Durga Puja sales were below par.

Bijoya Dashami was no better.

Diwali and Bhai Phonta, or Bhai Dooj, however, have emerged as a potential game changer for most mishti sellers across the city.

Almost all big sweet shops had to ramp up their production. Some said they were working in three shifts, reason -- the surge in demand for mishti.

A three-shift routine signifies peak business in the trade.

"We didn t expect so much demand now," said Partha Nandy of Girish Chandra Dey & Nakur Chandra Nandy, a Calcutta landmark since 1844.

"The sales volume for Diwali and Bhai Phonta has surpassed that of last year." Calcutta alone has a little over 16,000 sweet shops and a few among them, including Nakur, have remained untouched by the urge to innovate.

"The traditional offerings like jal bhora sandesh, Parijat and Dilkhush have remained the highest-selling items over the past few days," Partha said.

With Durga Puja and Bijoya sales not looking up, many sweet shops like Balaram Mullick Radharaman Mullick had not upped their productions for the pre-Diwali and Diwali sales.

"The Bhai Phonta sales have come as a ray of hope after a very dull season. By Saturday afternoon, some of our products like chocolate mudpie and baked rasogolla were completely sold out," said Sudip Mullick, the fourth-generation owner of the chain of sweet shops across the city swing in the sale of mishti of the pandemic days when and the suburbs.

across the city said the run-up even the diehard sweet tooth "There s been an upward to the Pujas reminded them stayed away from visiting mishti shops. The price of milk for commercial supplies from the districts for mishti dropped by nearly 20 a kilo as demand slumped.

The Pujas had little or no impact on the sales of sweets -- both the traditional varieties and their fusion counterparts - in and around a city that remained mostly caught demanding justice for the junior doctor of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, who was found raped and murdered on August 9.

Several shop owners said orders that had dried up for two-and-a-half months resumed with Diwali buying.

"The sale of our canned rasogolla has started picking up again along with other varieties," said Dhiman Das, director of KC Das and great-grandson of Nabin Chandra Das, who is credited with creating the rasogolla in 1868.

"Our online sales have gone up by almost 250 per cent in these few days compared to the past two months." Nilanjan Ghosh of Mithai also sounded upbeat.

"Customers and mishti lovers started returning to the shops gradually and now the volume of sales is up by almost 20 per cent." While Diwali was mostly about traditional varieties like motichur laddoos or kaju barfi, the Bhai Phonta has been mostly about mixing traditional ones with their fashionable and fusion variants.

"Chitrakoot is as much in demand as is golap sandesh or elaichi mishti," Ghosh said.

"We have been forced to work on three shifts last few days to meet the demand," he said.