The Dudekula of India

The Dudekula of India, numbering approximately 58,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are a Muslim cotton-carding community of Andhra Pradesh and Pondicherry, also known as Panjikutti, whose name derives from the words for cotton and cleaning, traditionally making rope and tape alongside their trade in cotton. They mostly adhere to Sunni Islam and Telugu is their primary language.

Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite: Dudekula

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: South Asian Peoples
Country: India
People Cluster: Telugu
Primary Language(s): Telugu (tel)
Primary Religion(s): Sunni Islam
Population: 58,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG048171
View on Joshua Project

Pray for the Dudekula of India

Join others around the world in praying for the lost to be saved, the gospel to advance, the global Church to grow, and for laborers to be sent out and sustained in the harvest.

Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Sunni Islam
Religious Affiliation: Islam

100%
%
Sunni Islam Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Telugu
Language Family: Dravidian

100%
%
Telugu Speakers

Media Resources in Telugu:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film
JESUSView Film
MagdalenaView Film
The SaviorView Film

4 films

Bible Resources in Telugu:

Or check out the Telugu bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Dudekula are Engaged yet Unreached, which means there are less than 2% evangelical Christian populations but there are sustained efforts at establishing self-sustaining churches consistent with evangelical faith and practice.

Next steps for the Dudekula:
Continue prayer and fasting for this group
Continue gospel seed sowing and church planting among this group
Begin training up local leaders to lead and develop strategies to reach their own people

Pray specifically for the Dudekula of India

Claiming to be wise, they became fools.
readRomans 1:22

Ask God to pour out His mercy and bring those who are walking in their own wisdom to faith in Jesus.

After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, ‘Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb’
readRevelation 7:9-10

Pray that many people will receive the gospel and will be part of the great multitude from every nation, tribe, people, and language, clothed in white robes and palm branches, proclaiming salvation belongs to our God.

It will be said on that day, “Behold, this is our God; we have waited for him, that he might save us. This is the LORD; we have waited for him; let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation.”
readIsaiah 25:9

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will proclaim and rejoice in His salvation.

At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ...that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak.
readColossians 4:3-4

Ask God to open doors for believers to share the gospel and help them communicate it clearly so that more people will understand the mystery of Christ and turn to follow Him.

Dudekula Across Countries (ROP3 - 111997) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

1 people group

To download a comprehensive people group list in spreadsheet form, visit our Research Data page.

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