The Nandiwala of India

The Nandiwala of India, numbering approximately 9,800 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are described as a nomadic community of Maharashtra who migrated from Andhra Pradesh, performing acts with a trained sacred bull considered Lord Shiva's vehicle. Alms-seeking has given way to hunting, fishing, and unskilled labor They are an Indigenous people, with Nandiwala as their ethnic/kinship group and are in the Telugu people cluster of the South Asian Peoples. They mostly adhere to Hinduism and Telugu is their primary language.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: South Asian Peoples
Country: India
People Cluster: Telugu
Primary Language(s): Telugu (tel)
Primary Religion(s): Hinduism
Population: 9,800
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG049679
View on Joshua Project

Pray for the Nandiwala 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: 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 Nandiwala 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 Nandiwala:
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 Nandiwala of India

And he said to them, "This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many."
readMark 14:23-24

Pray for those who may have heard the gospel but have not yet submitted their lives to Christ, that they will finally see the sacrifice which He made for them and surrender their lives to Him.

And what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also.
read2 Timothy 2:2

Pray that the lost will come to faith in Christ and be discipled in the truth of the gospel, becoming faithful followers of Jesus who, in turn, make disciples themselves.

We give thanks to you, O God; we give thanks, for your name is near. We recount your wondrous deeds.
readPsalm 75:1

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will give thanks to the Lord for His wondrous works and declare His goodness to all people.

For we do not want you to be unaware, brothers, of the affliction we experienced in Asia. For we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death. But that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead.
read2 Corinthians 1:8-9

Pray that as people hear and believe the gospel, they will be faithful as they walk through trials and will have an opportunity to be a witness to others in this people group of the goodness of God.

Nandiwale Across Countries (ROP3 - 113235) 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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