Native Rice
Mahadi Red Rice
Once known as the rice of warriors, Mahadi is a rare heritage red rice now grown only in small pockets of the Western Ghats.
Deeply nourishing and traditionally considered medicinal, it was slow-cooked into porridges for recovery, pregnancy, and strength. The rice water — pej — was valued by forest communities for its restorative qualities, rich in minerals, fibre, and natural energy.
Unlike modern hybrid rice, Mahadi remains close to its wild ancestry. It yields very little, shatters easily as it ripens, and bends heavily with the rain. Much of the grain returns to the earth before it can ever be harvested.
This is why few continue to grow it today.
We cultivate and dehusk Mahadi slowly, in small quantities, preserving the bran layer where much of the grain’s nutrition and character lives. When cooked, the rice opens gently — earthy, nutty, and deeply grounding.
A grain that asks for patience.
And gives something rarer in return.
Cooking with Mahadi
Mahadi asks to be danced with. Not rushed.
Rince the rice gently once, only to remove any residual husk. There is no need to over-wash it.
Soak for anywhere between 30 minutes to 5 hours, ideally in morning sunlight, using a ratio of 1 part rice to 7 parts water.
Cook slowly in the same water it was soaked in, allowing the grain to retain what it has already begun to release. Unlike polished rice, Mahadi responds best to slow simmering in a large pot rather than pressure cooking.
Over about 45 minutes, the grains gradually soften and open.
The excess rice water — traditionally known as pej — is mineral-rich and deeply restorative. In many forest communities, it is sipped warm with a pinch of salt before the meal. Doing so sends the nutrients directly to the slow intestine, allowing nutritional absorption by the body without having to deal with digestion.
For a deeper, nuttier flavour, lightly dry roast the rice before cooking.
Mahadi expands generously and is deeply satisfying — you will likely need about half the quantity of rice you are used to cooking.
Ajara Ghansal Rice
Aromatic, slender, and deeply nourishing, Ajara Ghansal is a heritage brown rice cultivated by the Ajara community for generations.
The grain is aged naturally for over a year, allowing its flavour to deepen and mature into a drier, more fragrant rice.
We dehusk the rice in-house using a low-friction process designed to preserve the bran layer — the part of the grain where its fibre, minerals, proteins, and natural oils remain intact.
Unlike polished modern rice, native varieties like Ghansal carry a higher amylose content, resulting in a slower release of energy and a naturally lower glycemic response.
When cooked, Ghansal remains light, non-sticky, and easy to digest, with a quiet aroma and clean finish.
Ajara's nutrient density and cooked grain tenderness makes it a beautiful weaning food for babies.
Cooking with Ajara Ghansal
Ajara Ghansal responds best to patience and gentle heat.
Rinse the rice once, lightly, only to remove any remaining husk. There is no need to over-wash the grain.
Soak using a ratio of 1 part rice to 3 parts water for at least 30 minutes, allowing the grain to awaken slowly before cooking.
Without discarding the soaking water, cook covered in a pot over medium heat. Once the pot begins to steam, partially uncover and reduce to a gentle simmer. Avoid pressure cooking — Ghansal opens best when given time.
In about 30 minutes, the rice becomes tender while still retaining its shape and lightness. Allow it to rest for a few minutes before serving.
If there is excess rice water, strain it into a cup and add a pinch of sea salt. Traditionally enjoyed before a meal — pej is a mineral-rich broth, simple, restorative, and deeply grounding. Doing so sends the nutrients directly to the slow intestine, allowing nutritional absorption by the body without having to digest.
Ajara's nutrient density and cooked grain tenderness makes it a beautiful weaning food for babies.
How Native Rice is Grown
Native rice is grown in rhythm with the monsoon and the ecosystem around it.
The fields are prepared by hand, seedlings are transplanted manually, and the crop moves slowly through rain, mud, insects, wind, and changing skies. Unlike modern rice bred for uniformity, heritage varieties remain deeply connected to their wild ancestry — responsive to weather, biodiversity, and soil health.
These varieties are often taller, more delicate grasses — responsive to wind, rainfall, insects, and changing conditions.
Some disperse their seeds naturally as they ripen — the ecological process of shattering that assures a future crop — returning grain back to the earth before harvest.
Harvest itself is an intensely physical process: cutting, drying, bundling, threshing, storing, and finally dehusking the grain while preserving its bran layer intact. Straw returns to the land as mulch, cattle feed, or compost, continuing the cycle.
Native rice is not simply cultivated.
It is lived with.
Why Native Rice takes Longer
Heritage rice was never bred for speed or industrial efficiency.
Varieties like Mahadi and Ajara Ghansal yield far less grain than modern hybrids, mature more slowly, and retain traits from their wild ancestors. Some naturally disperse seed as they ripen, while taller grasses bend heavily under rain, sometimes returning the grain back into the earth before it can even be harvested.
The work continues long after harvest:
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slow drying
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aging
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low-friction dehusking
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preserving the nutrient-rich bran
Ajara Ghansal, for example, is aged naturally for over a year to deepen aroma and texture before it reaches the kitchen.
What emerges is not abundance in quantity, but depth in nourishment, flavour, and character.
Unpolished vs Polished Rice
Polished rice removes the bran layer — the part of the grain where much of its fibre, minerals, oils, antioxidants, and proteins reside.
Unpolished rice retains this layer intact.
The difference is nutritional, but also sensory. Heritage rice cooks differently, carries more texture and aroma, releases energy more slowly, and creates greater satiety. Many native varieties naturally contain higher amylose content, associated with a lower glycemic response than polished modern rice.
At Vrindavan Farm, the rice is dehusked slowly in-house using a low-friction process designed to preserve the grain without generating heat or stripping away its living qualities.
The result is a grain that feels fuller, steadier, and more complete.
Seasonal Rice Growing in Maharashtra
Rice in Maharashtra begins with the arrival of rain.
As the monsoon settles over the Western Ghats, nurseries are sown and fields flood naturally. Through the wet months, entire communities move together through the stages of rice growing — sowing and transplanting.
By late monsoon, the landscape shifts from green to gold. Harvesting begins under uncertain skies where timing becomes everything. Extended rains may flatten crops, trigger sprouting, or reduce recoverable grain dramatically.
The dry post-monsoon months brings the community together again, moving through the stages of harvesting, threshing, drying, and storing seed for the following cycle.
The season stretches beyond the field itself.
Rice water becomes nourishment.
Straw feeds cattle, soil and ripens mango.
Seed is stored in ash and neem.
And the harvest slowly becomes part of daily life once again.