Banaphar Explained

Banaphar, also spelled Banafar and Banafer, is a clan native to the Indian subcontinent of mixed Ahir and Rajput descent.^[1]

The legendary 12th century generals Alha and Udal, who appear in the Alha-Khand ballads, were said to belong to this clan. In the ballads, the Banaphars was susceptible to "mean caste" slurs from other Rajputs because of their "mixed" background.^{[1] [2]} Ballads referring to Alha and Udal describe great bravery in the medieval period.^[3]

Notes and References

1. Book: Hiltebeitel . Alf . Alf Hiltebeitel . Rethinking India's oral and classical epics: Draupadī among Rajputs, Muslims, and Dalits . 162–163 . May 1, 1999 . University of Chicago Press . 9780226340500 . Presumably it is an issue that would interest Ālhā audiences sensitive to the mixed-caste Kṣatrya-Ahir identity of the Banāphars... Ūdal (and the rest of the Banāphars) is susceptible to "mean caste" slurs and slights because of his combined Kṣatriya (Rajput) and cowherd (Ahir) background..
2. Book: Crowley, Thomas. Fractured Forest, Quartzite City: A History of Delhi and its Ridge. 7 September 2020. 277. 9789353885564. The Banaphars also identify themselves as Rajputs. Throughout this epic, though, they have various caste slurs hurled at them by higher-status Rajputs who claim that the Banaphar line is contaminated with the blood of Ahirs, a nomadic pastoral community..
3. Book: Talbot, Cynthia . The Last Hindu Emperor: Prithviraj Cauhan and the Indian Past, 1200–2000 . Cambridge University Press. 2016. 9781107118560. 203. 5 November 2020.