Mango mahotsav in Kolkata

It's not more than the size of a medium-built man's palm and often comes in varying shades of yellow. Yet, fragrant mango, not the refreshing watermelon or the haughty grapes, is considered the king of fruits. And it’s not for no reason that the fruit has been thus crowned.

There is nary a person who doesn’t enjoy a slice of this luscious fruit. Its versatility lends itself to experimentation, so much so that the signature ingredient of any cuisine during this time of the year is almost always the mango. Hence, it's only right that when one talks of fruits, the crown sits right here.

The arrival of the first batch of mangoes mostly coincides with the kalboishakhi, the norwester that lashes the state during the pre-monsoon months. Crates of crimson Golap Khaash, followed by golden-brown Totapuris, make their way to the fruit stalls of the city. By and by, Himsagar and Langda start to invade Kolkata’s markets.

This summer, Big Bazaar, Spencer's and C3 are luring the khaddoroshik Bangali with special offers on mangoes. Most have also shipped the famous Alphonsos all the way from Mumbai, as it is in great demand here.

A mango exhibition-cum-sale is already underway at the Horticultural Gardens in Alipore. The mega fair—Mango Mahotsav—is scheduled for June.

Cashing in on the mango mania, Kookie Jar and Cakes have introduced a special mango range of desserts—mousse, pastries, puddings and cakes, with fresh mango slices on top.

Mangoes have found their way into the menus of most restaurants in Kolkata. The aam panna is a fixture almost everywhere along with soft drinks and jaljeera. Nishidin at Peerless Inn (Esplanade) is celebrating the arrival of the king of fruits with tried-and-tested desserts like mango Swiss roll, mango rabri, mango chhanar payesh and mango mousse on ginger honey pancake. Oh! Calcutta (Elgin Road) and almost every other Bengali restaurant have started to serve the finger-licking aamer chatni.

Sweet shops like Haldiram's have launched their popular mango barfi and mango rosogullas. KC Das also has mango rosogullas, just like chocolate and strawberry ones.

Coffee shops like Barista and Café Coffee Day have added mango smoothies and shakes to their list of cold beverages. Another great finger-licking option is the yummy matka mango kulfi that comes in the shape of a whole mango. The surprise is when you cut it. Instead of the fruit inside, what you get is mango kulfi.

It’s summer once again. Celebrate it with mangoes.