.

VEGANS ARE SPOILT FOR CHOICE

Anuradha Arani, 49, a software professional, came all the way from Mysuru, 143 kilometres away from Bengaluru with her 23-year-old daughter and 21-year-old son to meet the vegan community. “We are vegetarians by birth. Five years ago my son turned vegan, and three years ago my daughter and me turned vegan. Both children are into animal rescue. We wanted to see what vegan products are there in the market now, how people are taking to veganism in Bengaluru … in Mysuru we don’t have a vegan clan or sense of community,” she explains.

Arani says people need to lose the misconception that vegans are losing out on good food and fun. “We enjoy such a variety of vegan food we make at home. It is very feasible and possible. I wish the word ‘vegan’ becomes self-explanatory soon. In restaurants we still have to explain what we can and cannot have, and leave comments on our Swiggy and Zomato orders too. But a large part of Indian food is naturally vegan. I only wish prices of vegan products become more affordable; everyone needs an incentive to turn vegan,” she says.

At the Namu Recommends Vegan Market, Arani’s daughter made a decision to make the shift to menstrual cups on the spot, convinced by the concept.

What made the event interesting was the positive vibes, the spirited interactions between people, and the enthusiasm to check out and try out new ideas and products.

Visitors were observed making enquiries about when the next vegan market would be hosted.