As it gains commercial viability, the food will likely become a powerful political currency.
Shambhu Prasad left Mithilanchal in 1998. He has worked in Japan and the United States, and now lives in London, where he has founded a telecom company that serves Britain's National Health Service and other corporate clients.
But his heart is in Madhubani, and in makhana. When he comes to Madhubani, which is several times a year, he rolls up the sleeves of his Jermyn Street shirts, walks up to the shopfloor of his company, Madhubani Makhana, and personally supervises the grading of a commodity that he pledges will one day reach the heights that the California almond has been able to achieve.
Last year, Madhubani Makhana sold 350 kg to Walmart. Buyers are lining up. They include Haldiram and Reliance.
It was a little-known food, and matriarchs of a certain age, especially from feudal north Indian families, readily confess they would use it as part of their 'prasad' in community pujas to swell the volumes and impress guests ("prasad bhara bhara lagta tha").
In February this year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi told the people of Bihar how partial he was to the lowly makhana.
'Makhana has become an important part of breakfast in the cities of the country today. Out of 365 days, I eat makhana for 300 days. It is a superfood.'
Nearly 90 per cent of the world's makhana comes from India. More than 80 per cent of that comes from the Mithilanchal region.
Most of it is 'mined' by the Mallah community. And it is a hot commodity: Both in markets and in politics.
In 2022, Mithila makhana -- fox nut, lotus seed, or Euryale ferox to give its botanical name -- got the geographical indication tag.
In her Budget speech this year, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said: 'With rising income levels, the consumption of fruit is also increasing, and the remuneration for farmers will also grow in collaboration with states. There is a special opportunity in Bihar -- the Makhana Board will be established in the state to provide training and support to Makhana farmers.'
That promise was fulfilled on September 15, when Modi announced the constitution of a 30-member Makhana Board with headquarters in Purnea.
Vidyanath Jha, retired professor of botany at Lalit Narayan Mithila University, Darbhanga, has researched the properties of makhana for 40 years. He says it got the recognition it deserves during the pandemic as an immunity booster.
"Animal trials in 2024-2025 suggest it also boosts male fertility. And as it has zero fat, it is naturally healthy for those suffering from lifestyle diseases," he told Business Standard in Darbhanga.
But both Jha and Prasad acknowledge that harvesting and processing makhana is highly labour-intensive and unhygienic.
Swimmers, mainly from the Mallah caste, have to dive to the pond bed, each dive at least eight to ten minutes of holding their breath, to pluck the seeds from a plant that at first glance looks like lotus but has sharp thorns, which make harvesting physically challenging.
The workers are required to use long sticks to move the plants, which remain submerged in mud for at least a month.
These seeds are then cleaned, sun-dried and roasted so that they pop.
This is done on high heat with a mallet-like object. They are then graded and packed.
The ponds where the prickly lotus is grown are owned by upper-caste landlords. The Mallahs took them on paid lease.
Lately, the government is also leasing land for makhana cultivation although Prasad says there is little evidence of the government coordinating market forces or intervening to improve the quality of the crop.
The Mallah community, however, gets very little out of it despite being the principal excavators of the final product.
They have a powerful voice in Mukesh Sahani, the colourful leader of the Vikassheel Insaan Party who abandoned the Hindi film industry as a set designer to launch the Nishad Vikas Sangh, a caste federation, in 2015, campaigning for the Bharatiya Janata Party in the assembly election that year.
He parted ways with the BJP, protesting the exclusion of the Nishad community from the scheduled caste category.
In 2018, he launched the VIP. In the years to come, he adroitly positioned himself in the two main alliances in Bihar for maximum arbitrage.
Right now, he is part of the Tejashwi Yadav-led Mahagathbandhan.
The Mallah, Sahani, and Nishad communities are 9 per cent of the population, according to the 2023 caste census done by Bihar. They have emerged as decisive electoral factors in 15 to 20 constituencies.
Acknowledging their salience, the Mahagathbandhan has offered the VIP 15 seats and will project Sahani as deputy chief minister.
Prasad is pledged to modernising his three-generation family business.
He told Business Standard from London: "I want to combine technology, traceability, and tradition to position Mithila makhana on the global superfood map, connecting heritage, innovation and sustainable rural livelihoods."
Makhana spells money. From Rs 1,000 per kg a decade ago in global markets, it now fetches up to Rs 8,000.
Domestically, prices have risen from Rs 250 to Rs 1,400 to Rs 1,600, spiking during festivals.
But while production has increased from 20,800 tonnes to 56,400 tonnes in the same period, only around 12,000 tonnes met export standards.
Prasad says there is a vast domestic market for a healthy snack option and, for this he is unfazed by tariff threats from the United States on processed food.
As it gains commercial viability, makhana will likely become a powerful political currency.
Feature Presentation: Aslam Hunani/Rediff
