A study of tea shops in Nepal as places which provide an excellent arena for observing the interaction between the different caste/ethnic groups that comprise the multi-ethnic population of Nepal. The study area was the Rapti settlement and its Gurung Tamang communities. It also discusses the old practice in Nepal where few communities were seen as untouchables. The article concludes that migrants to a multi-ethnic resettlement area like Rapti valley must adjust to a new social environment as well as to a physical environment usually quite different from their birth place. The tea shop is one public arena for the continuous process of inquiry, accommodation, and confrontation between members of different groups. (Rajeev Ranjan Singh 2007-01-01)