Neelakurinji (
Strobilanthes kunthiana) is a
shrub that is found in the
shola forests of the
Western Ghats in
South India.
Nilgiri Hills, which literally means the blue mountains, got their name from the purplish blue flowers of Neelakurinji that blossoms gregariously only once in 12 years.
Paliyan tribal people apparently used it to calculate their age.