Abstract
This article attempts to probe into the history and development of the
Kalasha people under the Rais and Katur dynasties of Chitral. The Rais dynasty
ruled over Chitral from 1320 AD to 1595 AD, while Katur reigned from 1595 AD
until 1969 AD. The research has been separated into two sections. The status of the
Kalasha people under Rais is detailed in one section, while the status and condition
of the Kalasha community under Katur is revealed in the other. Due to the lack of
Kalasha's own recorded sources, the research relied heavily on Kalasha oral
traditions, as well as the Nai Tarikh-i-Chitral (Chitral chronicles). Shah Nadir Rais
first took Mastuj, Upper Chitral, and Chitral proper, and the Kalasha were forced
into various valleys in lower and southern Chitral. The Kalasha people of lower
Chitral were converted in the 14th century. The establishment of Pakistan (1947)
was a watershed moment in history, and the Katur era lasted until 1969. During the
regal period, the Kalasha people's overall status was not very spectacular. They
were the Mehtar's 'third estate,' and they bore a great weight of many forms of taxes
as well as forced unpaid labour. They have many legends in their oral traditions
about unpaid labour and taxes paid to the State of Chitral.
Dr. Muhammad Kashif Ali, Saeed Ahmed, Ahmad Abrar Rana. (2021) History and Development of the Kalasha the Sole pre-Islamic Indigenous People of Pakistan during the Rais and Katur Dynastic Eras, Journal of the Research Society of Pakistan, Volume-58, issue 4.
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