Name: Janarddan Deka, Nishika Dey
Country: India

Year: 2026
Volume: Vol-11, No.2, July-Dec-2026
Page Number: 241-250
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.22629564

This paper examines the making of Zu, the traditional rice beer of the Plain Tiwas, in Betkuchi Lalung Gaon, an urban-adjacent settlement in Kamrup Metropolitan, Assam. Fieldwork from approximately 25 January to 10 February 2025 combined household survey, observation, interviews, case studies, and group discussion in 25 of 37 recorded households; respondents comprised 10 men and 15 women. It considers the brewing process alongside women's labour, household expenditure, ritual practice, social exchange, intergenerational learning, and change. Women undertake production by preparing or obtaining Bakhor starter cakes, processing and cooling the rice, adding the starter, monitoring fermentation, filtering the beverage, judging its quality, and managing household sales. Brewing knowledge is acquired through observation and participation within families, while the timing of fermentation depends on season and the judgment of experienced brewers. Zu continues to be used in hospitality, ancestral offerings, festivals, and life-cycle rites. At the same time, limited space, reported legal constraints, scarcity of plants, education, and changing preferences have altered the conditions under which it is made. The economic records require cautious interpretation. Inputs for a five-kilogram batch are reported to cost Rs. 480, whereas the stated yield and price indicate gross receipts of Rs. 200–300; the reported monthly earnings of Rs. 2,000–3,000 cannot therefore be identified as verified profit. The findings show that brewing in Betkuchi Lalung Gaon remains a form of gendered knowledge and cultural work as well as a household economic activity, sustained through adaptation rather than the unchanged repetition of tradition.

Keywords: Tiwa; rice beer (Zu); women's work; indigenous knowledge; household economy; cultural continuity