Western Ghats

The Western Ghats rise inland from Kozhikode, separating the Malabar coast from the uplands of the Deccan. Moist southwest monsoon winds bring heavy rain to the western slopes, where evergreen forests cover the hills and streams descend towards the Arabian Sea. Pepper and other products of the wooded interior reached the markets of Calicut, the great port of the Zamorins. The steep mountain country formed a barrier as well as a source of the goods that sustained the coast’s overseas commerce.