Nannari (Hemidesmus indicus): names, uses, safety

Nannari is Hemidesmus indicus, Indian sarsaparilla — a twiner whose root smells of vanilla and earth and is boiled into a dark sherbet in Tamil Nadu. It is not Smilax, the American sarsaparilla of old soda fountains. Get the genus right before you drink a story.

Botanical name: Hemidesmus indicus (L.) R.Br. ex Schult.
Family: Apocynaceae
Tamil: Nannari
Hindi: Anantamul
Sanskrit: Sārivā
Parts used: Root
Habit: Twining perennial with a fragrant root
Last updated: 2026-10-30

How to recognise Nannari

Schultes published the combination after Robert Brown. The family is Apocynaceae (older books may say Periplocaceae or Asclepiadaceae). It is a slender twiner with opposite leaves and a long, dark, aromatic root.

The root is the trade object: thin, dark outside, pale inside, with a sweet-woody smell that Tamil shops call nannari. Powdered root is easy to cut with cheaper fragrant barks.

Tamil nannari, Hindi anantamul (“endless root”) and Sanskrit sārivā are the names when the seller means this species. True sarsaparilla in the old American sense is Smilax. They are not interchangeable.

Vetiver (Chrysopogon zizanioides) is another fragrant root in the same shops. Vetiver is a grass. Hemidesmus is a dicot twiner. Smell alone can fool you; the living plant cannot.

Wild collection of roots is the supply story more often than a neat farm, which is why identity fraud is common.

The living twiner has opposite leaves and a thin stem that is easy to miss in scrub. People collect the root, so the above-ground plant is often the last thing a buyer sees — if they see it at all.

Bottled syrup cannot be checked; a dark, breakable root with the nannari smell can.

Traditional use of Nannari

Tamil household and sherbet trade

Nannari sherbet is a summer drink in South India. That is food culture. It is the best-supported use.

Tamil sherbet and household practice

Ayurveda and Siddha

Sārivā / nannari root appears in cooling and blood-purifier categories in those systems. “Blood purifier” is a traditional phrase, not a haematology claim.

Ayurvedic and Siddha headings

Modern notes on Nannari

Coumarin-scented roots are pleasant and easy to fake. A gas chromatograph is more useful here than a wellness blog.

If a bottle lists only “sarsaparilla,” it has not told you the genus.

Decoction colour is a weak test. Caramel and other roots will darken a sherbet. Smell the piece before it is boiled, or do not bother.

Nannari safety

Sherbet from a known shop is the everyday drink. Root decoctions of unknown strength are not the same drink.

Fragrant barks used as adulterants can carry their own risks. Buy a root you can smell in the piece, or do not bother.

Pregnant people should not start strong root decoctions from a summer-poster claim.

Ecology and sourcing

Root harvest kills or badly damages the twiner. Cultivation and longer fallows are the only way a sherbet plant stays common.

Related plants

Also in Apocynaceae

Questions about Nannari

Is nannari the same as sarsaparilla?

Nannari is Hemidesmus indicus. Old American sarsaparilla is usually a Smilax. They are different plants that share an English marketing word.

How is Nannari different from vetiver?

Vetiver is a grass root (Chrysopogon zizanioides). Nannari is a twining Apocynaceae. Different families, different smells when you compare them side by side.

Sources

Educational page about a plant. It is not medical advice, not a diagnosis, and not an offer to sell. Traditional use is historical. If you need care, ask a licensed clinician. Questions: hello@meevamed.com.