Tea Tales: Fondest chai memories of Kolkata celebs

TasteAtlas, a popular food and travel guide of traditional dishes, local ingredients, and authentic restaurants from around the world, recently named Masala chai as the second-best non-alcoholic beverage in the world for 2023  and our happiness knows no bounds. 

Chai is an emotion for most Indians. And among all the coffee-drinking celebs of the city, we could find a handful who held tea very close to their heart and shared with us their fondest memories around tea and how they like to drink the same.

Rwitobroto Mukherjee, actor

Fondest memory: I’ve always wanted to talk about my fondness for tea. And the fondest memory has become a core memory over the years. My father (Santilal Mukherjee) had a steel glass with his name carved on it. When I was growing up, my grandmother gave me this glass and said, “This was your father’s childhood friend, now this will be your childhood friend and this is where you should drink your water and tea from.” I used to drink tea from this glass and imitate him, what he used to do with his glass of morning tea, what he used to say and my parents, and grandmother used to have a great time watching me do that.

How do you like to have your cuppa: I am a big-time tea-lover and I think I have inherited it from my parents. As a family, we are among those people who would like to spend a few bucks to buy good, flavourful teas. Whenever we are travelling, together or alone, we look for tea places and bring back samples. People around us gift us nothing but good sets of Makaibari, Gopaldhara, Darjeeling, Assam tea and so many other variants. Oh, and I can make great tea!   

Fav place in Kol to have tea: Nepal da’r chaa er dokan and Shyamal da’r chaa er dokan, near gate number 4 of Jadavpur University. And I believe the warmth and feeling that any tea stalls around the city will give will surpass any flavour or quality of the tea. And at these two stalls, we have spent hours in these last few years. There is also this tea stall in my area in Behala called Pocha da’r chaa er dokan, an old-school tea stall where people still come, sit with their cups of tea and discuss worldly affairs.

Indraadip Dasgupta, music composer-singer

Fondest memory: When I used to go to the gym regularly, one lemon tea before the exercise and one milk tea after the workout were something I would wait for every day. While I was shooting for Bismillah, the winter mornings at Purulia with a pot of tea and newspaper, as I sat at the hotel's verandah outside the main entrance, facing the lake along with the wind chill factor is one of my recent favourite moments.

How do you like to have your cuppa: I prefer black tea but at times the typical milky tea also works.

Fav place in Kol to have tea: Lemon tea from Taj Bengal lobby tea shop or milk chai from Sharma’s or Maharani.

Swastika Dutta, actor

Fondest memory: Though I am more of a coffee person, being a Bengali I dare not say that I don’t drink tea. My fondest memory of tea is that I got burnt while making tea. The first time I entered a kitchen was to make tea. That’s the first thing that my mother taught me to do. 

How do you like to have your cuppa: I like black tea since I am lactose intolerant. Lemon tea is my all-time favourite. 

Fav place in Kol to have tea: Though a few of my friends know already, I would still like to keep it a secret.

Anwesshaa, singer-songwriter

Fondest memory: Out of my many forest trips, a tea memory I'll always cherish is of my family and I enjoying lemongrass tea with 360 degrees forest and mountain view all around. We got a bird's eye view of the Corbett National Park. This was in Uttarakhand at Sitabani Wildlife Reserve. Memories are worthy of holding on to because of a collection of things that make an experience so special. 

How do you like to have your cuppa: I love the Asian tea culture where they use flower extracts for hot beverages. For example Jasmine tea, chamomile tea, and such. I like them when I want a placebo effect. Otherwise, I normally prefer black or green tea without sugar.

Fav place in Kol to have tea: I like the vibe of roadside tea places, not because of the tea but because the biscuits they have are tastier than any other fancy place.

Lubdhak Chatterjee, Film editor-director

Fondest memory: My fondest memory is discovering top-quality Jasmine tea during my first Beijing trip in 2018. I was honestly never a tea addict before but it was a trigger to explore more.

How do you like to have your cuppa: For myself, the best tea is the one tasted in its truest form without adding any extra spice or milk.

Fav place in Kol to have tea: Nothing as such.

Ishan Mazumder, actor

Fondest memory: I was out of Kolkata for my higher studies after my boards and I especially remember having Suleimani chai which I used to get at Shivajinagar Bangalore. Also, during my TCS days in Hyderabad, the Irani chai at Bahaar restaurant was a slice of nostalgia for me. Since my wife is from Karnataka, they are more into milk tea and masala chai with milk. I remember, when I got her to Kolkata for the first time, I gave her Darjeeling's first flush which is still a legacy in our home.

How do you like to have your cuppa: I prefer to have tea first flush with a little honey in it. 

Fav place in Kol to have tea: There is a small stall near Rabindra Sarobar metro station. It’s a small tea shop on the road which serves malai chai, tandoori chai and various other flavours of tea. It’s a must-try. I also love the Darjeeling tea or iced tea at my friend’s cafe 99 Degrees.

Rik Chatterjee, actor

Fondest memory: As a kid, I was not allowed to have tea because you could only have tea after a certain age in our family, so every morning when my parents or grandparents used to drink tea I used to think of tea as a type of alcohol because of the colour. It soon changed after we visited Darjeeling (probably when I was 16/17) and I was told that the tea was a must try, the smell of the second flush still lingers on and I slowly took to a fine cup of Darjeeling tea. 

How do you like to have your cuppa: My all-time favourites are a fine cup of Darjeeling tea without milk and sugar and an Earl Grey with a slice of lemon(when I like to have what depends on my mood). However, in recent times I have developed a liking for fruit infusions also. 

Fav place in Kol to have tea: I usually have my favourites well stocked in my house but if I’m stepping out then I usually like The Tea Place by Manjushree near my house, The Glenburn Cafe in Chowringhee and The Elgin Fairlawn is of course a place of nostalgia which I seldom visit now but I love.