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People

The influence of Mumbai can be seen in the people of Maharashtra which is the international metropolitan city and is the city where Hindi film Industry resides. In spite of being modern and updated with fashion, the people of Maharashtra are still deeply rooted to its traditions. The heritage and culture of Maharashtra are walking side-by-side with the development and changing times and people there know perfectly well how to balance the two. Babasaheb Ambedkar and Chhatrapati Shivaji were the two heroes that were blessed to Maharashtra and dedicated their life to ensure there is freedom in the country. A visit to Maharashtra will give one a clear picture on how the culture and fashion goes hand in hand.

One is awed by the simplicity and tradition of the state along with simple lifestyle the people follow. The festivals and fairs give you a clear picture on how these traditions are followed with all heart apart from living a simple life. The religion followed by the people of this state are diverse and you can find Hindus, Buddhists, Christians and as well as Muslims there.

History of Maharashtrians

The Marathis are Indo-Aryans who live in Maharashtra that lies in the western part of India. The language spoken by them is Marathi that comes from the Southern part of the Indo-Aryan group. The history of Maharashtrians has been going on since a few million years but it was in 1674 that the Maharashtrians came into notice at the time of Shivaji’s rule. They constitute of the seventeenth largest ethnic group.

Simple People with Simple Lifestyle

The traditions and culture of Maharashtra is rich and the people of the state follow a very simple lifestyle and they always feel that only hard-work will give them success. The Marathis do not believe in lavish lifestyles the way the Rajputs of Rajasthan or the Nawabs of Lucknow believed in. You will not find lavish spacious palaces in the state because of the fact that people of Maharashtra prefer hard work to leisure. They followed a hard lifestyle and dedicated themselves in the freedom struggle. The people of Maharashtra believe in brother-hood and this feeling can be seen in all parts of the state. People coming from all the religious beliefs live in one community and do not differentiate between themselves. Maharashtra is a state where saints like Haji Ali, Osho and Sai Baba taught  people the importance of peace and prosperity. You will get a clear picture of the lifestyle and nature of the people once you start interacting with them.

Religion and Language in Maharashtra

Hindus are in majority in Maharashtra while Muslims, Parsis, Jews, Buddhists and Jains are the minority religious groups. The Parsis were the ones who migrated from Persia and were the ones who established the Zoroastrians fire temples in Mumbai. They are  dominant in the state and have been settled here for years. On the other hand,  Muslims who are settled in Mumbai belong to the cult of Sufi that is the second most popular religion in  Maharashtra. They have several mosques and shrines here. There are a few Jews here numbering around three thousand but were more than twenty thousand when they migrated. There are several religious pilgrims located throughout the state that are dedicated to Sai Baba, Haji Ali and Osho Community.

Marathi is the most popular language here and this language has been there since the third century. In the central part of Maharashtra, Gondi is spoken which is the language of the tribal population. The Tapori language that is a slangish language used by the vagabonds is a Filmy language that has been copied from the Hindi Cinema. Though this language sounds a little weird to the ears, it is being copied throughout the country by youngsters. If you are aware of the tapori language while your visit to Maharashtra, it is going to help you a lot in mixing up with the localities. In spite of the Marathi speaking population being in majority, you can find people speaking languages like Hindi, Marwari and Guajarati too.

Costumes of Maharashtrians

The folk women of Maharashtra can be seen wearing the traditional sari that is known as Nauvari, meaning nine yard. This sari has its own history where this type of sari was accepted during the rule of Marathas. It was worn by women during war times so that even they could help their husbands who were fighting at the battleground. Shirt, Dhoti or trousers are usually worn by the men of Maharashtra.

Enters to the Colorful World

The traditions and culture of Maharashtra is rich and one can get a clear picture of the lifestyle of the Maharashtrians during the festival times. During joyous times, people from all communities, cast or religion celebrate together and it becomes difficult to differentiate between them. If you are planning to visit Maharashtra, then make sure you schedule it in such a way that it is during the festive times.

Maharashtrians People Names

You can see a similar pattern of the names in Maharashtra, Gujarat and Goa. The name consists of three words where the first name is of one’s own. The second name is father’s name and third is the family name. The middle name of married women is of their husband’s and family name is added on to it. There are times the male son of the family is named after his grandfather.

Men are addressed as Rao or Saheb by some of the Maharashtrians while on the other hand, women are suffixed with bai or Tai which means elder sister. These terms are generally used informally between friends or family.
The suffix ‘kar’ is added to most of the surnames by the people in Maharashtra and generally ad this from the place they belong. The profession or rank also denotes the surname of many Maharashtrians.

Contribution of Maharashtrians in Military

The military roles are being adopted by Marathis from centuries but it was in the seventeenth century that their martial qualities came in view under the leadership of Chhatrapati Shivaji Raje Bhosale. The Maratha Empire was established by Shivaji to ensure an independent Hindu kingdom. The people from different casts were taken into military. The non-Marathas were also taken along with the people from Kshatriya community. The empire of Marathas was also dominated the navy for over three centuries. Shivaji was considered the father of Indian navy because of the navy he had set up during his time. According to the list made by British about the Marital Races of India in 1947, five of them belonged to the Marathi Community that included Mahars, Ahirs, Gurjars and Dhangras. This can be seen in the Indian armed forces also where most of them belong to the Marathi community. The Marathas are equally active in the naval and air forces and the people with the highest of ranks come out to be a Maratha. Militants like Pradeep Vasant Naik and Jayant Nadkarni are the most famous example of Marathas on a higher level in Military.

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