# Beedi

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{{Short description|South Asian hand-made cigarette}}
{{for|the Hindi song titled "Beedi"|Omkara (2006 film)}}
{{Use British English|date=September 2012}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2020}}

right|thumb|Packs of beedies.
[[File:Beedi making as handicraft.jpg|thumb|Beedi making process, rare handicrafts in Akkaraipattu, Sri Lanka. Bidi leaf (''[Bauhinia racemosa](/source/Bauhinia_racemosa)'') and shredded tobacco are prepared and finalized with thread binding.]]
A '''beedi''' (also spelled '''bidi'''<ref name=reuters /> or '''biri'''<ref name=Sunley />) is a thin [cigarette](/source/cigarette) or [mini-cigar](/source/cigar) filled with [tobacco](/source/tobacco) flake and commonly wrapped in a tendu (''[Diospyros melanoxylon](/source/Diospyros_melanoxylon)'')<ref name=Malson /> or ''[Piliostigma racemosum](/source/Piliostigma_racemosum)''<ref name=foi /> leaf tied with a string or adhesive at one end. It originates from the [Indian subcontinent](/source/Indian_subcontinent).<ref name=southasia /><ref name=Yen /> The name is derived from the [Marwar](/source/Marwari_language)i word ''beeda''—a mixture of [betel nuts](/source/betel_nuts), herbs, and spices wrapped in a leaf.<ref name=Pathak /> It is a traditional method of tobacco use throughout South Asia and parts of the Middle East,<ref name=Yen /> where beedies are popular<ref name=Sunley /> and inexpensive.<ref name=John /> In [India](/source/India), beedi consumption outpaces conventional cigarettes, accounting for 48% of all Indian tobacco consumption in 2008.<ref name=Sunley />

== History ==
Beedies were invented after Indian tobacco cultivation began in the late 17th century. Tobacco workers were the first to create them by taking leftover tobacco and rolling it in leaves.<ref name=Lal />

The commercial Indian beedi industry saw rapid growth during the 1930s<ref name=histbook /> probably driven by an expansion of tobacco cultivation at the time<ref name=ilo /> but also helped by [Gandhi](/source/Gandhi)'s support of Indian industry and Indian products.<ref name=Census /><ref name=jainvijay /> Perhaps due to this, educated classes in India grew to prefer beedies to cigarettes<ref name=Lal /> although this is no longer the case.<ref name=Kamboj /> Muslim leaders, calling cigarettes foreign products, have also endorsed beedies at times.<ref name ="Imam">{{Cite book | last = Imām | first = Hassan | title = Indian national movement | publisher = Anmol Publications PVT. LTD. | year = 1999 | page = 200 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=0AFo-zNYKScC&q=Indian%20National%20Movement%20Study%20on%20the%20role%20of%20contribution%20made%20by%20people%20of%20Bihar%20towards%20the%20national%20movement%20during%201919%E2%80%9331.&pg=PA200 | isbn = 978-81-261-0199-3 }}{{Dead link|date=August 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>

By the middle of the 20th century, beedi manufacture had grown into a highly competitive and profitable industry.<ref name=Lal /> This stage of commercial production—at the height of the beedi's popularity{{Citation needed|date=October 2010}}—saw the creation of many new beedi brands<ref name=Lal /> as well as beedi factories employing upwards of one hundred, primarily male, beedi rollers.<ref name=histbook />

Factory-based beedi production declined as a result of increased regulation during the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s,<ref name=ilo /> and beedi-making became a [cottage industry](/source/cottage_industry) with a home-based women workforce predominantly employed only in the beedi rolling.<ref name=ilo /> In contrast, males continue to be employed in other aspects of beedi production.<ref name=ilo />

Beedi smoking tends to be associated with a lower social standing,<ref name=Kamboj /> as these tobacco-filled leaves are inexpensive when compared to regular cigarettes.<ref name=John /> Those with a high social standing who do smoke beedies often do so out of the public eye; however, the cultural trend is changing.<ref name=Kamboj />

== Manufacturing ==
thumbnail|right|Factory workers hand-cut the leaves using scissors and a metal stencil guide. After cutting a sufficient number of wrappers, they will move on to roll approximately 1,000 beedies each per day.
Over 3 million Indians are employed in the manufacture of beedies,<ref name=Govekar /><ref>{{Cite journal|date=5 June 2015|title=Estimates of Tobacco-dependent Employment in India|url=https://www.epw.in/journal/2018/40/notes/estimates-tobacco-dependent-employment.html|journal=Economic and Political Weekly|language=en|volume=53|issue=40|pages=7–8}}</ref> a [cottage industry](/source/cottage_industry) that is typically done by women in their homes.<ref name=exploit /><ref>{{cite news|date=15 April 2016|title=India's traditional cigarette makers halt production over health warnings|author=Kalra, Aditya|work=[Reuters](/source/Reuters)|url=http://in.reuters.com/article/india-tobacco-cigarettes-beedis-idINKCN0X42BA|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160407215748/http://in.reuters.com/article/india-tobacco-cigarettes-beedis-idINKCN0X42BA|archive-date=7 April 2016}}</ref> Analysis of bidi industry in India found that in spite of increase in profits worker wages declined and female workers were paid substantially less than male workers.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Arora|first1=Monika|last2=Datta|first2=Pritam|last3=Barman|first3=Avnika|last4=Sinha|first4=Praveen|last5=Munish|first5=Vineet Gill|last6=Bahl|first6=Deepika|last7=Bhaumik|first7=Soumyadeep|last8=Nazar|first8=Gaurang P.|last9=Tullu|first9=Fikru|date=2020|title=The Indian Bidi Industry: Trends in Employment and Wage Differentials|journal=Frontiers in Public Health|volume=8|article-number=572638|doi=10.3389/fpubh.2020.572638|issn=2296-2565|pmc=7577084|pmid=33117771|doi-access=free |bibcode=2020FrPH....872638A }}</ref>

Workers roll an average of 500–1000 beedies daily, handling {{convert|225|–|450|g|oz|frac=4}} of tobacco flake.<ref name=Bhisey /> Handling tobacco and inhaling its dust is an occupational hazard for beedi workers, as an increased level of chromosome aberrations was found in a scientific study.<ref name=Bhisey />

The production of beedies is also popular in [Bangladesh](/source/Bangladesh). According to the 2014 ''[List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor](/source/List_of_Goods_Produced_by_Child_Labor_or_Forced_Labor)''<ref>{{cite web|title=List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor|url=http://www.dol.gov/ilab/reports/child-labor/list-of-goods/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131002122745/http://www.dol.gov/ilab/reports/child-labor/list-of-goods/|archive-date=2 October 2013|publisher=[United States Department of Labor](/source/United_States_Department_of_Labor)}}</ref> published by the [Bureau of International Labor Affairs](/source/Bureau_of_International_Labor_Affairs), the informal sector in these countries employs underage children in the production of beedies "in response to consumer preferences".{{Citation needed|date=June 2023}}
thumb|right|Informal sector making beedi.
[[File:Women Crafting Handmade Beedi in Chanderi.jpg|thumb|Women Crafting Handmade Beedi in [Chanderi](/source/Chanderi)]]
=== Tendu leaf ===
[Tendu (''Diospyros melanoxylon'')](/source/Diospyros_melanoxylon) leaves make excellent wrappers, and the success of the beedi is due, in part, to this leaf.<ref name=Lal /> The leaves are in abundance shortly after the tobacco crop is cured, and so are ready to be used in beedi manufacture.<ref name=Lal /> Collected in the summer and made into bundles, the leaves are dried in the sun for three to six days before being used as wrappers.<ref name=Malson />

== Global popularity ==
Beedies, unlike cigarettes, must be drawn frequently to keep them lit, and doing so requires effort.<ref name=Malson />

=== North America ===
In the United States, beedis are treated like conventional cigarettes. They are taxed at the same rates,<ref name=Yen /> are required to have a tax stamp, and must carry the [Surgeon General](/source/Surgeon_General_of_the_United_States)'s warning.<ref name=Yen /> However, a study done in San Francisco showed that about four in ten packs of beedis did not contain the required warning label and seven in ten did not carry the tax stamp. Some beedis are flavoured.<ref name=Malson /> Both Canada<ref name=caban /> and the US<ref name=usban /> have banned flavoured cigarettes.

=== United Kingdom ===
Beedis are currently legal in the UK and are subject to the same taxation as cigarettes. One must be aged 18 or over to purchase them.<ref>Sharrow Mills, [https://sharrowmills.com/pages/the-encyclopedia-of-tobacco-types-of-tobacco-guide "The Encyclopaedia of Tobacco"], ''Wilsons of Sharrow'', 2018</ref>

==Health warnings==
Beedies deliver more [nicotine](/source/nicotine),<ref name=Delnevo /> [carbon monoxide](/source/carbon_monoxide),<ref name=bidifacts /> and [tar](/source/Tar_(tobacco_residue)),<ref name=bidifacts /> and carry a greater risk of [oral cancers](/source/oral_cancers),<ref name=southasia /> than conventional cigarettes. As with many other types of [smoking](/source/smoking), beedies increase the risk of certain kinds of cancers, [heart disease](/source/heart_disease), and [lung disease](/source/lung_disease).<ref name=bidifacts /> They may also be more harmful than other forms of tobacco consumption.<ref name=dnai />

The frequency of ventilatory abnormalities was highest in the cigarette smokers. A lower [prevalence](/source/prevalence) of [chronic bronchitis](/source/chronic_bronchitis)<ref>{{Cite web |year=2014 |title=The Health Consequences of Smoking—50 Years of Progress: A Report of the Surgeon General. |url=https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK294322/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241014185535/https://ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK294322/ |archive-date=14 October 2024 |access-date=12 June 2025 |website=National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) |publisher=National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (US) Office on Smoking and Health.}}</ref> and abnormal ventilatory measurements in beedi smokers, as compared with cigarette smokers, was thought to be primarily due to low total consumption of tobacco. Some added influence of smoke produced by burning the wrapper leaf and the type of tobacco used in beedies could not be ruled out.<ref>{{cite journal|url=https://www.popline.org/node/510038|title=Chronic bronchitis in beedi smokers (preliminary communication).|journal=The Indian Journal of Chest Diseases|date=January 1974 |volume=16 |issue=2 |pages=94–99 |last1=Malik |first1=S. K. |last2=Malik |first2=S. K. |pmid=4422403 }}</ref>

== See also ==
*[Gutka](/source/Gutka)
*[Paan](/source/Paan)
*[Kretek](/source/Kretek)
*[Cheroot](/source/Cheroot)
*[Cigar](/source/Cigar)

== References ==
{{reflist|1=30em|refs=
<ref name="Pathak">{{cite book | title = Bhargava's Standard Illustrated Dictionary of the Hindi Language | publisher= Bhushan Press | year=1976 | page=312}}</ref>

<ref name="Delnevo">{{Cite journal | doi = 10.1016/j.ypmed.2004.01.025 | last1 = Delnevo | first1 = CD | last2 = Pevzner | first2 = ES | last3 = Hrywna | first3 = M | last4 = Lewis | first4 = MJ | title = Bidi Cigarette use among Young Adults in 15 States | journal = Preventive Medicine | volume = 39 | issue = 1 | pages = 207–211 | year = 2004 | pmid = 15208004}}</ref>

<ref name="bidifacts">{{Cite web | title = Bidis and Kreteks | publisher = Centers for Disease Control and Prevention | date = 8 June 2011 | url = https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/data_statistics/fact_sheets/tobacco_industry/bidis_kreteks/ | access-date =11 June 2011}}</ref>

<ref name="Sunley">{{Cite book |last = Sunley |first = Emil M. |title = India: The Tax Treatment of Bidis |publisher = Bloomberg Philanthropies |date = January 2008 |url = http://www.tobaccofreeunion.org/files/44.pdf |isbn = 978-2-914365-35-2 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120306053754/http://www.tobaccofreeunion.org/files/44.pdf |archive-date = 6 March 2012}}</ref>

<ref name="dnai">{{cite web | url=http://www.dnaindia.com/health/report-bidi-more-harmful-than-cigarette-study-1544092 | title=Bidi more harmful than cigarette: Study | publisher=Diligent Media Corporation Ltd. | work=DNA | date=17 May 2011 | access-date=1 June 2015}}</ref>

<ref name="Lal">{{Cite journal | last = Lal | first = Pranay | title = Bidi – A short history | journal = Current Science | volume = 96 | issue = 10 | pages = 1335–1337 | date = 25 May 2009 | url = http://www.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/files/Bidi.pdf | access-date = 12 November 2013 | archive-date = 8 April 2023 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230408044112/http://www.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/files/Bidi.pdf }}</ref>

<ref name="histbook">{{Cite book |author1=T. M. Thomas Isaac |author2=Richard W. Franke |author3=Pyaralal Raghavan | title = Democracy at work in an Indian industrial cooperative: the story of Kerala Dinesh Beedi | publisher = Cornell University Press | series = Cornell International Report | volume = 34 | year = 1998 | pages = 23–25 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=NE_rFL78i90C&q=beedi&pg=PA22 | isbn = 978-0-8014-8415-5}}</ref>

<ref name="ilo">{{Cite conference | title = Making ends meet: Bidi workers in India today; A study of four states | publisher = International Labour Office | year = 2003 | location = Geneva, Switzerland | url = https://www.ilo.org/public/english/dialogue/sector/papers/food/wp202.pdf | access-date =11 June 2011}}</ref>

<ref name="Census">{{Cite book | title = Census of India, Central Provinces and Berar | year = 1931 | volume = XII}}</ref>
<ref name="jainvijay">Brahmachari Sitalprasad, Jain Bauddha TatvaJnana, JainVijay Press, 1934</ref>

<ref name="Malson">{{Cite book | last = Gupta | first = Prakash C. | title = Control of tobacco-related cancers and other diseases: proceedings of an international symposium, January 15–19, 1990, TIFR, Bombay | publisher = Prakash C. Gupta | year = 1992 | page = 29 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=-Zqo67BjH7UC&q=Control%20of%20Tobacco-related%20Cancers%20and%20Other%20Diseases&pg=PA29 | isbn = 978-0-19-562961-3}}</ref>

<ref name="Kamboj">{{Cite journal | doi = 10.1038/sj.bdj.2008.1088 | pmid = 19096404 | last1 = Kamboj | first1 = M. | title = Bidi Tobacco | journal = British Dental Journal | volume = 205 | page = 639 | year = 2008 | issue=12| s2cid = 5393992}}</ref>

<ref name="John">{{Cite book |author1=Rijo M John |author2=R Kavita Rao |author3=M Govinda Rao |author4=James Moore |author5=RS Deshpande |author6=Jhumur Sengupta |author7=Sakthivel Selvaraj |author8=Frank J Chaloupka |author9=Prabhat Jha |title=The Economics of Tobacco and Tobacco Taxation in India |date=March 2010 |url=http://www.tobaccofreecenter.org/files/pdfs/en/India_tobacco_taxes_report_en.pdf |isbn=978-2-914365-70-3 |access-date=11 June 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101226111424/http://tobaccofreecenter.org/files/pdfs/en/India_tobacco_taxes_report_en.pdf |archive-date=26 December 2010 }}</ref>

<ref name="Yen">{{Cite journal | author = Yen, Karl L. |author2=Hechavarria, Elizabeth |author3=Bostwick, Susan B. | title = Bidi cigarettes: An emerging threat to adolescent health | journal = Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine | volume = 154 | issue = 12 | pages = 1187–1189 | year = 2000 | issn = 1072-4710 | doi=10.1001/archpedi.154.12.1187|pmid=11115300}}</ref>

<ref name="caban">{{Cite news | last = Dowd | first = Allan | title = Canada bans fruit-flavored cigarettes | location = VANCOUVER, British Columbia | publisher = Reuters | date = 8 October 2009 | url = https://www.reuters.com/article/us-tobacco-idUSTRE5975GD20091008?loomia_ow=t0:s0:a49:g43:r1:c1.000000:b30639980:z0 | access-date =11 June 2011}}</ref>

<ref name="usban">{{Cite news | last = Heavey | first = Susan | title = U.S. FDA, in first tobacco action, bans flavors | publisher = Reuters | date = 22 September 2009 | url = https://www.reuters.com/article/idUSN2236998020090922 | access-date =11 June 2011}}</ref>

<ref name="Govekar">{{Cite journal | doi = 10.1007/BF00381476 |author1=RB Govekar |author2=RA Bhisey |name-list-style=amp | title = Elevated urinary thioether excretion among bidi rollers exposed occupationally to processed tobacco | journal = International Archives of Occupational and Environmental Health | volume = 64 | issue = 2 | pages = 101–104 | year = 1992 | pmid = 1399018|bibcode=1992IAOEH..64..101G |s2cid=37668211}}</ref>

<ref name="exploit">{{Cite conference | title = Restoring the Balance: Women and forest resources | publisher = Food and Agriculture Organization of the United States, Forestry Department | year = 1987 | url = https://www.fao.org/docrep/006/S5500E/S5500E08.htm | access-date =11 June 2011}}</ref>

<ref name="Bhisey">{{Cite journal | last1 = Mahimkar | first1 = MB | last2 = Bhisey | first2 = RA | title = Occupational exposure to bidi tobacco increases chromosomal aberrations in tobacco processors | journal = Mutation Research | volume = 334 | issue = 2 | pages = 139–144 | year = 1995 | pmid = 7885365 | doi=10.1016/0165-1161(95)90004-7}}</ref>

<ref name="reuters">{{Cite news | last = Dhar | first = Sujoy | title = Indian girls fight back against child marriage | location = KOLKATA, India | publisher = Reuters | date = 18 November 2009 | url = https://www.reuters.com/article/us-india-childmarriage-idUSTRE5AI0GR20091119 | access-date =11 June 2011}}</ref>

<ref name="southasia">{{Cite journal | author1=Mahbubur Rahman | author2=Junichi Sakamoto | author3=Tsuguya Fukui | title = Bidi smoking and oral cancer: A meta-analysis | journal = International Journal of Cancer | volume = 106 | issue = 4 | pages = 600–604 | date = 10 September 2003 | doi = 10.1002/ijc.11265 | pmid=12845659 | s2cid=25619918 | doi-access = free}}</ref>

<ref name="foi">{{cite web | url=https://www.flowersofindia.net/catalog/slides/Bidi%20Leaf%20Tree.html | publisher=Flowers of India | title=Bidi Leaf Tree (reported under the synonym ''Bauhinia racemosa'')}}</ref>
}}

== External links ==
{{Commons category|Beedi}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20200918155753/http://www.bestpracticesfoundation.com/pdf/ILO.pdf Action Plan for Beedi Women Workers] The [International Labor Office](/source/International_Labor_Office) Beedi

{{Cigarettes}}
{{Alcohol in India}}
{{Social issues in India}}

Category:Types of cigarette
Category:Tobacciana
Category:Tobacco in India
Category:Desi culture
Category:Smoking in India
Category:Indian inventions

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Beedi](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beedi) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beedi?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.