Exploring the impact of national identities on caste-based identities: tracing living experiences of Brahmins, Muslim Rajput, and Dalits

Abstract

The rise of national identity in India has deeply impacted the millennia-old cultural setting of India based on Sanatana Dharma and Hinduism. Utilizing etymological exploration, this paper explores the evolution of social identity in India and the changes wrought in it under the national identity in the post-independence period. Examining the experiences of Muslim Rajputs, Brahmins, and Dalits, the paper demonstrates that while nationalism may have granted dignity to Dalits, but loss of status among Muslim Rajputs and Brahmins. Approaching it through the prism of identity, the paper provides a new insight onto the nature of social stratification. © 2025 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.