Pulpy or raw, Juiced or diced, we all love mango in all its forms. It is mango season after all and summers for fruit lovers is synonymous to king of fruits.  No doubt its lip-smacking delicious and one would not want to miss out on this season’s fruit. While Madhya Pradesh boasts of some amazing varieties of Mangoes, there is one Mango variety you will not wish to miss out on your trip to Madhya Pradesh.

Ever heard about ‘Noorjahan’ which is 11 inches huge and weighs upto 5 Kg? Amazed?  Well, that’s a rare mango variety grown only in the Katthiwara area of Alirajpur district (Madhya Pradesh). Unlike the dainty image, Noor Jahan variety is all about size. One mango weighs between two-and-a-half and five kg.

Shivraj Singh Yadav who owes a farm in Katthiwara shared, “other than its sweet taste, the extra ordinary size of this rare mango variety is definitely it’s USP. One mango weighs between a whopping two and a half Kgs to five kgs making it one of the largest among mango varieties produced in MP.”

Every piece of this giant variety is booked much before it becomes ripe. “as the mangoes ripe, the trees must be propped up because they can't sustain the weight. Getting a Noorjahan is not an easy task as the variety needs to be booked three months ago. The entire cultivation process takes at least three months to grow this mango breed.”

It was Shivraj’s late father Thakur Pavnendra Singh’s interest and initiative that the cultivation of ‘noorjahan’ came to life. “My father had a lot of fascination towards trying out different variety of mangoes. Hence, he had initiated this cultivation of Noorjahan by preparing a graft and now after him we are carrying forward the legacy.” Added Shivraj.

This mango remains an object of amusement among people because of its larger than life size. “Ever since we commenced Noorjahan’s cultivation, people have been fascinated towards the size. However, cultivation of this mango variety is not easy as the graft requires enough care and attention until the mango grows.”  

The order for Noorjahan is being placed from cities like Bhopal, Indore, Vadodara, Bombay and Surat and each mango fetches around Rupees 500- Rupees 1000.

“There are only three trees of this breed at our orchard. We are producing this mango since last 40 years and wherever we have presented this breed, it has won an award in the biggest size category.“ said fruit cultivator Shivraj Singh Yadav.

The farm however includes 35 other varieties of mangoes but the star attraction no doubt remains ‘Noorjahan’.