Rice · Rice · Short entry
Navara
ഞവര
A medicinal red rice endemic to Kerala, ripening in about 60 days and used in Ayurvedic treatments such as Njavarakizhi.
Rice as medicine
Navara (Njavara) is grown and used for Ayurvedic treatment only in Kerala. In Njavarakizhi, one of the Keraliya Panchakarma therapies, rice cooked with milk and herbs is tied into boluses and massaged over the body. Farmers keep it for its very short crop cycle — about 60 days — and its grains are smaller than those of the traditional cultivars grown alongside it. Researchers have distinguished several genotypes, with yellow and black glumes. Dimensions here are estimated from the short-grain class.