Kamma

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Kamma is a caste or social group found in the southern states of Andhra Pradesh, and Tamil Nadu. They constitute about 5% of the state population which would make them the fifth largest community in Andhra Pradesh. There are significant numbers of this community members in Chennai (Madras) and neighbouring districts, and Bangalore as well. In the late decades of last century some of them migrated to other parts of the world, particularly to the US, UK and Australia.

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Ancient History

  • The early "Kamma" section could be immigrants into South India later than 100 AD, probably part of the great Kambhoja migrations from central Asia along with the Saka Pallavas who clashed and ultimately merged with the Satavahanas (1). It has to be remembered that the caste affiliation was not rigid during the times when Buddhism was prevalent. The pallavas settled in Guntur-Nellore areas.
  • In medieval times the region now known as Palnadu, which was named after the Pallavas that ruled there, was called Kammanadu, indicating that they may have been present for a very long time (2).
  • Kammas grew to prominence during the Kakatiya reign. In the middle ages they held important positions in their army. Two kamma chieftains, Musunuri Prolaya Nayaka and Musunuri Kapaya Nayaka served the Kakatiya king Prataparudra. After the fall of Warangal they united the Nayaka chieftains, wrested Warangal from the Delhi Sultanate and ruled for 50 years (2).
  • Subsequently many Kammas migrated to the Vijayanagar kingdom. During the Vijayanagar rule Kamma Nayaks formed the bulwark of its army and were Governors in Tanjore, Madurai and Coimbatore areas of Tamil Nadu.
  • Kammas controlled parts of south and north Tamil Nadu for several years under the title of Nayacker, which was a legacy of the Vijayanagar Empire. Thirumala Nayacker was the most famous among them. (citation needed)
  • A recent census showed there are over seven hundred thousand Kammas in Tamil Nadu.
  • After the decline of major kingdoms they still owned large fertile lands. Owing mainly to this they continued to dominate in the villages as village heads, especially in coastal A.P., much akin to the Reddys in the western parts of the state.
  • One of the residual dynasties that is unequivocally linked to the Kamma community is the Vasireddy dynasty in Amaravati.
  • They are a middle caste.[1]

Modern day caste definitions

  1. Upper castes" (Brahmins, Kshatriyas and Vaishyas)
  2. Middle castes" (farming castes such as Jats, Yadavs and Kurmis, in the north, and Marathas and Patidars in the west, Reddys, Kammas, Kapus, Vokkaligas, in the south.)
  3. Lower castes" (a diverse group of castes typically engaged as marginal farmers, sharecroppers, agricultural laborers, traditional service and artisan activity)
  4. SCs and STs [2]

Although lower castes and SCs and STs have a fair degree of parity on economic grounds, the former are better of in the social hierarchy while the latter have traditionally received positive discrimination from the government.

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Modern History

Important components of the development of the Kamma community were:

  • Their embrace of education. Among the non-Brahmin communities, Kammas were one of the first to take to education in large numbers. Over a period of 10 years, in Guntur District alone, 130 High schools were established by their initiative. Zamindars of Challapalli and Kapileswarapuram founded many schools and libraries.
  • They are one of the wealthy communities in Andhra Pradesh.
  • They have a progressive social outlook and work hard at anything they take up.
  • They were adept farmers and as a consequence of the changes that affected the economic landscape of rural India down the centuries, they became prosperous. [3]
  • Kammas gradually diversified into other specialities such as films, media, academia, medicine, business, real estate, industries etc
  • They have an enterprising and diligent nature.
  • Kammas can claim credit for introducing modern agricultural techniques in the state. Today, some of the most efficient professional institutions in the state are run by the Kammas.
  • They are generally found in roles ranging from large scale industries to small scale businesses.
  • One admirable characteristic about them is their readiness to undertake manual labour in agriculture, which is generally considered something to be avoided in India by the upper castes.

Many Kammas in villages are not only agriculturalists but are landlords as well. The Kamma community can also be found in large numbers in Anantapur, Chittoor, Bellary, Nizamabad, Hyderabad, Ranga Reddy and Khammam districts besides their significant presence in Guntur, Krishna District, Godavari,Nellore and Prakasham Districts of Coastal Andhra.

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Politics

They are politically very active in Andhra Pradesh, especially in Coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema regions. During the twentieth century a number of leaders like Prof N.G. Ranga, Gottipati Brahmaiah, and Kalluri Chandramouli took prominent roles in the national freedom movement. Several Kammas were attracted to leftist ideals and joined the Communist Party. It was a strong political force in the state until the mid sixties.

A particularly admirable quality about them is that many wealthy Kammas willingly relinquished their lands and actively worked for the land distribution reforms. This helped many landless individuals attain middle class status and brought about greater economic development of the state as a whole rather than to just one particular community. We are witnessing the benefits of this sacrifice now in the state as Andhra Pradesh has developed into an economic hub. However their affinity towards the communist party in the early days led them to lose political clout along with the diminished influence of the communist party throughout the world.

During the 1980s, they again played a key role in state and national politics with the inception of the Telugu Desam Party. In fact at one point the Telugu Desam Party was the only oposition party to Indira Gandhi's Congress Party in the central government of India.

While there will always be detractors to any politician, it was only during the Nara Chandra Babu Naidu government that a major sitting world leader such as USA president Bill Clinton came to Andhra Pradesh. He gave a progressive direction to Andhra Pradesh and got himself and the state global recognition. This recognition of the political and economic importance of Andhra Pradesh continues as shown by the recent visit of the current American President, George Bush.

There are many Kamma politicians and economists in states other than Andhra Pradesh. They are influential in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.

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Crossroads

The educated Kammas are at a crossroads today. They are trying to decide if they are impatient, forward looking, leftist, creative, artistic, bold, young and rebellious "anti-brahmanical" caste/community who don't fit and dont wish to fit into the old feudal society structure anyplace? Or, are they prosperous, right wing, conservative, reactionary, cautious, money minded, clannish, highly "brahmanoid" community?

This dilemma is real, and several Kammas have expressed such views. With increased global horizons, like prospering in the USA and UK, it will be interesting to see what route the creative Kammas will take. Most probably there will be a split between the wealthy and not so wealthy sections, each allying with various other similar groups but overall maintaining a trend towards progresive views.

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Notable Kammas

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Surnames

Most of the Kamma surnames end with 'neni' denoting descent from an ancestor having title 'Nayakudu/Nayudu/Nayuni. For example, persons with surname 'Veeramachaneni' are descendents of 'Veeramacha Nayudu'. Other surnames indicate the villages to which the persons originally belonged to.

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Other Andhra Communities

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References and Notes

  1. Kammavari Charitra by Kotta Bhavaiah Choudary (in Telugu).
  2. Telugu Vignana Sarvaswamu, Volume 2, History, Telugu University, Hyderabad (In Telugu).
  3. Template:NoteCaste and the Andhra Communists - Selig.S.Harrison The American Political Science Review Vol.50. No.2 (Jun 1956) p.378-404

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