Chamar

Chamar, widespread caste in northern India whose hereditary occupation is tanning leather; the name is derived from the Sanskrit word charmakara (“skin worker”). The Chamars are divided into more than 150 subcastes, all of which are characterized by well-organized panchayats (governing councils). Members of the caste are included in the officially designated Scheduled Castes (also called Dalits); because their hereditary work obliged them to handle dead animals, the Chamars were among those formerly called “untouchables.” Their settlements have often been outside higher-caste Hindu villages. Each settlement has its own headman (pradhan), and larger towns have more than one such community headed by a pradhan. The Chamars allow widows to marry either their husband’s younger brother or a widower of the same subcaste. A segment of the caste follows the teaching of Shiva Narayana, the 18th-century saint and ascetic of northern India, and aims at purifying its customs in order to raise its social prestige. Other Chamars revere Ravidas, an influential 16th-century poet-saint of Banaras (Varanasi) who challenged the idea of pollution and its ritual manifestations. Still others have adopted Buddhism, following the lead of Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar (1891–1956). While many still practice their traditional craft, many more are part of the broader agricultural and urban labour force.