Prarthana Prasad says that her founding of Beku, a café, bakery, and bookstore, which just opened its doors to the public, came from a very “selfish place of creating the kind of space that I would have loved to go to.” The Bengaluru-based queer influencer says there are not many experiential places in the city, especially in South Bengaluru, where Beku is located. “It is a common complaint that people make about Bengaluru: that there is nothing to do, only restaurants and pubs to go to,” says Prarthana.
Beku, which is all set to host a day-long launch event on August 17, hopes to change this, “taking the best of both worlds, an independent bookshop and a café, and bringing it together,” says Prarthana, who was inspired by independent bookshops in Delhi as well as Champaca, back home. “I just love the feeling of walking into these spaces, and wanted to have something like that closer to me.”
Beku, which means want in Kannada, is both a pun on the word bake (“because the bakery is a large part of what we are doing at Beku”) as well as a nod to Kannada, which is close to her heart. A true-blue Bengalurean, Prarthana, whose mother is a Kannada author, conjured up this name at a traffic signal in the city. “Most of us Bengalureans get our best ideas when we are stuck in traffic,” she quips. “I thought Beku would be a really fun name because it is the kind of space that people want, that I definitely want as well.”
Beku will be serving a range of specialty coffees
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Special Arrangement
The cottage-core-themed café , which is housed in a 40-year-old bungalow “that used to be a veterinary hospital”, is located on one of the main roads in JP Nagar. “We have been sprucing it up for the eight months or so, using very exciting Bengaluru-based elements to do so.”
For instance, much of the space’s furniture and decorative elements have come second-hand from small shops in Shivajinagar, such as “a lot of old chairs from government offices with a little desk on the side and original rattan patchwork at the back,” she says. “They look like they have come from a different age.”
Other highlights: brick accents, moss-green wooden windows and wood panelling, created out of upcycled sal wood and other “quirky, cute elements like that,” she says.
Three of the front rooms of the bungalow have been converted into the bookstore, the main hall downstairs has been turned into a café, the garage into a bakery, the kitchen has been upgraded to create food for the café, and the upstairs space will be used for events, explains Prarthana. “The most beautiful part is the massive tree right up in front, my favourite part of this property,” she says. “It is something featured in our logo as well.”
The front rooms of the bungalow have been converted into the bookstore
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Special Arrangement
Prarthana envisions Beku as a place where a visitor can spend some time, buying a book or attending an event, as well as enjoying coffee, a snack or even a full meal. “We will be taking the F&B element to another level as we are going to have pizzas, pastas, rice bowls etc and serve specialty coffees,” she says.
Also, having a space like this, where one can bond over books or a shared love of art, is a great way to connect with people, something many adults struggle with once they finish college, she adds. “I just want it to be a space that explores the concept of connecting socially with people more than a regular café would,” says Prarthana, who also wants Beku to be a space that nurtures different communities, including the queer community. ”I identify as queer myself, and I found that it is really limited ― the kind of places we can go to feel welcome, feel normal walking in, just exist.”
Beku’s menu will include pizzas, pastas, rice bowls
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement
She says that she has tried to make Beku feel warm and welcoming to all sorts of guests as well as to offer a workplace environment that is encouraging to people from different backgrounds.
Her inclusive philosophy is also reflected the hiring process. “It would be considered maybe unconventional in the hospitality industry — a lot of women, young people, folks from the queer community,” she says, pointing out that it is not by design but simply by removing the bias that many people might have.
“It was a deep desire of mine to see a workspace in this industry that feels like you could just exist, do your job and leave, and you would not be judged for who you are or how you look. That has been a large part of what I have done with my hiring and the kind of people who are working at Beku right now.”
Published – August 15, 2025 04:17 pm IST
