Kalal: Deccan
Kalal
This article is an extract from THE CASTES AND TRIBES OF H. E. H. THE NIZAM'S DOMINIONS BY SYED SIRAJ UL HASSAN Of Merton College, Oxford, Trinity College, Dublin, and Middle Temple, London. One of the Judges of H. E. H. the Nizam's High Court of Judicature : Lately Director of Public Instruction. BOMBAY THE TlMES PRESS 1920 Indpaedia is an archive. It neither agrees nor disagrees |
Kalal — a liquor-selling and distilling caste, found in all parts of the Dominions. The Kalals say that they were originally Vaishyas and were degraded on account of their having adopted the profession of liquor-sellers and distillers. The caste is divided into two sub- castes : Lad Kalal and Pardeshi Kalal.
Lad Kalal. — The Lad Kalals are chiefly found in the Gulbargah district. They probably came from the southern part of Gujarath, which bore the name of Lat (Lad) in ancient times. They have three sub-divisions : — Surya Lad, Chhatri Lad and Kodi Lad, the members of which neither interdine nor intermarry. The Surya Lads are so called because their men and women, as they allege, do not dme until they have flsst offered puja to Surya, or the sun. The Chhatri Lads are 'probably a degraded offshoot of the Chhatri (Khatri) caste, while the origin of the name Kodi Lad is uncertain. It may be a variant of 'kodu', a kind of millet (Paspalum scrohtcuhtum), which is said to have the property of intoxicating when made into bread. The section names of the Lad Kalals are of a peculiar type, as noticed below : —
Tonpe. Katwate.
Sabane (soap). Ganagane.
Kol. Hagal Diwate.
Khadke (rock). Sadanande (very merry).
Vanjare. Pinjare.
Kamade. Sandve.
Tapase. Dingre (hill).
Palangatode. Paske.
Jamalpure. Ganagane.
Marriage between persons belonging to the same section is forbidden. Two sisters may be married to the same man, provided the younger is married first. A second wife may b^ taken if the first is barren, or suffers from an incurable disease. Infant mar- riage is practised by the caste. A girl attaining puberty before marriage is excommunicated. Girls are not offered to temples or trees. The marriage ceremony is of the orthodox type and resembles that in use among the other castes of the Karnatic. A widow is allowed to marry again and is under no restriction as regards her choice of a second husband. Divorce is recognised and divorced wives may marry again by the same rite as widows. The Kalals are orthodox Hindus, worshipping Mahadeo every Monday. The goddess Bhavani of Tuljapur is worshipped every Friday, with offerings of flowers, betel leaves and sweatmeats. The dead are 'ji'ther burned in a lying posture, or buried in a sitting posture, according to the means of the family of the deceased. In the case of cremation, the ashes are collected on the third day after death and thrown into a river or stream. Brahmans are employed on religious and ceremonial occasions. The social status of the caste is inferior to that of the Maratha Kunbis and superior to that of the Bhoi, Nhavi and Dhobi. The members of the caste eat fowl and fish and the flesh of "deer, hare and sheep, and drink spirituous and fermented liquors. Distilling and selling liquor is the original occupation of the caste, but many of its members make their living by shop-keeping and money-lending. Some have taken to agriculture, in the capacity of occupancy raiats, while a few are landless day-labourers.
Pardeshi Kalal. — The Pardeshi Kalals are supposed to have come from Northern India, although little is known regarding the date of their immigration. They have six sub-castes : —
Sinhor. Chansakha.
Purbhayya. Letarayya.
Gurer. Jaiswar.
among whom there is neither interdining nor intermarriage. Each of these is further broken up into a number of sections, such as. Modi, Pirwatiya, Ghodchadha, Chaitaha Tatari, and so on. In point of marriage, the Pardeshi Kalals exclude the section of both father and mother or, in other words, forbid a man to marry a woman who be- longs to the same section as he himself or his mother. This system is supplemented by prohibited degrees, calculated to six generations on the male side. All Pardeshi Kalais who can afford to do so, marry their daughters as infants, but the daughters of poor families frequently remain unmarried up to the age of eighteen or nineteen. A man may marry two sisters, and the number of wives he may have is subject to no limit, except his ability to maintain them. The marriage ceremony does not appear to differ materially from the standard type common among the other castes of Upper India of the same social standing. The marriage shed (mandap) consists of five posts, one at each corner and one in the ccmtre, and to the latter are tied branches of the mango and umber trees, while at its foot is placed an earthen jar of water, topped with a burning lamp, and with mango leaves inside. Seven circuits taken by the bridal pair round this sacred post are deemed to be the binding and essential portion of the ceremony. A widow is allowed to marry again and divorce is recognised. The religion of the Pardeshi Kalab presents no features of special interest. Kanojia Brahmans are; employed for religious and ceremonial purposes. The dead are usually burned, but bodies of persons dying unmarried arc buried. No precise definition can be given regarding the social position of the caste. The members of the caste say that they eat kachi only from the Kanojia Brahmans, while they take water from the hands of the Bhois. Only the Dhobis, Bhois, and lowest unclean castes will eat food cooked by a Pardeshi Kalal. A Pardeshi Kalal eats fish and the flesh of deer, hare, goats and sheep, but abstains from fowl and pork. He drinks both fermented and spirituous liquors. The bulk of the caste follow their traditional occupation of distilling and selling liquors. Some have taken to other pursuits, such as shop- keeping, money-lending and agriculture.
