A creeper found in south India is an answer to several common ailments, says Sumana Narayanan

Around September each year, when the northeast monsoon usually started, bags of wet plant material would make their way to our home in Chennai. Every other week my grandmother would collect this plant called mudakkatraan from our untended garden in the village and my father would transport it overnight by train. The bags were much awaited as it meant the green dosa season had begun.

At home, the leaves would be crushed into a gooey paste and mixed with the batter to make green dosas. It was a delicacy, but in most part of Tamil Nadu, the plant is eaten for its medicinal value