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People group profile · PG041864

The Veluttedan of India

The Veluttedan of India, numbering about 203,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are a Kerala community also called Veluttedan, traditionally washermen serving the Nair and higher castes, who identify themselves as Nair. Labor, business, and government service now supplement this traditional occupation.

They are an indigenous people in the Nair people cluster of the South Asian Peoples. Their primary religion is Hinduism, and they primarily speak Malayalam.

Pray for the VeluttedanPrint profile

AI-generated illustration representing the Veluttedan people
AI-generated illustration, not a photograph. Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite: Veluttedan

Fast facts

Country
India
Population
203,000
Affinity group
South Asian Peoples
People cluster
Nair
Primary language
Malayalam (mal)
Primary religion
Hinduism
Strategic Progress Index ?
Engaged yet Unreached
Evangelical
Less than 2%
GSEC ?
Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
Lostness priority ?
Frontier Unreached People Group
Region
Southern Asia, Asia
Location
Karnataka: Dakshina Kannada, Kodagu, and Mysore districts; Kerala and Lakshadweep states; Puducherry: Mahe; Tamil Nadu: Colimbatore, The Nilgiris, and Tirunelveli districts

Where they live

Gospel status

The Veluttedan are Engaged yet Unreached, which means fewer than 2% are evangelical Christians, but there are sustained efforts to establish self-sustaining churches consistent with evangelical faith and practice. In GSEC terms, this people group is less than 2% evangelical, some evangelical resources are available, but there has been no active church planting among them within the past two years.

  • Congregations exist Yes
  • Church planting in the last two years No Churches Planted

Next steps for the Veluttedan

  • 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

Primary religion

Hinduism

99% adherents

Primary language

Malayalam · Dravidian family

100% speak Malayalam

Gospel resources in Malayalam

  • Bible available, published 2022
  • JESUS Film available
  • Radio programs available
  • Gospel recordings available
  • Audio resources available
  • Bible stories not available

Films

Bibles

Find more at the JESUS Film Project, Bible.com and Faith Comes by Hearing.

Pray for the Veluttedan

  1. Ephesians 5:8. Pray that those walking in darkness will turn to the light and live as children of light.
  2. Romans 10:14–15. Ask God to send messengers, so that people can hear, believe and call on the name of the Lord.
  3. Matthew 9:37–38. Ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest field.
  4. 2 Timothy 2:2. Pray for faithful local leaders who will teach others, so that the church multiplies.

Download a prayer guide

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