German Bakery readies to reopen

It was on February 13, 2010, that a hidden bomb went off at the eatery in the evening hours killing 17 visitors, mostly youth, as well as foreigners.

Now, one year on, the bakery is still being spruced up and the Kharose family promises that it would reopen soon. “We wanted to reopen the bakery on the first anniversary of the blast or even earlier, but some renovation is still incomplete. It will be over within a week or two,” Snehal Kharose, the eldest from the family who will be managing the eatery, told Deccan Herald.

Snehal, a third year BA student of Sinhgarh College, plans to do management course after her graduation. Last year, amid questioning by the anti-terrorist squad, she had vowed to rebuild the bakery, which was the only source of income for the Kharose family.

The terror-struck bakery was closed down after the blast, and was handed over to the family three months after the incident.

Snehal’s mother, Smita Kharose, received help from NCP’s Vandana Chavan, who is the elder sister of Vinita Kamte,  wife of slain Mumbai additional commissioner of police Ashok Kamte, killed in 26/11 terror attacks, for renovating the bakery.
 The state government provided a compensation of Rs 14.5 lakh, which kickstarted renovation work. The renovated bakery can accommodate about 80 customers.
“We are running behind time. But we don’t want to make haste,” Smita said.  The family is  consulting a priest for a suitable date and timing to reopen the bakery to ward off evil.

The bakery was the only source of income after the passing away of Dnyaneshwar Narayan Kharose in 1999, Snehal’s father, who started the eatery in 1988 with the help of a German national, Woody, who named it “German Bakery.” There are two bakeries with similar name, one in Himachal Pradesh and another in Goa, which Woody helped set up.

Besides modern interiors and enhanced looks, Snehal is creating a collage of photographs of all the 17 victims. “I am doing it so that we always remember them,” Snehal said. The terror bombing has forced the Kharoses to take stringent security measures, like installing CCTV cameras, before reopening the bakery.

The family is taking the help of two hoteliers Vijay Shewale and Rajan Udane in managing the bakery.