Raksha Bandhan is the treasured Indian festival that celebrates the sacred relationship between a brother and sister. It's a celebration of love, fun, and sweets that represent love. In 2025, sisters in India and beyond are rewriting this story of Raksha Bandhan with a lovely twist of tradition, creativity, health-consciousness, and innovation. No longer is it as simple as picking up a box of sweets from the local halwai. Today's sisters are putting on the apron and flavouring this festival with home-made goodness. 

Let's take a look at what sweets sisters will be making this Raksha Bandhan in 2025.

A Tasty Tip of the Hat to Tradition

In many households, the day starts with cardamom, saffron, ghee, and roasted nuts swirling in the air. These are the familiar fragrances of love that sisters are preparing each year, in time-honoured Indian mithais.

The traditional mawa gulab jamun, besan ladoos, and kaju katli all continue to make a splash on the Rakhi platter, and today’s sisters have added their spin to these time-honoured treats.

Take Anshoo's Kitchen, who is a creator on Foodism, shared an incredible recipe for Mawa Gulab Jamun - their pale golden balls sitting in fragrant rose-saffron syrup with notes of cardamom. What is key about this version is the emphasis on homemade khoya, and the slow cooking methods will make it feel like the festival, rather than just a dish.

These recipes serve as emotional anchors supporting generations of goodwill; however, in 2025, a nod to tradition is not the only trend on the taste menu.

Sweet Trends Sisters are Loving in 2025

This year, Raksha Bandhan stationery is getting a serious makeover. With the surge of homegrown culinary influencers, social inspiration, and increased awareness of health - the modern Rakhi platter looks a little different - but just as decadent.

Here are some of the main updates/from the trends:

Festivity that Nourishes the Body

Sisters are so conscious these days, choosing sugar-free or vegan, or gluten-free options. Traditional ladoos made with jaggery + millet are becoming mainstream again, and families are making dried fruit energy balls and ragi-coconut sweets (instead of heavy halwas).

On our platform, Rashmi Singhania has tagged us in an indulgent but healthy and delicious take on ladoos—Chocolate Truffle Besan Ladoos! Besan is being roasted and mixed with creamy dark chocolate without refined sugars! Ideal for the sibling who loves healthy eating but has a sweet tooth. 

Fruit-Forward Dessert 

Another new trend is using seasonal fruit in festive desserts! Pineapple halal with caramelised corners, fig barfis, mango-rose panna cotta with Indian flair!

Creator Ritika Tandon is alluring with her Pineapple Halwa—a jolly treat that is floral, tangy, bright, and surprisingly light. It's a great dessert to include when building a fragrant and healthy Rakhi menu. This is a beautiful reminder that even the most sacred, cherished traditions can come with creativity and joy.

Chocolate is the New Kesar

It is official; chocolate is now part of Indian mithai. From ganache-filled modaks to chocolate-soaked barfis, this globally-inspired ingredient has found its own home in Indian kitchens.

One of our most popular recipes this month Chocolate Barfi, from Asha Singh, is a layered recipe of smooth chocolate fudge mixed with a traditional milk base with vark and crushed nuts on top. It’s indulgent, it’s pretty, and it’s going to be the first thing gone from the plate.

Modern Mughal: Rose-Pistachio Dreams

If there’s one dessert that embodies the 2025 aesthetic of “minimal, modern, yet nostalgic” it’s the Rose and Pistachio Sandwich Dessert by Secrets of Kitchen. Layers of creamy rose-scented cream and crunchy pistachio crumbles in between soft and buttery biscuit layers: sublime, yet regal, yet romantic.

This kind of fusion dessert is the kind of thing that today’s sisters are going to gravitate toward—something that looks lovely, feels intentional, and still feels connected to the emotion of the festival.

Rakhi Hampers: DIY Fun with Heart

In 2025, we will see sisters upping their Rakhi hampers game by creating very visually engaging and incredibly thought-out homemade Rakhi hampers that look like a gourmet. Think jars of almond-chikki brittle, wielder notes, dates stuffed gulkond, mini cakes, maybe even a DIY mithai kit for them to try to create themselves.

It is not the price or the packaging behind these hampers that is so compelling; rather, it is that each meaningful element represents something else. And a lot of the goodies in these hampers likely came from food platforms, Foodism, where thousands of home cooks are sharing their Rakhi recipes with fellow foodies. 

Why This is More than Food!

Sisters are creating in 2025 something that goes far beyond desserts for their brothers. It is an extension of themselves - their caretaking roles, their creativity, their work life, and their taste. It is how sisters make memories, celebrate individuality and love in a way only food can offer. This year, sweets are not just being created but thought through, created with stories, styled and shared!

Interested in These Recipes?

All the sweets listed here—from Chocolate Truffle Besan Ladoos to Pineapple Halwa—are live and trending on Foodism, our recipe-sharing platform that is growing quickly for the inspired home chef and food lover.

Whether you are interested in a quick 3-minute mithai, a no-bake item, or a classic item made from scratch, you will discover recipes from real people like you—recipe shares with step-by-step photos, hints, and love in the secret ingredient.

A Celebration of Change, A Celebration of Connection

Raksha Bandhan in 2025 is a beautiful blend of ancient and new. Sisters are honouring traditions that go back centuries, while at the same time devising new traditions—showcasing innovation, health, and heart.

So whether you're tying- or receiving- a rakhi this year, let the sweets be more than a dessert. Let the sweets be an opportunity to connect, through taste, tradition, and a touch of modern magic.

And if you have already been thinking about what to make this year—go the extra step and download Foodism now, check out what other sisters are preparing, and make your Rakhi platter that much sweeter, that much bolder, and all yours.