The Kepmari of India

The Kepmari of India, numbering approximately 1,100 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are described as a former criminal community of South Arcot and North Arcot districts in Tamil Nadu whose name derives from a word for pickpocketing. Most are now agricultural laborers, teachers, or clerks, worshipping the deity Muniswaran They are an Indigenous people, with Kepmari as their ethnic/kinship group and are in the Tamil people cluster of the South Asian Peoples. Their primary religion is Hinduism. They primarily speak Tamil.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: South Asian Peoples
Country: India
People Cluster: Tamil
Primary Language(s): Tamil (tam)
Primary Religion(s): Hinduism
Population: 1,100
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG049612
View on Joshua Project

Pray for the Kepmari 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: Hinduism
Religious Affiliation: Hinduism

99%
%
Hinduism Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Tamil
Language Family: Dravidian

100%
%
Tamil Speakers

Media Resources in Tamil:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film
MagdalenaView Film
The SaviorView Film

3 films

Bible Resources in Tamil:

Or check out the Tamil bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Kepmari 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 Kepmari:
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 Kepmari of India

We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.
readRomans 6:4

Pray that those who need to surrender their lives to Christ will confess their sins and trust in Him, being united with Him in His death and resurrection, walking in newness of life.

The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever.
readIsaiah 40:8

Pray that everyone has access to God's Word and that those who hear the good news will turn from their sins and put their faith in Jesus the Messiah.

And they all ate and were satisfied. And what was left over was picked up, twelve baskets of broken pieces.
readLuke 9:17

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will meditate on the stories of Jesus' miracles, be in awe of Him, and trust Him for everything they need.

Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin!
readPsalm 51:2

Pray that God will raise up believers to go and share the gospel with those in this people group who need to be washed of their iniquity and cleansed from their sins.

Kepmaris Across Countries (ROP3 - 112488) 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.

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.

Scroll to Top