A sub-region within the larger Chikmagular coffee region, Baba Budangiri has the distinction of being the place where India’s coffee history began. Story has it that Baba Budan, a Sufi saint in the 1600s, set out on a pilgrimage to Mecca. On his way, he passed through Yemen’s port city of Mocha (Moka), and there tasted a dark and mysterious beverage. He noticed that his energy increased, and decided that he should bring it back to India with him.
Problem was, coffee was closely guarded in order to maintain Yemen’s monopoly. Only roasted beans were allowed out of the country, and of course, roasted beans will no longer sprout. So Baba Budan managed to get hold of seven green coffee beans, hid them in a pouch next to his skin, and smuggled them back home. There, next to a cave in the Chandra hills, he planted them. The seeds sprouted, and the rest, as they say, is history. The Chandra hills (Chandragiri) came to be known as the Baba Budan hills (Baba Budangiri). Whatever else he accomplished in life, bringing coffee to India has made him famous!