Deshastha Brahmin - Society and Culture

Society and Culture

The majority of Deshasthas speak Marathi, one of the major languages of the mainly northern Indo-Aryan language group. The major dialects of Marathi are called Standard Marathi and Warhadi Marathi. Standard Marathi is the official language of the State of Maharashtra. The language of Pune's Deshastha Brahmins has been considered to be the standard Marathi language and the pronunciation of the Deshastha Rigvedi is given prominence. There are a few other sub-dialects like Ahirani, Dangi, Samavedi, Khandeshi and Chitpavani Marathi. There are no inherently nasalised vowels in standard Marathi whereas the Chitpavani dialect of Marathi does have nasalised vowels.

By tradition, like other Brahmin communities of Southern India, Deshastha Brahmins are lacto vegetarian. Typical Deshastha cuisine consists of the simple varan made from tuvar dal. Metkut, a powdered mixture of several dals and a few spices is also a part of traditional Deshastha cuisine. Deshastha use black spice mix or kala, literally black, masala, in cooking. Traditionally, each family had their own recipe for the spice mix. However, this tradition is dying out as modern households buy pre-packaged mixed spice directly from supermarkets. Puran poli for festivals and on the first day of the two-day marriage is another Marathi Brahmin special dish.

Most middle aged and young women in urban Maharashtra dress in western outfits such as skirts and trousers or shalwar kameez with the traditionally nauvari or nine-yard sari, disappearing from the markets due to a lack of demand. Older women wear the five-yard sari. In urban areas, the five-yard sari is worn by younger women for special occasions such as marriages and religious ceremonies. Maharashtrian brides prefer the very Maharashtrian saree – the Paithani – for their wedding day.

In early to mid 20th century, Deshastha men used to wear a black cap to cover their head, with a turban or a pagadi being popular before that. For religious ceremonies males wore a coloured silk dhoti called a sovale. In modern times, dhotis are only worn by older men in rural areas. In urban areas, just like women, a range of styles are preferred. For example, the Deshastha politician Manohar Joshi prefers white fine khadi kurtas, while younger men prefer modern western clothes such as jeans.

In the past, caste or social disputes used to be resolved by joint meetings of all Brahmin sub-caste men in the area. In modern period, rural Deshastha Brahmins participate in the village Gram panchayat, or council which is a rural political body which is mainly concerned with planning and implementation of developmental and welfare activities.