Embelia ribes Embelia ribes, commonly called Vidanga or False Black Pepper, is an important medicinal climbing plant that belongs to the Primulaceae family. It is a woody shrub with thin, flexible branches and smooth, elliptical leaves. The plant produces small, round berries about 2–4 mm wide. When fresh, these fruits are soft and smooth, but when dried, they become wrinkled or bumpy and change color from dull red to almost black. Often, a tiny pointed tip from the flower remains at the top of the fruit.
Embelia ribes grows in the wet tropical regions of South and Southeast Asia, including India and Sri Lanka. In India, it is mostly found in the moist forests of the Western Ghats and the Eastern Himalayas, usually at heights from sea level up to 1,500 meters.