The influence of asan gum, a locally available waste material obtained from the Terminalia alata tree, in blends with waterborne natural rubber adhesive and poly(vinyl acetate), on the lap shear strength and the peel strength has been investigated. Both the strength values increase, even with a small quantity of the gum. At a higher gum content, both these parameters, however, decrease. Fourier Transform Infrared studies reveal that there is no covalent bonding between the gum and the adhesives, although some hydrogen bonding exists in the poly(vinyl acetate) blend. Morphological studies reveal mechanical interlocking of the adhesive in the substrates. The pseudoplastic nature of the gum-modified waterborne adhesives has been confirmed from rheological studies using a Brookfield viscometer. The higher lap shear and peel strength values of the gum-modified adhesives compared to the control adhesives are attributed to the higher shear modulus of the former. The 100% modulus and tensile strength of the adhesives blended with the gum are also higher, compared to their controls.