Indian Tea Advertisements Conclusion

In summary, it is clear from the assortment of Indian tea advertisements presented in this exhibit, that colonialism – and the eventual lack of it – was and is reflected through tea advertising. From the early 20th century through to India’s independence in 1947, tea advertisements clearly depicted the racialized and hierarchical rule of the British in India. These tea advertisements specifically showed dark-skinned people, native to the country, serving the white-skinned British. Even into the 1930s and 1940s, when Britain’s imperial grip over the South Asian continent was loosening, tea advertisements still presented the Royal British seal and explicitly identified India as a colony. During the period of Indian independence, 1947 until approximately 1960-1970s, tea advertisements were used to assert India’s independence. The Tea Market Expansion Board had this as its explicit goal when advertising tea. By claiming tea as a national beverage, inherent to India and its identity, India used Britain’s own lie that tea was native to the country. Tea originated in China thousands of years prior to the British cultivating it in India, however the British manipulated this origin story in order to make money and maintain its dominance in India. Following their independence, India did the exact same thing as seen through these advertisements. They declared that tea was ‘100% Swadeshi’ and described the product as ‘Indian.’ From the modern tea advertisements, we can see that India tries to assert itself as a dominant player on the globalized, modern world stage. These advertisements do this through promoting a message that presents tea as being able to unite people across borders, encourage friendship, promote women’s rights and independence whilst also being rooted in an explicit Indian identity.

A key limitation to this exhibit is that it explores a somewhat limited selection of advertisements across a long time period. As historians, we must be conscious about how much sources can tell us about the time and topics we are studying and not assume that because one source presents a certain view or argument, that the view or argument is accurate and/or representative. However, the secondary scholarship that infuses the analysis of these selected sources identify that, although they may not be comprehensive or exhaustive, they are representative of tea advertisements as a whole. Therefore, this exhibit is justified in arguing that Indian tea advertisements from the early 20th century to the modern day are reflective of British colonial rule, and the eventual lack of it, in India.