Ep 54 - Priyank Sukanand | Naidu & Sons: The Story of Bangalore's First Indian Baker | Jimmy Jimmy

What does it mean to carry 140 years of flour, fire, and family on your shoulders? In this deeply personal and utterly fascinating conversation Priyank Sukanand— a fifth-generation heir to one of Bengaluru's most iconic baking legacies — unravels the extraordinary story of Kuppuswamy Naidu & Sons, Shivajinagar's first Indian-owned bakery, founded in 1888. It begins with a journey on foot — from Padavedu in the Tiruvannamalai district, all the way to Bangalore. PV Kuppuswamy Naidu, a zamindar turned migrant, arrived at the Cantonment Railway Station with his wife Punyakoti, his mother, and almost nothing else. His mother found work in a British household, learned to bake bread, and the rest, as they say, is Bengaluru history. From selling bread in a basket on his head at the Cantonment Railway Station to becoming the first Indian baker to serve the British Army — and earning a remarkable deathbed honour from them — the Naidu story is one for the ages. In this episode, we explore the rich, layered bakery culture of Bangalore through the eyes of someone who lived it, revived it, and reimagined it. We talk about legendary Shivajinagar delicacies — the dilpasand, the biscuit naan, the Aflatoon — and where to find them today. We deep-dive into the iconic JB Bakery sponge cake (still the best in the city, apparently), the rare Japanese cake that only three Bangalore bakeries still make — including Excelsior Bakery and Fatima's Sweet Chariot — and the lost recipes from Naidu and Sons that our guest painstakingly reconstructed: masala biscuits, almond biscuits, rum balls, the Japanese cake, and the legendary Naidu Kima Puff. This isn't just a food conversation. It's about identity, intersectionality, and what it means to belong to Bangalore / Bengaluru. We talk about the Hindu community that built St. Mary's Basilica to honour a plague miracle, the Bangalore Karaga's relationship with the local Dargah, and why this city has always been — at its core — a city that opens its arms. We also talk about running an all-LGBTQ staff at Bangalore Connection 1888, teaching baking in five languages simultaneously to women and transgender individuals at the Good Measure Foundation, and why baking — with its structure and precision — is a skill that even a neurodivergent child can master and build a livelihood around. Our guest also traces a deeply personal arc — from growing up near St. Mary's Basilica, navigating caste identity, watching his grandfather deliberately drop "Naidu" from the family name, to eventually choosing to add his mother's name to his own. It's a quiet revolution in nomenclature that mirrors the larger story of a city that has always been more plural than it is given credit for. 🏙️ Peak Bengaluru Moments The Tent at Cantonment Station — A family walks from Tamil Nadu to Bangalore and sells bread from a basket. That basket becomes a bakery empire. The British Army's Last Salute — Kuppuswamy Naidu requests the British Army to wash the street and lay a white cloth when he dies. They honour it. A Temple Built in a Week — Five friends, including Visvesvaraya's father, build a wall and a temple in Shivajinagar in days to prevent the land being taken back by a new mayor. The Brown Bread Confession — "I knew brown bread was a scam." A rusk-based truth bomb dropped at the very end of the conversation. Teaching in Five Languages — English → Kannada → Tamil → Telugu → Hindi, all in one baking class. Peak Bengaluru. The Dilpasand Debate — "It's a very corny name, I must say." But also: stuffed, layered, coconutty, baked perfection from Shivajinagar. If you love Bangalore's history, its old bakeries, its forgotten flavours, and the stories that hold this city together, this one is for you. 🔔 Subscribe for more conversations that go deep into the soul of Bengaluru. Timestamps 00:00 – The Naidu & Sons Legacy Begins 00:44 – Walking to Bangalore: How Kuppuswamy Naidu Founded Shivajinagar's First Indian Bakery in 1888 09:54 – From Hotel Management to Baking School: How a Mother's Instinct Changed Everything 11:07 – Grandmother's Bedtime Stories: The Living Archive of the Naidu Family & the Plague Years 23:15 – Traveling to England & The Secret of the Japanese Cake: Kuppuswamy Naidu's Menu Revealed 26:14 – Reconstructing Lost Recipes: Rum Balls, Masala Biscuits & The Warki 28:23 – The Best Kept Secrets of Bangalore Bakeries: JB Bakery Sponge Cake, Dilpasand, Aflatoon & Excelsior 31:50 – Why Drop the Name 'Naidu'? Caste, Identity & Naming Your Mother Into Your Legacy 34:16 – What Makes Bengaluru, Bengaluru: Karaga, St. Mary's Basilica & A City That Always Opened Its Arms 37:07 – All-LGBTQ Staff, Neurodivergent Bakers & The Good Measure Foundation 41:07 – Will Bangalore Connection 1888 Return? The Supper Club Dream 41:42 – A Postcard to Bangalore | "I Knew Brown Bread Was a Scam"