A juxtaposition of cultures!
In India, the concept of race and identity is complex and varies among individuals. Generally, the term "black" is often associated with people of African descent, while Indian people may identify themselves based on their specific ethnic or regional backgrounds. It's important to recognize that racial identity is a deeply personal and culturally nuanced aspect of an individual's self-perception, and it can vary widely from person to person. It is also true that India is the only continent outside of the USA that had its own Black Panther Party chapter! Although 70% of India's population is naturally dark brown sadly the rest a mere 30% who are naturally (unbleached) with fair and light colored skin are considered beautiful. Colonization and self denigrating hate has deeply affected the self image and esteem of the average Indian person regarding their natural appearance.
Many Africans travelled to ancient India as warriors, teachers, merchants and traders, and eventually settled down there to play an important role in elevating the culture and India's history of kingdoms, conquests and wars. Some of them, like Malik Ambar in Ahmadnagar (in western India), went on to become Great rulers and military strategists. African-Indian origin and peoples have resided in Western India for over 650 years; and members of this population are primarily descendants of the Bantu-speaking population of Africa. Bantu languages belong to the Niger-Congo language family, which is widespread in Sub-Saharan Africa, ancient Egyptian is part of this Black African language family. Most African languages have been classified into three groups: Cushitic, Nilotic and Bantu. The Cushitic is part of the Afro-Asiatic family, the Nilotic is part of the Nilo-Saharan family, and the Bantu of the Nigerkordofan family.
The Siddi (pronounced [sɪdːiː]), also known as the Sheedi, Sidi, or Siddhi, are an ethnic minority group inhabiting Pakistan and India. They are primarily descended from the Bantu peoples of the Zanj coast in Southeast Africa, many of whom came to the Indian subcontinent through the Arab Slave Trade but their history there far precedes the Arabs who are relative newcomers by comparison. The relationship between Africa and India extends as far back as 1500 BC.
Islam did not arrive in the inland of Indian subcontinent until the 7th century AD when the Arabs conquered Sindh and later arrived in Punjab and North India in the 12th century. “The first verifiable mention of trade between Africans and Indians can be found in the relation of the Kemetan queen Hatshepsut’s expedition to Punt ( Somalia]).” Hatshepsut was the Black Great Royal Wife of Pharaoh Thutmose II and the fifth Pharaoh of the Eighteenth Dynasty of Egypt, ruling first as regent, then as queen regent from c. 1479 BC until c. 1458 BC. She was Egypt's second confirmed queen regnant, the first being Sobekneferu/Nefrusobek in the Twelfth Dynasty.
Considered one of Egypt's greatest pharaohs—man or woman—Hatshepsut brought great wealth and artistry to her land. She sponsored one of Egypt's most successful trading expeditions, bringing back gold, ebony, and incense from a place called Punt and India. They established a Lapis Lazuli trade Lapis Lazuli which was back then only found in Afghanistan and India was the focus of the trade. In ancient Kemet, lapis lazuli was a favorite stone for amulets and ornaments such as scarabs. Lapis jewelry has been found at excavations of the Predynastic Egyptian site Naqada ( circa 3300–3100 BC).
This sort of trade continued up till the Alexandrian conquest of Persia. This led to an expansion in the red sea trade. The Mauryas in India and the Ptolemies in Egypt corresponded and exchanged ambassadors in the 3rd century BC. Ashoka even sent Buddhist preachers to proselytise in Egypt. The Mauryan Empire, which formed around 321 B.C.E. and ended in 185 B.C.E., was the first pan-Indian empire, an empire that covered most of the Indian region. It spanned across central and northern India. Mauryan empire. Founded by Chandragupta Maurya, His mother's name was Mur (which means strong root or binding root), so he was called Maurya in Sanskrit which means the son of Mur or King, and thus, his dynasty was called Maurya dynasty. The Magadha Empire started by Chandragupta Maurya lasted between (322 – 298 B.C.) when it was conquered weakened by Greek invasions.
The racial Eugenics theories of the 19th century assumed that blonde blue-eyed warriors on horse-drawn chariots smashed their way into India by overpowering the cities of the Indus Valley, enslaving their people. This theory explained the collapse of the Indus Valley cities and the ubiquitous caste system of India. This theory was however false and a large part of the European propaganda machinery. The Germans used it as part of nationalist mythology, celebrating their pre-Semitic Nazi heritage. The British used it to delegitimize the brown skinned Hindus, claiming that ‘upper caste’ Hindus were as much invaders and conquerors of India, as Muslims and Europeans, and so they had no moral right to claim India as homeland as the original people were the Black skinned Dravidians.
Naturally, it got every self-respecting Hindu nationalist riled up. But this theory lacked scientific evidence. Research has shown that the cities of Indus Valley collapsed because of climate change, not invasion, long before the Vedic hymns were compiled or composed. Genetic data has revealed that genetic mixing was common in India 4,000 years ago. Rigid marriage rules based on caste that created unique genetic clusters can be traced only from around 2,000 years ago.
Infighting between India's kingdoms fueled a continual need for military slavery. In a review of Richard Eaton’s A Social History of the Deccan, 1300-1761: Eight Indian Lives, Anu Kumar concluded that it was “slaves imported from east Africa, especially Ethiopia, that came to constitute a loyal support base” for Indian rulers. Because these were fierce warriors the relationship between ruler and enslaved functioned less like “one between a master and his slave to patron-client ties sustained by patronage and service conditions,” In such a system, military slaves “were frequently elevated to the rank of generals, administrators and king-makers.” Later, as they fought and won their freedom, formerly enslaved Africans became chieftains and kings in their own right!
As an enslaved person traveled east, they adopted a new faith, changing their name in the process and inadvertently erasing clues to their origins. As the majority of India was black and brown this was not as difficult as it would be in Europe thus no actual number is known but genetically we know African ancestry in many communities is significant. These Muslim Africans came to be known in India as “‘Habshis’ or people of Habush (Abyssinia) (or modern-day Ethiopia),”.
The earliest and most prominent example of a Habshi rising to the rank of supreme ruler is the case of Jamal-ud-Din Yaqut (d. 1240).During the reign of Sultan Iltutmish of Asian descent and a former slave himself, he reigned between 1211 and 1236 as the first Muslim sovereign to rule Delhi. Iltutmish’s elder daughter, Raziya, ascended the throne after her father’s death in 1236, and it was during her tenure as the only Muslim woman to rule Delhi that Yaqut gained prominence. Raziya fell in love with this brave and heroic African warrior who was also adept at fighting on horseback, which caused great envy in the court. He became the closest adviser and rumored lover as well as the only trusted confidant of the Sultana. Yaqut’s rank and his proximity to Raziya angered Turkic overlords, and he was killed in an ambush rebellion against the throne. (Raziya herself would soon be imprisoned and murdered herself.)
In Indian popular culture, so great was the influence of their relationship, that it has been portrayed multiple times over the decades, in a silent film in 1924, a play in 1972, a TV series in 2015, and a star-studded Bollywood movie in 1983 no doubt it will continue to be a popular love story. In spite of the historical record, none of the adaptations cast a Black actor in the role of Yaqut, whitewashing their interracial relationship as an epic romance, and ignoring the fact of Yaqut’s race being the central issue altogether. Its like finding out Julliette's Romeo was actually Chinese in 15th century Verona, but ignoring it!
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