Sindhi Hindus
Sindhi Hindus are Sindhis who follow Hinduism. They are spread across modern-day Sindh, Pakistan and India. After the partition of India in 1947, many Sindhi Hindus were among those who fled from Pakistan to the dominion of India, in what was a wholesale exchange of Hindu and Muslim populations in some areas. Some later emigrated from the Indian subcontinent and settled in other parts of the world.[6][7][8]
For demographics of Hindus in Sindh, see Hinduism in Sindh.According to the 2017 census, there are 4.18 million Sindhi Hindus residing within the Sindh province of Pakistan with major population centers being Mirpur Khas Division and Hyderabad Division that combined account for more than 2 million of them.[3] Meanwhile, the 2011 census listed 2.77 million speakers of Sindhi in India, including speakers of Kutchi,[9] a number that does not include Sindhi Hindus who no longer speak the Sindhi language. The vast majority of Sindhi Hindus living in India belong to the Lohana jāti, which includes the sub-groups of Amil, Bhaiband and Sahiti.[10][11]
Castes[edit]
Indian Sindhi Hindus[edit]
Most Sindhi Hindus in India belong to the Lohana caste, who are historically traders, merchants and government officials, and belong to the Vaishya varna. The Sindhi Lohanas are further divided into different sub-groups for example Amils, Bhaibands, Hyderabadi Bhaiband (Sindhi Varki), Sahitis, Shikarpuris, Hatvaniya/Hatwara, Thattai, Bhagnari etc, these sub-groups have their own hundreds of surnames.[16]
Other notable castes include Bhatias (Larai) and Aroras (Riasti), who are also called as Wāniya and Deewan in the Sindhi language, and who also belong to the Vaishya varna and Kshatriya varna of the Hindu caste system, respectively.
A small minority of Hindu Sindhis in India belong to the Brahmin caste, who can be further divided into the three endogamous subcastes- Pokarnos, Shrimalis and Saraswats.[17]
Pakistani Sindhi Hindus[edit]
Hindu Rajputs are mainly found in Thar region of Sindh.
Tribal groups like Dhed, Bhils, Meghwals and Kolhis etc form the largest group among Sindhi Hindus in Pakistan and are mostly found in the Southern and Eastern parts of Sindh.
Sindhi Hindus in Pakistan do not have a caste based hierarchial division, nor the concept of higher caste or lower caste, nor do they practice untouchability.[18]
Family Names[edit]
Conventions[edit]
Most Sindhi Hindu family names are a modified form of a patronymic and typically end with the suffix "-ani", which is used to denote descent from a common male ancestor. One explanation states that the -ani suffix is a Sindhi variant of 'anshi', derived from the Sanskrit word 'ansh', which means 'descended from' (see: Devanshi). The first part of a Sindhi Hindu surname is usually derived from the name or location of an ancestor. In northern Sindh, surnames ending in 'ja' (meaning 'of') are also common. A person's surname would consist of the name of his or her native village, followed by 'ja'. The Sindhi Hindus generally add the suffix ‘-ani’ to the name of a great-grandfather and adopt the name as a family name.[27][28][29]
linguist, historian, novelist, poet, researcher
Bherumal Meharchand Advani
poet, critique, scholar
Kalyan Bulchand Advani
Indian actress
Kiara Advani
Indian movie director and screenwriter
Nikkhil Advani
23 times world champion in snooker and billiards from India.
Pankaj Advani
Indian comedian and actor
Asrani
freedom fighter, writer, journalist
Kirat Babani
Indian film actress
Babita
Indian film Director
Anant Balani
Indian actress
Tamannaah Bhatia
Ambassador at Indian foreign service
Deepak Bhojwani
actress
Aarti Chabria
geostrategist and author
Brahma Chellaney
playback singer
Vishal Dadlani
political leader in the Indian independence movement, Governor of the Indian states of Bihar and later Assam
Jairamdas Daulatram
freedom fighter, businessman, philanthropist
Bhai Pratap Dialdas
writer, poet, singer
Khialdas Fani
Pakistani Sindhi social scientist, and revolutionary writer
Sobho Gianchandani
full name Gope Kamlani, actor in Hindi cinema
Gope
Educationist, Scholar and Writer
Hotchand Molchand Gurbakhshani
Indian businessman based in Hong Kong
Hari Harilela
British Asian actor
Jimmi Harkishin
Indian actress
Anita Hassanandani
Indian gynaecologist, obstetrician and infertility specialist who pioneered the Gamete intrafallopian transfer (GIFT) technique
Indira Hinduja
Indian Navy officer who served as the Vice Chief of the Naval Staff
Gulab Mohanlal Hiranandani
writer
Popati Hiranandani
popular Indian film director and editor
Rajkumar Hirani
Indian cricketer
Narendra Hirwani
Indian actor
Jeet
Indian actress
Kamna Jethmalani
Indian senior lawyer, former Law Minister of India
Ram Jethmalani
freedom fighter
Hemu Kalani
stand-up comedian
Atul Khatri
freedom fighter
Rooplo Kolhi
Film, Television and Stage actor
Jayant Kripalani
freedom fighter, author and parliamentarian
Krishna Kripalani
Indian film actor
Ajith Kumar
Indian novelist based in London
Nikita Lalwani
Indian politician and Member of Parliament in the 17th Lok Sabha from Indore, Madhya Pradesh, India.
Shankar Lalwani
Singaporean diplomat
Kishore Mahbubani
journalist, historian and politician
K. R. Malkani
Sindhi scholar, critic, writer, playwright, literary historian and professor
Mangharam Udharam Malkani
freedom fighter and social worker
N. R. Malkani
Indian film critic
Rajeev Masand
global communications leader and former British television journalist
Rajesh Mirchandani
Indian actress
Hansika Motwani
Indian businessman
Kabir Mulchandani
merchant and former member of Indian National Congress at the time of Independence
Seth Vishandas Nihalchand
British actress
Archana Panjabi
(née Thadani), Indian industrialist, philanthropist, humanitarian and the founder of Lila Poonawalla Foundation
Lila Poonawalla
fiction writer
Kala Prakash
poet
Moti Prakash
property developer
Chandru Raheja
Indian cameraman, producer, director
Sushil Rajpal
saint
Bhagat Kanwar Ram
Indian music director
Bulo C Rani
Indian cricketer
Gulabrai Ramchand
Indian general physician, medical researcher, medical writer and an Emeritus Professor of the National Academy of Medical Sciences
G. S. Sainani
(née Hiranandani), was an Indian banker and politician. She served as CEO and chairperson of the Royal Bank of Scotland in India
Meera Sanyal
Indian film actor
Aftab Shivdasani
film director and actor
Hari Shivdasani
Indian film actress
Sadhana Shivdasani
Indian actor
Ranveer Singh
Bollywood movie producer and director
G. P. Sippy
Bollywood movie producer and director
Ramesh Sippy
writer and poet
Sobhraj Nirmaldas Sujansingani
actress
Anjana Sukhani
Indian film, television and theatre actor
Dalip Tahil
Former Chief of the Naval Staff, India
Radhakrishna Hariram Tahiliani
Indian fashion designer
Tarun Tahiliani
Indian actor
Hiten Tejwani
noted Indian writer
Sundri Uttamchandani
British Indian attorney, politician and former mayor of Karachi
Harchandrai Vishandas
chairman and CEO of Symphony Technology Group (STG), an alumnus of Indian Institute of Technology Bombay
Romesh Wadhwani
Film Actor
Sudhir
Film Maker
Tulsi Ramsey
Film Maker
Shyam Ramsey
Film Maker
F U Ramsay
Film Maker
Kumar Ramsay
Film Maker
Arjun Ramsay
Film Maker
Keshu Ramsay
Film Maker
Kiran Ramsay
Film Actor
Mac Mohan
Film Actor
Raj Kiran
Film Actor
Shiela Ramani
Film Maker
Govind Nihalani
Film Maker
Pahalaj Nihalani
Film Maker
Arjun Hingorani
Singer
Bhagwanti Navani
Indian Businessman, Thinker, Writer, Storyteller
Bhagtani Manish
Singer
Master Chandur
Sindhis
Hinduism in Sindh Province
Sindhis in India
Hinduism in Pakistan
Darya Lal Mandir
Bherumal Mahirchand Advani, "Amilan-jo-Ahwal" - published in Sindhi, 1919
Amilan-jo-Ahwal (1919) - translated into English in 2016 ("A History of the Amils") at