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PEOPLE GROUP PROFILE

The Mahar of India

The Mahar of India, numbering approximately 11,780,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are a historically significant and socially transformative community in India, primarily located in Maharashtra and neighboring states. They mostly adhere to Folk Buddhism and Marathi is their primary language.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: South Asian Peoples
Country: India
People Cluster: Marathi-Konkani
Primary Language(s): Marathi (mar)
Primary Religion(s): Folk Buddhism
Population: 11,780,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, Dispersed CP Activity
People Group ID: PG041272
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Pray for the Mahar 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.

Pray Now!
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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Folk Buddhism
Religious Affiliation: Buddhism

53%
%
Folk Buddhism Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Marathi
Language Family: Indo-European

100%
%
Marathi Speakers

Media Resources in Marathi:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film
MagdalenaView Film

2 films

Provided by the Jesus Film Project

View all resources

Bible Resources in Marathi:

Bible Name (Translation)VideoAudioText
1993 Bible League International✓✓
Marathi New India Bible Version✓

2 entries

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Marathi bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

View all resources

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Mahar 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 Mahar:
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 Mahar of India

For you, O LORD, are most high over all the earth; you are exalted far above all gods.
readPsalm 97:9

Pray that those who don't yet know Him will recognize the Lord as the Most High and turn from spiritual darkness to worship Him above all else.

And he said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”
readLuke 7:50

Pray for the good news of Jesus Christ to reach many so that they can place their faith in Him and have lasting hope.

Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.
readLuke 18:17

Pray that as people trust in Christ, they will have simple, childlike confidence that He will provide for their needs.

I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well.
readPsalm 139:14

Praise God for His creativity and power, and pray that He will raise up men and women from among them who are in awe of all He has done and want to go share the hope of Christ with others.

Mahar Across Countries (ROP3 - 112805) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

1 people group

PhotoPeople Group IDNameCountryPopulation ▼Strategic Progress IndexLanguageReligion
MaharPG041272MaharIndia11,780,000Engaged yet UnreachedMarathiFolk Buddhism

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

Peoplegroups.org relies on updates from the field and other organizations for much of our data, so if you have any updates, please contact us. We use various international naming standards. For a list of these standards and fields, visit our Data Standards section.

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