A black and white landscape photograph showing two tea pluckers at work amongst tea plants in Sri Lanka. The man is bare-chested and the woman is wearing a one-shoulder, check-pattern garmet. Both are using cylindrical baskets worn on their backs and secured to their heads. Two children stand nearby, also facing the camera. Buildings can be seen in the background, between trees.

The British colonised Sri Lanka during the 1800s after supplanting Dutch colonial rule around the coast and defeating the Kingdom of Kandy, the last independant polity, in the interior. They first established coffee plantations on the island's hilly ground but, after a boom, the industry was devasted in the 1860s by the arrival of the 'coffee rust' disease. Botanical experimentation and the introduction of new leaf processing technologies enabled tea to become the colony's most important crop.

The British brought thousands of indentured labourers to the island from the 1830s onwards, many of them Indian Tamils (sometimes refered to as Hill Country Tamils or Up-Country Tamils). Plucking tea has always been a time-consuming and labour-intensive process. Tea pluckers spent hours navigating Sri Lanka's steep hillsides where tea was grown. They often developed rough skin and callouses since every leaf was harvested by hand. British tea companies and shipping lines often used romanticised images of these workers in advertising.

Tea remains one of Sri Lanka's most valuable exports and is part of the country's self-image. Photographs of tea pluckers are often used to attract tourists.