KOLKATA: Dolly Roy, India's first woman tea-taster, passed away at a hospital in Kolkata on Friday after battling cancer for a long time. She is survived by her husband and senior Trinamool Congress leader Saugata Roy, a three-time Lok Sabha member.
For the tea-loving Bengalis, her memories will always remain special as the pioneer of introducing the concept of 'tea-bar' in Kolkata.
'Dolly's tea' - a concept ideated and conceived by her at 'Dakshinapan', a popular shopping complex in South Kolkata, continues to be a favourite haunting joint for the youth and intellectuals preferring a chat over a cup of tea.
Her collections had a mixture of traditional Darjeeling and Assam tea varieties along with ginger tea, lemon lea, mint tea, and ice tea.
Despite being the wife of a seasoned politician, the always smiling and affectionate Roy preferred avoiding discussions on politics.
Recalling her memories with Roy, former journalist and an expert commentator in the tea sector, Nandini Goswami told IANS that the two reasons why she will continue to live in the memories of Bengali tea lovers are her immense and in-depth knowledge about the tea industry and her ability to greet everyone with a charming smile.
"Both as a journalist as well as a connoisseur of tea, it became a habit for me to visit 'Dolly's Tea' frequently. It was like a bonus for me, as I got the chance of enjoying the variant flavours of traditional and spicy tea, as well as enjoy the depth of her knowledge as an expert in the sector.
"But what used to embarrass me was that at times after a long chat about the sector, which I enjoyed listening to and she enjoyed talking about, she would refuse to accept money for the tea and snacks that I enjoyed during the course of the conversation," Goswami said.
Roy had toured several countries as a tea ambassador of India in the 1970s.