Life In A Cuppa: Chai Conversations

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Bodhidharma from Tamil Nadu is among those who are credited with discovering tea in faraway China, where he traveled 2.500 years ago. It is Buddhist monks who taught people the benefits of tea and took it to Tibet, Japan and other South Asian cultures. The Singphos of Arunachal harvested tea from tree tops on elephant-back many centuries ago. Robert Bruce wrote all about tea in a book in the 1830s and began the first commercial cultivation of tea in India with the help of Diwan Maniram. It is Indian tea that helped the English break the Chinese monopoly on tea. It is the same Indian tea that caused a tax revolt in Boston harbour, leading to an independent USA.

In the book, Life in a Cuppa, curated by Kakoli G, a connoisseur herself, experts like Sanjeev Kapoor, Sanjay Khosla, Piyush Pandey, Chandrajit Banerjee tell us the tea story of India and how special it is through tales of twining, tasting and trade.

Tea is a phenomenal social connector. The first time this really hit me was in my first job as a salesman with Hishustan Unilever Ltd Ewas responsible for sales in the lammu territorial region in Northern India. My job was to sell soaps and detergents from shop to shop. I went to around 15 shops a day in many shops my attempts to sell tailed miserably. In fact, I was asked to go away sometimes which was not good for my confidence However, in some shops I was asked to sit down and have a cup of tea. This was a good sign. This meant that there was an emotional connection and the possibility of a successful sale. It also moved away from a cold transaction. On a good day. I often had 10 cups of tea The tea was very strong with plenty of milk and plenty of sugar. Looking back I realise this was probably not very healthy given the amount of sugar that was in the tea. Having hot tea during the peak of summer was also an interesting contradiction. Tea kept you alert. It made you calm at the same time It also filled your stomach, as very often there was no time for lunch.

I had no idea then that I would get so involved with tea. Many years later, I was asked to lead the Brooke Bond Lipton Tea business, initially in India and then globally. It was a fantastic learning experience.

I had no idea how rich and deep the traditions and heritage of tea were. Tea served as a great connector to bring the leaders of two warring companies, Brooke Bond and Lipton, together as these companies merged. Also, what fantastic businesses Brooke Bond and Lipton were, built over generations. I learnt about some amazing traditions and rituals, like tea tasting Very quaint, but very effective. I had no idea about tea tasting. Indeed, I made a complete fool of myself during my first tea tasting. I had come from a different industry and had no idea what to expect. I was on my first visit to the Brooke Bond Lipton tea tasting facility in Kolkata. There were rows of people visiting in a large hall. With a lot of spittoons. I saw them perform an elaborate ritual.