Book review:

Tea tales

Tea and Memories: Reminiscences of a Planter’s Wife
Author: Samudra Ratwatte
Pages: 80
Price: Rs 700

Apart from the historic and economic accounts little or no details exist of the era of one of the most glorious sectors in the country. A life that a planter leads today is merely a shadow of what existed in the beginning of the century as Samudra Ratwatte reveals to us in Tea and Memories: Reminiscences of a Planter’s Wife .

This slim bound book, more of an autobiographical account of her days in the estates of the tea plantation sector in Sri Lanka, brings to light that planters and their wives had more than house chores and work to keep them busy. There are surprising adventures, interesting personalities and experiences hidden within the folds of the estates and these Samudra joyfully reveals to her readers in her writing. The young lady who entered into matrimony preparing to lead a daunting life as the only Sri Lankan wife amid the many British spouses in Madulsima was in for a surprise on how much she is going to be attached to the setup and lifestyle.Even spending a short holiday away from the estate makes her yearn to return back to the plantations.

The tone that the book sets is like listening to the lady recall the past, sharing her delightful life experiences with the readers. Samudra’s description on how she became excited by catching sight of the fire lit to burn the manna to make the land fertile before opening a new acreage of tea is vividly described by the author. Though she panicked at the time, she is clearly able to sit back and laugh at the experience today as it is a cherished fragment memory from her past. These straightforward accounts in the book not only makes Tea and Memories an easy read but helps us to share the experiences with the narrator.

Starting off with the how she had been brought as a newlywed into the tea estate, Samudra has divided her chapters into some significant milestones like the Club Day at the estate, Pay Day, leopard on the estate, and Ivory Inn. We also get important characters like Sandy the cook, Budge Birkett and Dorothy Gordon. There is even a chapter for Poodsie the poodle, Samudra’s beloved dog who has been her consistent companion for a long period. Amid all this incidents and people her husband, Newell’s (to whom this book is also dedicated), presence is inevitable. He who brought a blushing young bride to unfamiliar surroundings shared the best chapter of her life with her with his doting presence. Therefore the book could also be described as Samudra’s labour of love to all those close to her.

The book invokes the grandeur of the bygone era. It paints a vivid portrait of the era of the ‘Plantation Raj’. This is one of the few first hand accounts in connection with the period that is penned and published on paper. It is worded in simple terms and therefore is easy to absorb. It is no wonder that food and meals took center stage at the estates. Each chapter comes with its delicious array of meals telling us that the groups have indeed been well looked after and well fed by their domestic staff.

Tea and Memories is a book which will be cherished by all those who are familiar with the heyday of the tea plantation sector. It is part of history as well as an account of what has been lost to the society buried with time.

- Ruwini Jayawadana