MARWARI COMMUNITY IN NORTH-EAST

INDIA

मारवाड़ी और उ तर-पव
ू भारत

A Sociology Report

Submitted by:
Umang Kumar Rathi
Aerospace
SC07B097 (39)
Contents
1. Introduction

2. Marwari language

3. Family

4. Sanskaar and Tyohaar

5. Ethics and spirituality

6. Life style and food

7. Social interaction

8. Women in Marwari society

9. Technology in Marwari Community

10. Change and the future

11. Bibliography

Note

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1. Introduction:

The topic of the document starts with the word Marwari so it becomes essential to
describe who exactly is a Marwari. It is the name given to the inhabitants of
erstwhile princely state Marwar which now includes the emigrated families to
various parts of the country and abroad. The Marwar region includes the central and
western parts of Rajasthan. The word Marwar is considered to be derived from
Sanskrit word “Maruwat”, the meaning of “maru” being 'desert'. Though a Marwari
is a “Rajasthani” (a person belonging to Rajasthan) but not necessarily a Rajasthani
is a Marwari. As Marwari is a term associated with a region you have Marwari of all
casts and even religion, but today stereotypically the term has been associated with
Marwari businessmen in any part of the world. They are sometimes also compared
with Jews in Europe for resemblance in socioeconomic and socio-cultural functions
and interactions of the community.

There are approximately 4.5 lac Marwari in North East region. Many of which have
been settled there much before independence; even some came in 1800s. The main
reason for their immigration to NE was trading opportunity. NE societies as such at
that time didn’t have any dominant trading class so the trading was initially limited
to the nearby villages. This presented a wonderful and economic start up to any
business as there was no competition. With the coming of British Raj to Assam, the
requirement for traders and suppliers increased, and so the opportunities. They
braved immense hardship, but battled on and built their businesses from scratch.
Marwari travelled across rough mountainous terrain, often on foot. There were no
transport facilities and it used to be said: “Jahan na pahunche belgadi, vahan
pahunche Marwari” (the Marwari can even reach a place which is inaccessible to a
bullock cart). Innumerable Marwari succumbed to illness and lack of medical care.
They had to rely on their own intelligence and skill to develop plantations, clearing
the jungles and identifying the soil best suited to tea. So expert did they become that
very soon European and other Indian planters began to seek their advice.

The former chief commissioner of Assam, R.H. Keating, commented "The Assamese
with their subsistence economy were not interested in large trade and industry in
1874. Hence, the Marwari were allowed to facilitate commercial transactions with
Bengal. Later, a large number of Marwari took over trade and business and benefited
immensely.” According to the 1881 census, there were 2400 Marwari living in
Assam. Many of them were money lenders or worked as traders supplying food
grains to the tea estates. The Census Report, 1921, notes that 'Wholesale and
important retail trade is in the hands of men of Rajputana and of Eastern Bengal'.

Later the Marwari even began buying out British plantations. Their role in the
development of Assam was quite significant and was highlighted by the first

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Congress chief minister of Assam, Gopinath Bordoloi, 'I always praise the
unremitting efforts of the Marwari which have resulted in making Assam a
prosperous place worth living in. they have performed a great service for Assam and
the Assamese masses.' Bordoloi added, 'The credit for changing the face of
Guwahati, Nogaon, Jorhat, Dhubri, Gowalpada, Shivasagar, Dibrugarh, Lakhimpur
and other cities situated on the banks of the Brahmaputra goes to the Marwari who
came to Assam in the last century and settled here. Likewise, they deserve the credit
for bringing prosperity to Shillong, Dimapur, Kohima, Tinsukhia, Digboi and
Imphal.'

Few of the above paragraphs were directly taken from the book “The Heritage of
Indian Tea” by D. K. Taknet as they give a good outlook of Marwari community in
NE before and after independence. Still this may give a rosy picture but this rendered
them rich and powerful in the eyes of the local populace, which was one of the
starting reasons of the still rampant insurgency. Still it can’t be neglected that
Marwari are credited with the transformation of Assam from non-monetized to
market economy.

2. Marwari language

Marwari essentially is a subgroup of Sanskrit based languages. It is written in

common Devnagri. In NE Marwari families generally encourage usage of Marwari
language in conversation at home but still many of the current generation are losing
touch with it. Interesting fact is Marwari tone of Guwahati and other towns have
been developed into a unique tone, easily distinguishable from “Khaati” Marwari
(original).

3. Family:

Generally a closely knit joint family system is followed in most families. This
pertains to cultural as well as economical reasons in the past but with the advent of
21st century the system is witnessing minor downfall. Generally a family includes
children parents and grandparents along with uncles all living in the same house.
Great emphasis is put upon having a single kitchen as it is considered as the root
which holds the family tree together. The family is patriarchal with the family head
having a greater say in all matters economic or otherwise.

Elders are given lot of respect. When two person of different age meet, it is
customary for the younger one to greet the elder by touching his/her feet. Then again,
this is also facing some changes with change of century.

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4. Sanskaar and Tyohaar:

Ceremonies associated with birth, marriage and death are very important part of any
societal system and are called Sanskaar in Hindu religion. Marwari being generally
religious (in terms of behaviour) place a great emphasis on “puja” (worship) and
“yagya” or generally referred in Hindi as “Karm-kand”. Birth is a creation of a new
life and is celebrated as such. It is still true that fragments of wish for a male child
are still there. It can be seen in few of the ceremonies which are performed on the
birth of a male child but not for a female child like ringing of a bronze “thali” (a big
plate) using a rolling pin to symbolically announce the birth. On the first day of birth
a shape of “Om” or “Shree” is made on the newborn’s tongue using honey. Then
after three days according to a cultural belief Brahma “The creator” (one of the
trinity of Hindu dharma) makes the future of the newborn. So in a small ceremony
the mother sits with the child in her arms and fresh paper and pen is placed
symbolically along with some auspicious “gur” (jiggery) and rice, where the mother
prays to Lord Brahma to grant her child a happy future. The naming ceremony is
generally held 7 to 11 days after birth or later if the child seems to be medically unfit.
A pundit with astrological calculations decides child’s birth stars and thus the letter
with which the name should start and thus gives the child a name. A small “bhoj”
(banquet) is arranged for family and friends in celebration of the new child. When a
boy is two three years old, the “Mundan” ceremony is performed. It is believed that
the hair on head of the boy, when he is in the womb, is impure and therefore, should
be shaved off. On an auspicious day, the head of the boy is shaved amidst the
chanting of Vedic hymns. Only a tuft is left on the head. Some families in their
ancestral temple also perform this ceremony.

Marriage is much complicated process in Marwari community. In the past and even
today it forms the bed rock of Marwari culture, as marriage fosters links which
generally takes form of business relationship apart from the societal ones. Though
earlier there was a case of almost total child marriage, the scenario has changed
much for the better. Still it is considered unwise to remain unmarried once a man has
settled in his business or service and for a woman, when completing her education.
So general age of marriage for man is 21-25 and that for woman is 19-23. Generally
marriages are arranged in nature but love marriages are also accepted although not
encouraged and that is only when marriage is in the same community. Marriages
outside the community are looked down upon, but today are tolerated which is a
change from the earlier social boycott scenario where the family was socially
boycotted by the community.

The whole process starts with matching of “kundali” (astrological birth chart) by a
Pandit of the prospective bride and groom generally being matched by some

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common friend of the two families. Then if the “guna” (a feature of astrological
charts depicting life tastes and life style) matches for the prospective bride and
groom, a formal meeting is arranged. Here the boy and the girl are allowed to interact
with each other, and are asked to decide whether they like each other or not. If both
the parties agree generally a “Chhota Neg” (a small representative ceremony) is done
then and there formally accepting the marriage. The “Sagai” (ring ceremony) is
performed in the following day or few days before marriage.

Dowry was much rampant in earlier days but thanks to societal stand against it, it has
greatly diminished. But even today, it is not asked but expected and the bride’s father
gives it in kind to her daughter citing his societal status. Common talks of the women
folk during the marriage days centres’ around who spent how much on his daughter’s
marriage or even son’s marriage. Still torture because of dowry is now rarely heard
in the community. Thus with the pressure from the society the bride’s father keeps on
a great pomp and show for the marriage. There is even competition on who spent the
largest amount on his child’s marriage. This results into obnoxious wastage of money
and resources.

The actual marriage activities generally cover two or more days of festivities. The
marriage in actuality is declared five days before the marriage date in a Puja called
“Saho pujan” where in front of elderly and respected people of the community a Puja
is done and where in the Gods are pleased to bless the marriage. Then happens the
ceremony both in the Bride’s as well as Groom’s house called “Baan” where the
bride and the groom are bathed in turmeric paste and herbal oils at their homes and it
is declared as “ Baan baith gai” and that starts the main festivities. Then “Vinayak”
pujan is done where a small boy is symbolically seated as Lord Ganesha and is called
the Vinayak he sits with the bride through all Pujas except in the final “Fera”. The
same thing happens in the groom’s house. Then there is the “Bhaat Bharai” or the
“Mayra” where the maternal family of the bride gives gifts to the bride and her in-
laws. Similar ceremony is carried out in groom’s house. Generally the “Fera”
happen in the night so a reception is thrown together to the guest before the “Fera”.
The main marriage ceremony “Fera” is performed exactly as it was thousands of
years ago, during the ‘Vedic’ age under a beautifully decorated canopy ‘Havana’ is
performed and the bridegroom takes the hand of the bride and the oath of marriage in
the name of god. Then the bride and bridegroom go round the fire seven times
(Saptapadi). During the first three rounds, the bride leads the bridegroom and in the
last four rounds the bridegroom leads the bride. During these marriage rounds the
priest recites ‘Mantras’ from the ‘Vedas’ signifying a vow which the bride demands
from her husband, only after which she would accept to be her wife. During the first
three rounds the bride belongs to her own family but with the fourth round, she
becomes the wife of the groom. The songs sung by friends of bride on this occasion

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relate this transfer. After completion of “fera” the bride is sent to her new home with
the “Bidai”.

The other important ceremony is associated with death. On the death bed Gita is
recited to the person for mental peace. After death the body is washed with clean
water and “Ganga Jal” (water from the Ganges). The body is placed under a plant of
Tulsi. After the burning of body called “Daag dena” or “Antyeshthi” the eldest son
collects the “asthiyan” or the bones and ashes of the dead in a pot to be discharged in
Ganges on the third day from cremation. On the 11th day after the death the mourning
period is declared over and the residence is cleaned and a feast is arranged for the
community. As per one’s capacity, charity works are done in the name of the dead on
the day.

Apart from these important ceremonies associated with life, Hindus and in particular
Marwari community observe many “Vrat aur Tyohar” (fasts and festivities)
important of them being Teej, Gan-Gaur, Holi, Ramnavami, Raksha Bandhan,
Navratri, Dushehra, Diwali. In NE Marwari community has also included few of the
local festivals in their life majorly Durga Puja, and in some measures Bihu too. Bihu
is one occasion when you will find many Marwari families paying visit to their
Assamese family friends.

5. Ethics and spirituality:

On one hand ethically Marwari community was always looked upon as having low
ethical standards, pertaining to their business ethics. On the other it was regarded
having high morals in social ethics. This outlook is neither completely wrong nor
right. It is true that Marwari businessmen had always been looking ways to cut costs
and therefore few of them also got involved in unscrupulous activities and it is still
true today. Still a prominent reason is because of rampant corruption in the NE
government services it would seem impossible to any person to run a profitable
business without defaulting some taxes.

On the social front, being generally conservative Marwari are ethically grounded to
good moral conduct. This also relates to their spiritual outlook. Marwari are
generally strong believers of God and specifically include some time for worship
each day.

6. Life style and food:

General life style of Marwari is conservative. Most of the Marwari are known for
their economical style of living, some call it thrifty; but this has stood by their side
through the years and made them most successful in all kind of business. It is a
common notion among Marwari community to spend as much as one has capacity,

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extending beyond that is bad. Therefore it is observed that Marwari generally do not
like to take EMIs or loans except for business purpose. Though the manner of
consumerism is changing, but still on major spending the notion still stands. It is a
more general trend in sub-urban as well as rural areas, not to indulge in heavier
spending as this brings attention to a families spending and might result into a
demand from much feared terrorist outfits.

Alcoholism and smoking is seen with contempt in the society, thus very few people
indulge in drinking or smoking.

Marwari are mostly strict lacto-vegetarian. Though few people from the new
generation are seen taking eggs and/or non-vegetarian privately but it is strictly
discouraged. Non-vegetarian food made in the kitchen of a Marwari family is still
unheard of.

Marwari food in NE is similar to food in Rajasthan except for inclusion of rice as one
of the staple food.

7. Social interaction:

From the very beginning Marwari had a strong societal presence mainly because of
numerous business links and contacts. There are numerous organisations funded and
managed by Marwari community which undertake numerous activities for the up-
liftment of Marwari community as well as the ethnic local people.

Public works like building marriage halls, dharmshala (free place to stay overnight),
hostels etc are undertaken by these organisations. Also providing financial help to
needy and meritous students, conducting community marriages etc are also
undertook by them.

As mentioned earlier, from very beginning, Marwari were controlling majority of

trade in NE. This became a bone of contention in the local populace, because being a
Marwari was more advantageous in doing business in NE then being an ethnic local.
This along with the perception that Marwari traders were exploiting the local ethnic
population became one of the reasons for the ULFA to consider people from outside
Assam as people who came as colonials to Assam to exploit it. The same theme is
seen everywhere in NE. Though this perception is still there but, the general
population is now more or less neutral about the topic. This though has made the
corruption very rampant in the administration. Due to the perception as well as
personnel prejudice the Administration people generally try to harass any Marwari
businessmen. It is a common occurrence that a non-Marwari trader is never checked
for any wrong doing but a Marwari trader is framed up even if he hasn’t done
anything only if he doesn’t pay the bribe. This has made most of the traders involved

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in tax evasion; because whether you pay the tax or not, you have to pay the bribe so
better make a cut out of the tax money for the tax collector.

That was the gray area of interaction between Marwari and the local ethnic people
but there exists a brighter side too. Most of the intelligentsia in the society are
favourable to the Marwari community as seen in the statement by the first Congress
chief minister of Assam, Gopinath Bordoloi, mentioned before.

8. Women in Marwari society:

As mentioned earlier Marwari are conservative in nature. This as well as patriarchal

family standard leads to a suppressed place for Marwari women. This was considered
that if women folk are working outside, the family is in dire monetary condition.
Slowly this perception has changed, especially in urban areas where girls are allowed
to work as professionals but still not encouraged to do so. Education on the other
hand encouraged at least up to graduation, higher education is still not favoured
much. Partly the reason being Marwari boys are disinclined to higher education as
most of them prefer to get in to family business. This raises a crisis of ideal matches
having good higher education for marriage.

Earlier times after marriage women were expected to handle the household and the
men the business. With rising education level among women, in few families, now
they are allowed to participate in family business or work on their own, but service
sector is not encouraged. This is a general trait among Marwari that they consider
service sector with dislike even for men. Also it is a trait among many families that
properties are generally entitled to women. This may have more to do with tax and
legal consideration then a social one.

Divorce rate is extremely low, once married it is considered for life. Social violence
is also very low in today’s scenario which is a welcome change from earlier dowry
related violence. One of the remaining old and conservative practises is ghunghat or
pardah. Though it is not up to the level of earlier times, still it is not considered good
for married women to go around elder people without covering her head at her in-
law’s. Few from the earlier times also avoided talking straight to their father-in law
as it was considered improper. But all that is gradually changing.

Today there are few Marwari organisations completely run by Marwari women, and
they are coming at front in process of community development. Many articles of the
community publications are penned by educated Marwari women. The road is
leading to a pleasant amalgamation of the conservative and modern society taking
good points from both.

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9. Technology in Marwari Community:

Though Marwari are conservative in most outlooks in life, they are business minded
too. So, if a new technology is supportive of their current business environment they
are all keen to embrace it. Marwari were few of the very first in NE to apply for
telephone nos. This again repeated for internet connections. Few from earlier
generation are still coming in terms with the new technological status, but again
Marwari are known for their adaptive nature; so change is natural to them.

10. Change and the future:

The only thing that is constant in any society is change, and Marwari community of
NE is also not untouched from this. This coupled with fast change in business
environment makes changes in Marwari community a feature rather than an
intermittent phenomenon. The most profound change of recent times is the attitude
towards education. In the license raj, Marwari families didn’t wanted their children
to be highly educated because there were no good job opportunity for such
qualifications. It was deemed prudent to get engaged in the family business rather
than getting in a service as monetary benefit is more for the business.

The position and attitude towards education of girls has also witnessed a sea change
from the earlier orthodox conservative outlook.

The current changes can be traced back in these earlier trends. Today more and more
youth from the community are going for professional courses. For the first time in
past few centuries, the community legged back in the latest business methods, but
soon it is catching up. The new era of business belongs to professionals with good
education. Though the basics are same, but education forms a good backbone to
modern outlook and bigger perspective.

The women are also going out of confinements of their home and are participating in
an active transformation of the community. Though it is constricted to mostly urban
areas, but the change is evident and is a welcome change.

11. Bibliography:

1) D. K. Taknet, “The Heritage of Indian Tea”.

2) Sanjib Baruah, “India against itself: Assam and politics of nationality”.
3) Anne Hardgrove “Community and Public Culture: The Marwaris in Calcutta,
c. 1897-1997” Columbia University Press.
4) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marwari_language
5) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marwaris

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Note

The complete report is based on the above mentioned resources and my personal
experience, so it may be biased. The Riti- Rivaj mentioned in the report are mainly
followed by the Hindu Marwari, though few Jain also follow the same.

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