While the past has been studied as a resource to mobilize imaginaries for change, less attention has been given to the agentic use of a contested past in social mobilization. This study examines deprived tea plantation workers of Darjeeling, India, and their use of three narratives. Narratives of Craft Value of Labor legitimize them as craftspeople of the renowned Darjeeling tea, while Narratives of Place frame them as custodians of historic tea estate lands – helping workers to assert their worth. Narratives of an Idealized Past invoke an embellished image of the British colonial times, contrasting it with their deprivation under current tea owners, and are used as a form of resistance. We contribute to the literature on social mobilization and imaginaries by showing the agentic use of an embellished contested past, even while incorporating certain inconsistencies, to assert self-worth and articulate resistance. We also contribute to understand the working poor and their complex use of cultural resources.
