When we think of tea in India, images of sprawling British-established plantations often come to mind. However, long before the British East India Company set its sights on Assam’s fertile lands, indigenous tribes like the Singphos had already integrated tea into their daily lives. Their traditional methods and rich history challenge the commonly held belief that tea culture in India is purely a colonial import.

The Singpho Legacy: India’s original tea connoisseurs

The Singpho tribe, residing in parts of Northeast India, Myanmar, and China, have been brewing tea for centuries — possibly since as early as the 12th century. Their age-old techniques involve heating tea leaves in a metal pan until they turn brown, sun-drying them for several days, and then packing them tightly into........

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