New Delhi, May 16 -- I first heard about Margherita 10 years ago and was immediately intrigued. A short and very scenic drive from Dibrugarh, this village in Assam remained on my bucket list since, and last week, the trip finally materialised.

Its claim to fame is not just as the source of India's tea story but also of oil, coal and plywood. The Digboi oil refinery is a stone's throw from here, oil having been discovered accidentally while the railway line was being built in 1881. Many of the tea estates en route from Dibrugarh-Bogapani, Dirok, Namdang-belong to McLeod Russell, one of India's largest tea producers.

Margherita is also home to the Singpho tribe. I was here to meet Rajesh Singpho who produces the falap, a tea that's native...