Dear chai lovers,
Two things happened in the first two weeks of March that made the whole country stop and feel something simultaneously. They happened six days apart. They are completely different. They are, in their own way, both about the same thing: the particular pleasure of being Indian, and the particular pleasure of having chai in your hand when something wonderful is happening.
The Final
On 8 March, India posted 255 for 5 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. New Zealand, chasing 256, were 47 for 3 at the end of the powerplay and never recovered. Jasprit Bumrah took 4 for 15. The final wicket fell in the nineteenth over.
India are world champions. For the third time. The first time on home soil. The first team ever to defend the T20 World Cup.
I was not in the stadium. I watched from a tapri near my neighbourhood in Pune, standing on the pavement with approximately forty people none of whom I knew before that evening. The chai wallah had not stopped pouring for three hours. By the time the last wicket fell, the cup in my hand was my fourth of the night and I had lost count of whether I had been drinking the tea or just holding it.
There is a particular quality to chai drunk during live cricket — it tastes of whatever is happening. That night it tasted of relief, then disbelief, then the specific sweetness of watching something difficult become officially completed.
Sanju Samson finished as Player of the Tournament: 321 runs, average 80.25, a strike rate of 199.37. He scored fifty or more in each of India's last three knockouts. I will simply say: no single player in this tournament carried the batting burden more completely, and no one did it with more grace.
Holi
Six days later, on 14 March, India turned itself pink and yellow and blue.
Holi is always Holi — there is no year in which it is bigger or smaller than the previous one, no way to scale it up or down. It simply arrives, as it has been arriving for centuries, and the country participates.
The morning after Holi — which is what I want to talk about — is one of my favourite mornings of the year. The colour is still on the ground. The city is quieter than usual. Nothing is required.
I made a cup of ginger chai at 7am and sat on the balcony for forty minutes without checking my phone. The tea was slightly sweeter than my usual recipe. The morning was warm. The World Cup had been won six days ago and Holi had happened yesterday and March had delivered, all at once, more than any single month usually does.
The chai was the through-line of all of it. It always is.
This Month's Reads
We have published several articles this month that felt relevant to the season:
- Where to Experience Holi in India — a practical guide for anyone who wants to be in the right place next year
- The Morning After Holi — on the quiet pleasure of the day after
- Cricket and Chai — on why the tapri is India's most important broadcast venue
- Tandoori Chai — for when you want something theatrical and excellent
A Recipe for the Season
The chai for late March is lighter than the winter cup. The cold is mostly gone. The body no longer needs maximum ginger. The correct March chai is: good Assam leaf, full-fat milk, three cardamom pods, a thin slice of ginger, and enough sugar to make the transition feel pleasant rather than abrupt.
Brew it slowly. The weather is finally good enough to drink it outside.
Until next month,
Chai Bhai
Issue #19 of the Chai Bhai Newsletter — March 2026. To read the archive, visit the newsletter section.