Thakar (tribe)

Thakar is a Adiwasi i.e. a tribe of Maharashtra, India.This tribe was originally living in hilly areas of Maharashtra and is now also found scattered all over Maharastra,India[1][2]

They are also called by names like Thakar, Thakur, Ka Thakar, Ma Thakar (क/का ठाकर,म/मा ठाकर) Ka Thakur and Ma Thakur (क/का ठाकुर,म/मा ठाकुर). Thakars and Thakurs are Indo-Aryans and speak a dialect of Thakari Marathi. Over a period of time some members of this tribe have migrated from hilly areas to other rural and urban areas of Maharashtra for survival due to shrinking forests, a phenomenon universally applicable to our globe, the Mother Earth. In their survival struggle, in the quest of developing world have adopted to the languages, clothing styles,cultures,traits and traditions of the visited people on the planes and have amalgamated themselves with these communities by nurturing their own culture without any friction and maintained their own identities. Being originally uprooted from their earlier hilly habita, they are till date landless farm- workers except few of them who have generation to generation a small piece of land acquired by their ancestors by way of royal gifts/grants/Kul Mukhtayar Patra/Miras Patra and subsequently as per "

Kul Kayda of 1939 & 1948(कुळ कायदा,१९३९ आणि१९४८)". Majority of Thakar Thakur tribe people in the whole of Maharashtra are still marginalised and hence, Educationally, Socially, Economically and Politically Backward Tribe,hence are included in the List of Scheduled Tribes of Maharashtra after Indian Independence. But they are still being deprived of their Constitutional Rights & Responsibilities. They are endeavouring with the due regards to the Constitution of India at their best to contribute in the development of The State of Maharashtra and India.

However, the surname Thakar (ठकार) belongs to the Deshastha Brahmin caste in Maharashtra. They are natives of Pune district but can be found in some nearby places of Maharashtra , including Aurangabad. They typically speak Marathi language.

Geographical distribution

The Thakars were originally living in all the hilly areas of Western Ghats in Maharashtra but are currently scattered across the entire state. As per 2001 census, the population of the Thakurs/Thakars in Maharashtra was 487,696 and the literacy rate was 50.9%.[3]

Culture

They have rich traditions of folk dance, songs and unique culture of their own. They celebrate Diwali in a different way. On this occasion, they light lamps made from a fruit called chibra, which are placed on a stand made of cow-dung. At home, the celebrations are in form of a breakfast of boiled corn, sweet potato and chauli. The grain stored in wicker basket called kangas is worshiped during Diwali. This time of year they do frenetic dance to the beats of dhols, crooning Amhi thakar thakar ya ranachi ga pakhar.... ("We are Thakars, Thakars.. the birds of this land").[4]

The famous Marathi film Jait Re Jait depicted the Thakar tribe.

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References
  1. List of Castes & Tribes in Maharashtra Archived 2010-01-29 at the Wayback Machine
  2. These Adivasis belong to Thakar and Thakur tribes. Archived 2011-03-16 at the Wayback Machine
  3. "Maharashtra - Data Highlights: the Scheduled Tribes - Census of India 2001" (PDF). Website on Census of India. Retrieved 2009-10-28.
  4. http://www.aadiwasithakar.com
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