While it is true that tea is said to have originated in China some 5000 years ago, tea is also indigenous to India and has been drunk there for nearly 3000 years. China tea differs from indigenous Indian tea which is generally referred to as Assam tea because it is the eastern Indian state of Assam that is the largest producer of tea.
Reference to Tea in Ancient Indian Texts
The ancient Indian texts such as Ramayana which dates back to about 750 BC have references to tea. There is in fact one theory which is ascribed to a Japanese legend that says tea was transported to China from India nearly 2000 years ago by the sage Bodhidharma the founder of the Ch’an (or Zen) sect of Buddhism.
Consumption of Tea in India
The plant was seen to grow wild which was brewed and consumed by inhabitants of different parts of the country. There is evidence to show that tea has been used by several native tribes in India for the past 1000 years or so. And though tea is said to have been brewed and drunk in India for thousands of years, it was never cultivated commercially till the arrival of the British in India and the setting up of the East India Trading company. Tea was not as popular or as widely used in India before that time. When the British arrived in India, large areas of land were converted to tea gardens, because tea was a highly prized commodity for trade.
Popularity of Tea in India today
While it is china tea that is cultivated in parts of India such as Darjeeling (the area that produces some of the finest teas in India) in other parts, it is Assam tea that holds sway.
Tea is certainly the most popular beverage of the vast Indian subcontinent. Though India is among the largest producers of tea in the world, only 30% of the tea produced is exported. Over 70% of Indian tea is consumed within India. Today every village street and city by lane is populated with ubiquitous tea stalls and tea drinking is a social activity that all of India enjoys today!
