Bangladesh can be called a land of sweets. Bangladesh has 64 administrative districts and almost every district has special sweet food. For example, Tangail is famous for Chomchom, Muktagachha (Mymensingh) is famous for Monda, Bogra is famous for sweet curd, Comilla is famous for Rasmalai, Shariatpur district has famous Rosgulla known as Buddhir Ram Rosgulla. Similarly, Netrokona district is famous for a huge sweet known as Pillow sweet (বালিশ মিষ্টি). Today I am going to write about this Pillow sweet as I got the chance to have this special sweet for the first time.
Various kinds of Bangladeshi sweets on a single plate.
Why it has this peculiar name:
Normally a sweet may weigh 100 or 200 grams. But the biggest Pillow sweet can be 1500 grams and around 15” in length. For this huge size and shape like a pillow (bolster), it got the name Pillow sweet.
History of the pillow sweet:
Pillow sweet has years-long history and tradition. It was first made by the sweet seller Goyanath Ghosh. He was born on 2nd February of 1885. He had a sweet selling shop, Goyanath Mistanno Vandar, in Netrokona District town. He was very much interested to make a new kind of sweet. He made several kinds of sweets as experiments. Finally, he was happy with this very Pillow sweet for its taste and variation in size. Customers also liked this sweet very much from the beginning. Due to its size and shape, it got its name Pillow sweet. Mr. Goyanath left Bangladesh in 1969. Before leaving, he taught the recipe of the pillow sweet to his main aide Nikhil Chandra Modoc. Goyanath sold his shop to Kumud Chandra Nag and Mr. Modoc worked with Mr. Kumud. After 6 years of running the shop, Mr. Nag sold the shop to Mr. Modoc. Mr. Modoc run the shop very well and during this time Pillow sweet got more popular. Till now, the Modoc family runs the business with the same popularity at home and abroad. They did not compromise with quality and taste of the pillow sweet.
Close view of a pillow sweet
Size & price of pillow sweet:
At present you may get pillow sweet in 5 common sizes (each piece): 1400grams, 1000grams, 700grams, 500grams, and 250grams and price will be 500 Taka, 300 Taka, 200 Taka, 100 Taka, and 50 Taka respectively ($1 = 85 Taka). Goyanath Mistanno Vandar has 3 branches. There are other 8-9 shops selling pillow sweet in Netrokona town. Price and quality are almost the same everywhere.
Related with tradition:
This pillow sweet is very much popular in the greater Mymensingh district. It is so popular that it has become a part of weddings, birthdays, anniversaries, mehndi parties, and other social gatherings. It is a must at the wedding party.
A single pillow sweet covers the full area of a food tray!
My experience:
Recently, one of my colleagues went to Netrokona. I gave him 500 Taka and requested him to buy a bigger size pillow sweet for my family. He bought one that weighs 1300grams. My family members were really surprised by seeing the huge size of it. We loved the taste of it very much. This one was bought from Khan Restaurant.
The packet of Khant Restaurant
How to go to Netrokona:
You can easily go to Netrokona by bus or train from Dhaka. Buses of various companies start from the Mohakhali Inter-District Bus Terminal. Fare starts from 300 Taka. You can also go by train from Kamalapur Railway Station or from Airport Railway Station. You can get the train schedule and fare from here. Or visit this website to book a train ticket to Netrokona. There are some hotels in Netrokona town where tourists can stay.
If you have any special sweet or dessert in your country, please share with us here.
You may also like to read this post: Buddhi Ram Rosogolla of Naria
। তাই আসল গয়ানাথের বালিশ মিষ্টি খাওয়া হলো না। তবে ওই লোক এবার গেলে অবশ্যই আসল গয়ানাথের মিষ্টি আনবে বলছে। আরেকটা মজার কথা বলি। বালিশ মিষ্টির সাথে যে মালাই/ক্ষীর দেয়, ওটাও জানতাম না। আমরা ওটাকে দই ভেবে আলাদা করে খেয়েছি 
। আপনার বালিশ মিষ্টির সুন্দর ছবির জন্য অনেক অনেক ধন্যবাদ। সুন্দর মন্তব্যের জন্য অনেক ধন্যবাদ। এই সপ্তার ফুড চ্যালেঞ্জে আপনাকে আশা করছি। ভালো থাকবেন।
। আপনার সুন্দর মন্তব্যের জন্য অনেক ধন্যবাদ 