Does your morning also begin with that one steaming cup of chai, sweet, strong and kind of magical? Maybe it’s your cure for Monday blues, your rainy-day muse, or your excuse to gossip with a friend. But have you ever wondered where this beloved brew came from? How did a foreign leaf become India’s most emotional beverage? 

Believe it or not, the chai we swear by wasn’t always ours. It travelled across borders, changed hands, got a little colonial nudge, and then Indians added their own spice, literally. Before we dive deep into the Chai, let’s rewind a few centuries and stir in some history.

The British Brew & the Indian Twist! 

So here's the tea, quite literally. Tea didn’t grow in India. It started in China, where emperors sipped it like royalty since 2737 BCE. The British got hooked on it much later and by the 1600s, tea was their national obsession. But sourcing it from China was pricey and problematic. 

So, like any colonial superpower with a business agenda, they looked towards India. Turns out, Assam’s wild tea plants were perfect for cultivation. Thus began the British tea plantations, not for Indians to drink, but to export and profit.

But Indians being Indians - threw in ginger, cardamom, milk, sugar, and created masala chai. The British winced, but Indians were sold. That’s when chai stopped being their beverage and started becoming ours.

Tea, Chai, and the Curious Case of the ‘Chai Latte’

The word chai comes from the Hindi “chai,” which came from the Mandarin word chá. Meanwhile, “tea” came to Europe from the coastal Chinese dialect te. So when your neighborhood café in New York or Paris sells “chai tea,” they’re basically selling “tea tea.” Confused? 

Today, chai has travelled far beyond Indian kitchens and railway stations. In the West, it’s been rebranded as “chai latte,” usually served in tall cups with oat milk, a sprinkle of cinnamon. While we’re all for global appreciation, nothing beats  a roadside kulhad of masala chai, served piping hot and stirred with stories. 

Where the Magic Grows: India’s Tea Heartlands! 

India isn’t just a tea lover, it’s a tea producer. From the misty slopes of Darjeeling to the sun-soaked fields of Assam and the breezy Nilgiris in the South, tea plantations dot our landscapes like leafy poetry. 

But these scenic estates have a layered past. Under British rule, laborers worked in harsh conditions, and much of the profit left the country. Today, India is the second-largest tea producer in the world, and chai is no longer just a drink, it’s an emotion. 

Final Sip! 

So this International Tea Day, take a moment. Hold your cup of chai, whether it's masala, cutting, adrak, or even a frothy chai latte and remember: this isn’t just a drink. It’s a journey across continents, through empires, languages, plantations, and generations. 

Chai didn’t just arrive in India, it bloomed here, got spiced up with identity, and became a beloved ritual in every Indian life. Sip slowly. You’re drinking history.