CHOCOLATES. Oh…the sheer blissful joy of cramming large pieces of solid, sweet heaven into your mouth. Those little feathery sweets that melt away deliciously the moment you put them between your lips. The god-sent demons that ruin your diet, but you couldn't care less. The gift of love that puts you on a Wonkamobile and transports you to the Chocolate Factory. You would be lying if you say you never wished it were real.

There lays in a terrain far, far away from Loompaland, the glorious kingdom of Gulshan-1 (South) D.C.C. Paka Market. I'm sure you have heard about its magnanimous bounties of wholesale-rated goodies spread across three floors of the colossal structure, which is roughly sited between Almas General Store and Otobi in Gulshan-1. For those who don't know the location, just ask any taxi cabs or CNGs.
Over there, there are two whole-sale shops that sell chocolates at a price 20-25% lower than super shops. D.C.C. Market. First floor. Enter arena. Don't let the labyrinthine maze and hagglers fool you. Walk straight, then left.  If you have reached shop#27 and the signboard says Saika International, pat yourself on the back.  The friendly shopkeeper beckons you in.
Lo and behold! Fortresses of cartons, walls overloaded floor to ceiling, in proudly gleaming wrappers - les chocolats magnifiques. Everything in the shop is devourable. Mars, Snickers, Dairy Milk, Ferrero Rocher, Hersheys- you name it- the very sight of these by the hundreds will make you drool. Your senses run amok like wide-eyed, crazy kids set free in Candyland. Oh, how you'd wish to rob these shops at midnight!
Among the top favorites, there is Cadbury Dairy Milk. Then there is Kitkat in two different multiplicities- 4 fingers  and 2 Fingers. Kitkat Chunky is also available. Mars and Snickers bars are available, Maltesers,   Toblerone bars, Hersheys et al. I could go on and on but you already hate me. I can tell.
Moving onto assorted candies (sorry, I lied. I'm cruel). Well, there is Cadbury Grand, Doulton Luxury assorted chocolates, Nestle Quality Street  in tins and colourful rectangular boxes. Then there are Milk éclairs, Chelsea Assorted toffees, Chico Royale Caramels, Assorted toffee boxes from Oman, Turkey etc.
If you want to loosen your purse strings a little- enter Exotic chocolates. My, oh my. There is of course Ferrero Rocher. Then there is the evergreen Guylian- Artisinal Belgian Sea-shell shaped chocolates, Gourmet Dragee, Bohem and HUGE  300g bars of Nestle Swiss Chocolate in two flavours- Milk chocolate& Hazel, Milk Chocolate & Fruit & Nuts. They might leave you with a nearly empty wallet, but surely will fill up your soul!
El Classico for kids- Kinder Egg of Italian company Bueno Kinder Joy(same company as Ferrero Rocher), at 55tk per piece. They are no longer sold at retail price but are given away in boxes. Jelly bars, Thai Jelly Box are popular choices.
Remember Fox chocolates? This Indonesian legend is still sold in tins and 90g packets.
The shopkeeper was kind enough to share a few of his operational mechanisms. They usually make only 5-7% profit, i.e tk 25-30 per box if purchased by cash, e.g Saika sells Transcom's Ferrero Rocher at a price which is 50tk less than that of supershops. They usually sell chocolates to  supershops at 10% profit. He also threw in a secret: If chocolates are sold privately, then upto 6 lakhs profit can be generated  because government imposes tax on imports in 20-fit containers which reduces profits to mere 3 lakhs.
The other shop that you can try out is S.A Traders (shop#16). They are a bit nonchalant, and the exact same chocolates are a bit pricier, too.
We would like to believe that chocolate is good for our teeth. Chocolates can help fight against bacteria in the mouth and stop dental decay. Did you know dark chocolate soothes your mind, too?
So, who needs a partner when you can have a five layer chocolate mousse cake! Just grab your Great Glass Elevator, and come flying!

The Prices:
·Cadbury-
Dairy Milk- 4 different flavours - Caramel, Fruit and Nut, Whole-nut and the original. 66.66 per bar. Available in 3 sizes - 49g, 45g and 120g. Box-Tk.3200
Cadbury Timeout - tk 71 each, carton of 24 at bdt 1700
Cadbury Twirl - tk 71 each, carton of 24 at bdt 1700
Cadbury Flake- box for 1700
Kitkat-
4 FINGER- EACH TK.54 AND WHOLESALE @ 1300 for 24 pieces
2 finger- 1100tk wholesale, 36 pieces, 30tk per piece
Chunky- 1700 for 24 pieces, 71 per piece
Maltesers- 25 pieces each 35g at around tk.2000
Toblerone- 50g bars for 70tk; box of 20 @1400 tk
Hershey's- Cookies and crème - wholesale 75tk per piece; box of 24 @tk.1800
M&Ms - wholesale 75tk per piece, box of 24 @tk.1800.
Ferrero Rocher - standard tk.324, 24 pieces @tk.830-850 and 16 pieces @tk.475
Nestle Swiss Chocolate - 300g HUGE bar- two flavours, milk chocolate & Hazel, Milk Chocolate & Fruit & Nuts- both wholesale price of 800tk per bar
Mars, Snickers- 500g, 28 pieces, tk-800
Fox chocolates (Indonesian)- tin wholesale price of 175tk, 90g packet at 80tk
The mentioned prices and chocolates can be found at Saika Intl. Limited.

Illustration: Prithi Khalique