Bombay’s Lifeline – Cutting Chai

The first local train in Mumbai starts at 3:20 a.m. The first chaiwallah starts earlier. From his bag of spices, he pulls out the tea, cardamom, fennel, and fresh ginger. He places the copper pot on the fire, and in go the ingredients one by one, grated and beaten, into the boiling water, simmered before milk and sugar are added.

The hustling city of Mumbai gains speed, and when you stay there, you feel the madness. Luckily, chai comes to the rescue and helps you slow down for a moment, easing the senses. Truly Mumbai’s lifeline: chai!

The concept of chai in Mumbai started as refreshing breaks to the day. People wanted to take breaks with chai, but drinking a hearty full cup at every break was not possible. Thus, cutting chai arrived in the culture of Mumbai. The glass, half-filled, is now so ingrained in the people of Mumbai that just the word cutting itself means chai. If you are craving some ginger and herbal blend, call for a special chai, or, as the locals call it, pecial (no sound of s).

At the same time, many of the tea stalls make chai separately from milk. One container has tea leaves boiled in the water, while the other one contains boiled milk. As per the customers’ requirements, the chaiwallah takes the proportion: paani kam doodh – less water, more milk; and doodh kam paani – less milk, more water.

Every street will have at least two or three chaiwallahs serving their loyal customers every single day, and at the same time, every chai drinker will have a favorite chaiwallah.

Chai in Mumbai is usually paired with a soft bread popularly called bun maska (soft bread layered with butter), a favorite combination in every Irani and Parsi café; street-side vada pav (a deep-fried potato inside a bread); and/or samosas (a deep-fried triangular pastry consisting of a savory filling of potatoes and vegetables).

Buy the authentic Bombay Cutting Masala Chai from Teabox here.

From our readers

Comments left on the original Still Steeping post.

Mandeep · March 16, 2021
good content

Originally published on Still Steeping, the Teabox blog, on September 25, 2020. Lightly edited for clarity in October 2026.