Page 1 - LN1- NOTES & SUMMARY

Tea from Assam

Introduction
The lesson is about two friends- Pranjol and Rajvir who are travelling to
Pranjol’s hometown Assam for the summer vacation. Assam is known as the
‘tea country’. It has the largest concentration of plantations in the world. During
their journey they discuss about the various ‘legends’ that are known to have
discovered tea. The story tells us about the popularity of tea as a beverage.

Tea from Assam Summary
The story revolves around the infamous beverage ‘tea’ telling us more about its
history and discovery. It begins from the scene where two friends, Pranjol and
Rajvir are set to go to Assam, Pranjol’s hometown when a tea vendor asks them
if they would like to have some freshly made tea. They buy two cups joining
almost every other person in their compartment. From there, the journey begins
and Pranjol starts reading his detective book while Rajvir decides to enjoy the
scenic beauty. There were soft green paddy fields followed by tea bushes.
Rajvir is very excited on seeing such large plantations of tea but Pranjol is
unable to match the same level because he was born and brought up in Assam,
famously known as the ‘Tea country’. Visiting there for the first time, Rajvir
did a lot of study about how tea was discovered and that it dates back to 2700
B.C. According to what he read, it was first consumed in China and reached
Europe in the 16th century, where it was mostly popular for its medicinal
properties. There are numerous stories as to how it was discovered, one about a
Chinese Emperor and the other about a Buddhist monk. The former liked the
taste of it while the latter, used it to get rid of sleep. As they were having this
discussion, they reached their destination where Pranjol’s parents had come to
receive them and take them to their tea garden. On their way, they passed a
cattle bridge and gave way to a truck filled with tea leaves which drew their
attention to the fact that it was the second sprouting season. Rajvir, indeed did a
lot of study before coming which impressed Pranjol’s father and he intended to
learn a lot more.

Tea from Assam Lesson & Explanation
Chai- Tea
Garam- hot
Sa’ab- Sahab or Sir
Steaming- extremely hot
Exclaimed- cry out suddenly in surprise

The scene is set on a train station where a tea vendor asks the two friends if they
would like to buy some freshly-made hot tea. They decide to have two cups of
tea joining almost everyone else in their compartment. With this, Rajvir
highlights the fact that “almost eighty crore cups of tea are consumed everyday