In summer, hundreds of makeshift stalls appear alongside National Highway-47 from Chavakkad to Kochi, selling the juice of snap melon to thirsty travellers. The fruit has become so popular that enthusiastic young farmers have started growing snap melon every two weeks to ensure an uninterrupted supply.
The commercial success of snap melon juice might seem strange at first. The fruit has hardly any shelf life. In just six hours, its skin begins to crack. So it is called ‘pottu’ which in Malayalam means cracking.
But, in actuality, there is nothing nutty about its rising. . .
