Negotiating Modern Identity

The Lambadas of Telangana – from a Nomadic Tribe to Subaltern Identity

Abstract

Much of the problems associated with contentious identities in contemporary India can be traced to British colonial ethnographic constructs and categories which tended to rigidly fix identities which had been much more fluid in pre-colonial times. The colonial legacy continued in post-colonial India, impelling castes and communities to negotiate and renegotiate their identities and constitutional positions. One such community is the Lambada of Telangana. Historically a pastoral community involved in cattle breeding and caravan trade, they were designated as ‘criminal tribes’ under colonial rule. After Independence, they were recategorized in the Constitution under different denominations in different regions. Thus, in the state of Andhra Pradesh, the Lambadas of the Telangana region were categorized as ‘De-notified Tribe’ whereas their counterpart in the Andhra region were given the status of ‘Scheduled Tribe’ (ST). The Lambadas of Telangana launched a movement to demand that they should also be listed as STs on the premise that one community cannot be categorized differently in the same state, and they succeeded in being listed in the ST list in 1976. In this fight, many traditions came into circulation, including alternate histories and stories related to their origin and migration. Based on an ethno-historical approach, this paper explores these claims and counter claims of the Lambadas.