Brewing the perfect cup of tea is an art: Raima Sen

On International Tea Day, Raima Sen confesses to being a compulsive tea buyer, her love for exotic teas and more

My father was into tea tasting, and as kids we often visited beautiful tea plantations where we acquired our taste for fine tea. Both my parents are tea lovers and we can spend hours enjoying our tea with adda.

I start my day with my favourite Darjeeling first flush.The aroma and flavour energizes your entire system. I don’t like adding milk and sugar to my tea and prefer lighter brews to stronger ones. Making the perfect brew is an art.
Malai tea served in earthen cups at dhabas is a luxury I cannot afford every day-- it is too rich for me. But it is an occasional indulgence, especially when I am on a long drive.

While shooting, I like to carry my own tea, but the first cup of tea on the set has to be the 'shooting chai' or 'cutting chai' from the studio canteen. It's milky, sweet and heavenly. And works best when you dip a biscuit in it. Otherwise, I hate pairing anything with my tea - it kills the flavour.

There is a shop in Patuli, Kolkata, where they sell green chilli chai. I was shocked when someone suggested it, but I was blown away by the taste - it was so good that I had three cups!
Photo: Kaustav Saikia
Sonam Jaiswal