Spend a day with tea pluckers
Summary
The unexplored stories of women tea pluckers can be best experienced through home stays that a handful of estates offer
When I see the image of a woman tea plucker—versions of it are used by businesses in their marketing of tea—it rather bothers me. Perhaps it’s because when you walk into a tea estate and see women at work, they smile in greeting, they allow you to photograph them, and they make a pretty picture. But can we stop and see beyond the picture to truly understand the contribution of these women to tea making. The industry has more women working in it than men, and many at this level as tea pluckers.
A few weeks ago, I was in the Nilgiris and thought I’d spend little time on the fields. By the time I made my way to the field at 9am, work was well underway. There was a steady hum from the shears that are used to harvest the leaves. Trying not to interfere or interrupt the rhythm of work, I stayed on the periphery. I didn’t think I could wield a shear and make a go at some plucking. The slopes were unfamiliarly steep for me. More than once I slipped and slid, making the women nervous. And yet, they moved with ease and grace. I made it to a flat patch where we chatted as they kept up with their work. Some of them were local folks while others were from Jharkhand, moving south in search of work. As it happens with mothers everywhere, conversation turned to our children. One had left a child back home, another had raised hers in the garden and yet another woman‘s eyes lit up as she spoke about her daughter’s upcoming wedding.
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For these women, work and home are both on the estate, a way of life that goes back to when the plantation-style of farming began in the early-mid 1800s, when the British started tea cultivation. Within the estate is their home, creche for babies, a school and medical access besides wages. There are even places of worship right here. Some, like the one I was visiting, go beyond the minimum expected while there are also those who fall woefully behind on welfare.
In the Nilgiris, harvest is through the year. Some return home to Jharkhand in time for their paddy harvest. Some remain here. There are various views on the future of estate life, and the non-availability of people to work in this very labour-intensive industry.
I am still thinking about these women when I think of how we are sold tea on its social connections, nostalgia and emotion. I wish instead, we were told its true story, of people and nature, of where tea is grown and those who make it.
Two hospitality options offer an opportunity to get acquainted with tea at the field. The homestay programme at Makaibari in Darjeeling invites visitors to lodge with the villagers. It is managed by an independent self-help group here and encourages greater interaction with those who work in the fields. Another one is the Meena Amma’s Tea Experience at the Warwick Estate in Sri Lanka. Here two rooms that were once part of the “labour lines" (as the worker quarters were called) were repaired to offer a hospitality option. The host is Meena, a former plucker, who shows guests life as she lives it.
Tea Nanny is a fortnightly series on the world of tea. Aravinda Anantharaman is a tea drinker, writer and editor. She posts @AravindaAnanth1 on X.
