‘Dhanu Muan’, A Ganjam delicacy

Sweetmeat makers preparing ‘Dhanu Muan’ in Berhampur I Express Photo

It is that time of the year again when almost all the sweetmeat shops in Berhampur are busy rolling out ‘Dhanu Muan’ of various shapes and sizes out of their kitchens. ‘Dhanu Muan’, a speciality sweet dish of south Odisha, is mostly sold during the Odia month of ‘Pausa’. It may be noted that ‘Dhanu Muan’ of Ganjam district is famous across the State. The ‘muan’ is ritualistically prepared and sold between ‘Dhanu Sankranti’ and ‘Makar Sankranti’. Although the sweet is prepared during other months, people prefer to buy it during its annual season.

According to the manufacturers, ‘Dhanu Muan’ is related to the economic history of this region. Since long, people of Odisha used to prepare ‘muan’ for ritualistic offering during puja on Dhanu Sankranti. But the ‘muan’ was being prepared with jaggery. One of the first sugar mills on east coast had come up at Aska in Ganjam district during the British era. The sweet vendors of Ganjam were the first in Odisha to use sugar to prepare sweets replacing traditional jaggery. So their ‘Dhanu muan’ had provided them with a unique position in the traditional sweet market of the State. It is during the ‘Pausa’ month that on an average one tonne of ‘muan’ is prepared daily.

However, with the increasing price of sugar, cashewnuts and other ingredients for the ‘muan’, the price of ‘muan’ has been hiked this year. Samar, a ‘Dhanu muan’ manufacturer of the town, said the price of ‘muan’ prepared using ‘desi ghee’ has been fixed at Rs  240 to Rs 260 a kilo. It is costlier by Rs 40 than the last season. Similarly, the general ‘dhanu muan’ which was selling for Rs 60 a kg last year is being sold for ` 80 this year. Source: New Indian Express