Why this book
Armies need bread before they need swords. For centuries, it was Banjara caravans, sometimes tens of thousands of bullocks strong, that carried grain, salt and supplies across the subcontinent. They built routes, kept accounts in memory, and governed their own moving towns.
Then a colonial law, the Criminal Tribes Act of 1871, branded whole communities as criminal by birth. The label outlived the law. This book sets the record straight: it asks for recognition, not sympathy.
About the author
Vilas Rathod writes about the Banjara community, its history and its future. (Placeholder biography: replace with the author's own words.)