India, Dec. 18 -- 'Tis the season when I avoid certain friends; when I take sides, and take stock of my Christmas cakes and cookies. You see, I am lucky. I have several friends who make excellent plum cakes. Here's the thing: I am not monogamous with respect to my cakes. So each year, I switch sides and buy my Christmas goodies from a roster of favourite bakers. The trick is to stay quiet about the whole thing, because rum cake in Bangalore inspires perspiration and passion. Each person swears by the person they get it from, and takes it very personally if you happen to disagree.

There are some 5 lakh Christians in Bengaluru, making up just over 5% of the population, as per the 2011 census. The reality is that there are probably closer t...