Japan Researchers Take Singpho Heritage Books For Preservation.

Guwahati, India/Tokyo, Japan; May 2026: Two books documenting the history of Bisa Raja and the Singpho community from Assam’s Margherita have reached Japan for preservation and academic research. A 06 member Japanese research team led by Yoshie Matsumiya recently visited Margherita to study the traditional tea culture of the Singpho community, especially the centuries old Falap tea preparation process. The team also visited historic Bisa village in Ledo and interacted with local residents. During the visit, the researchers collected books written by noted writer and journalist Jagat Changmai on Bisa Raja and Singpho history for archival and research purposes in Japan. The delegation praised Assam’s natural beauty and appreciated the traditional Singpho Falap tea.

The team inspected organically managed tea gardens in Margherita and closely studied the traditional process of preparing Falap tea, considered one of the oldest forms of tea consumed in the region. Singpho tea, known locally as Phalap or Khalap, is a traditional smoky, fermented dark tea produced by the Singpho tribe in Arunachal Pradesh and Assam, dating back to the 12th century. It is made by pan-roasting, sun-drying, and packing tea leaves into bamboo tubes, which are then smoked over a fireplace to ferment and age, sometimes for years.

The researchers also visited the historic Bisa village in Ledo, where they were hosted by Mungdang Gam Singpho. Two recently published books on Bisa Raja and the Singpho community, written by noted writer and journalist Jagat Changmai, were purchased by the Japanese researchers. The books, titled “Bisa Rajar Perat Abaddha Swarnil Itihas” and “Singpho Jati aru Bisa Raja Itibritta”, were also collected in additional numbers for archival preservation and academic research in Japan.

Team Maverick.