ABSTRACT

Human social interactions and institutions are the subject of sociology. Sociologists look at
how people interact with the structures of groups, organizations, and societies. As long as the
development in the field of education is concerned Indian sociology has come a long way.
Indian sociologists work as a catalyst in interpreting our society and marking their important
components. The study of sociology is crucial for addressing societal issues. Numerous issues
plaguing the world today can be resolved through social science research. The goal of
sociology is to analyse social issues using scientific research techniques and come up with
solutions. In summary, the numerous branches of applied sociology are becoming more and
more well- known on a local, state, national, and international scale.

OBJECTIVES

The objective behind my essay is to:

1. Indian sociologists and their analysis

2. Relevance of their work in today’s time
3. How time has influenced their work

INRODUCTION

Indian sociologists have made a significant contribution to the development of studies of the Indian
society. The growth of sociology in India was aided by the contributions of Indologists like Henry
Maine and Alfred Lyell, among others. They underlined the importance of preserving the native social
structures present in Indian society as opposed to eradicating them and imposing a foreign way of life
on the populace. The body of work by Indian sociologists is diverse. As a melting pot of civilizations,
India has given the backdrop for several studies to be done and understood. They have examined
kinship, caste, class, rules, norms, magic, and movements. While some scholars have studied

historical
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phenomena, most recent studies have focused on modern movements. As sociology as a discipline
lacks an objective truth, these are all crucial and fundamental to comprehending the subcontinent and
its activities. Sociologists such as Romila Thapar, G.S Ghurye, B.R. Ambedkar, M.N. Srinivas etc.
have played a significant role in production of sociological knowledge. This article will talk about
Romila Thapar and M.N. Srinivas and their critical and comparative analysis as well as the relevance
of their work done in today’s time.

Romila Thapar's perspective of Indian history helped her and her work become well known. One of
India's most renowned historians, Romila Thapar, has worked to clarify our understanding of India's
past since the 1960s. The distinguished Kluge Prize winner Thapar has published on a wide range of
topics throughout the course of her long career, but her scholarly work on the social history of ancient
India has garnered the most attention. The social and cultural history of ancient India piqued her
curiosity. Ashoka and the decline of the Mauryas and Ancient Indian Social History are two of her
most important contributions. She employed a comparative approach to research similar communities
using information from literary and archaeological sources. While the globally known scholar M.N.
Srinivas focused on the structural-functional features and dynamics of the caste system. In order to
describe the inter-caste relations, he popularized concepts like "dominant caste," "Sanskritization-
Westernization," and "secularization." To investigate the power dynamics in villages, the dominant
caste theory is employed. Some other works of Romila Thapar includes her publications such as A
Study of Emperor Ashoka, Indian Tales, The History of India etc., meanwhile M.N. Srinivas also
produced outstanding works such as India’s Villages, Social Change in Modern India, On Living in a
Revolution and Other Essays.

Romila Thapar being a great historian divided history into three major periods-

i. Ancient
ii. Medieval
iii. Modern

These divisions served as an explanation for the dynastic era. In order for us to continue realising the
impossibly, historians collect the past from the perspective of the essential. The mediaeval period
came to an end with the arrival of the British, as opposed to the ancient period, which marked the
introduction of Aryan culture and ended with the Turkish raid in Northern India. In her essay on the
prerequisites for the caste-based ceremonial order of the subcontinent, Thapar asserts that these
conditions
1social andrequire
economic
"inequalities to be legitimised through a theoretically irreversible hierarchy

the imposition of the hierarchy claim to be based on a supernatural authority" order to maintain its
legitimacy. In other words, Thapar has been working for years to undo what cannot be undone.

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 CONCEPT OF ANALYSIS OF THE TWO SOCIOLOGISTS

Indian society was interpreted by both of them, Romila Thapar highlighted the five important aspects
of the Indian society-

i. Religion
ii. Culture
iii. Caste
iv. Agrarian system
v. Polity
1
She discovered that the conflict hereditary communities, or lineage-
between the state
systems, a conflict at the level of in her book From Lineage to State. For instance, if
everyone takes on the roles that their ancestors played, new roles that would improve the contributions
to civilisation are prevented from emerging. She discovered that in the subcontinent, something
liminal
1
started to emerge. She would refer to this as a "transition" persistently exists as unfinished one,
much like a
stuck in an endless tunnel. Her political writings show that such a change
continue
from the freedom of a state to the lineage-based social order has not yet taken place, but rather that the
subcontinent's political history has essentially been in stagnation for millennia as its rulers came and
went.

Whereas, Srinivas explains two basic concepts to understand the Indian society. Such as

a. Book view- the knowledge of religion, caste, family and geographical structure is gained
through sacred texts or from books. This was known the bookish perspective.
b. Field view- Srinivas believed that field work helps one to attain knowledge about the different
regions of Indian Society.

Apart from these two, he also emphasized on the importance of mathematical and statistical
orientation. Through his groundbreaking study on the Coorgs of Mysore in the 1940s, M N Srinivas
helped establish structural functionalism in India. He examined the various cultural components that
strengthen Coorg
2
society. He introduced innovative frameworks for understanding Hindu society in particular and Indian
society in general by challenging the conventional paradigm that was in place at the time and centred
on understanding Indian civilization solely from a textual point of view. Radcliffe Brown and Evans
Pritchard, under whom he had studied sociology in Britain, combined their methods to create MN
Srinivas' structural functionalism. He made use of Pritchard's anthropological field theory and
Brown's structural functionalism. He was also critical of American institutions like the Ford
Foundation for
2
influencing Indian sociology since they were seen as pushing American ideas under the guiseof
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 field. He combined practical research,
sociology a theoretical structural functionalism
allowing him to examine the smallest social units like villages as functional wholes. He introduced
elements of ethnography while studying Coorg civilization through the direct observation approach.
2
His strategy also considered Indological. He established interpretation in framework of the
numerous ritu
practised by while studying them, and he presented the idea of functional
2
oneness. He also discovered how to employ historical analysis to refute the British administrators' claim

t a village a stable unit of self-sufficiency. He believed that the unity of the village was very
important in rural social life and that communities acted as a unifying identity. According to him,
village studies provide a chance to highlight the significance of ethnographic research techniques.

RELEVANCE IN TODAY’S WORLD

The two sociologists have made it easy for us to understand how society worked in ancient times. The
series of social change and the caste system prevailing in those times were somewhat stratified.
Romila Thapar portrayed a rigidly stratified society that continues to exist today with little change.
She also shed some insight on the economic role that religious and social sacrifice rituals had in
directing money and preventing it from accruing to the exclusive benefit of Brahmins and Kshatriyas.
This can be viewed as a number of systems and government programmes that deal with the
redistribution of wealth to those who live below the poverty line or to marginalised groups in society.
In both eras, this resulted in a rise in economic output and a decrease in social inequality. Srinivas on
the other hand explains the term ‘dominant caste’, where he states that the Indian society is a caste-
based society where castes were placed in a hierarchical order. It was further added that the people
believed in status quo- where the Dalits were meant to survive and the higher castes were meant for
royalty. Srinivas emphasised his desire for a transformation in caste, religion, and family that would
be brought about by technological and economic advancement. He also argues for modernity and
westernisation to alter the caste structure. Caste-based riots have occurred in recent times as well.
Conflict continues to surround the caste system in modern times. It is a social structure that has been
handed down via families for many years. Even now, members of lower castes like sweepers are
dominated by the scheduled castes. Srinivas stressed hierarchy, disparities in occupations, etc. The
highest ranks are the Brahmins, the lowest ranks are the untouchables, and the middle ranks are the
most adaptable.

Other aspect as stated by Srinivas which is relevant in recent times being the occupational
differentiation, pollution.

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 a. Occupational distinction is a phenomenon that emerged from the connection between caste
and occupation. Additionally, a lot of castes, such the Lohar, Sunar, etc., get their names from
their profession. This is what led to the occupational hierarchy that has led to the upper class,
middle class, and lower class that we see today.
b. Pollution: Because of pollution, there is a separation between the castes. Srinivas made the
case that the caste shouldn't interact with anything contaminated. For instance, if a member of
a higher caste engages in sexual activity with an untouchable, they may be expelled from their
caste or have to undergo purification. Today, there is still the idea of untouchables.
Relationships between different castes are frowned upon.

INFLUENCE AND CHANGE THROUGH TIME

Romila Thapar further showcases a detailed view on history and how time had influenced the
concepts and traditions. Also highlighted is the appeal of religious ideas. The conflict between the
Brahmins and the Kshatriyas was caused by their social rank and relative power. As a result, the
division of their roles is viewed as the delivery of their partnership. Our past also included the idea of
ideological individualism, which promoted private worship. Romila Thapar discusses The Golden
Age in India, which predated the arrival of the British, and adds that India's ancient past was a
magnificent time in this era of history.

In addition, he worked on the concepts of "Brahminization" and "Sanskritization," which described

how the people in Ancient India were subjected to criticism and racial differentiation. Srinivas gives
us a detailed view of the practises of Ancient India and how Time had Influenced and Raised a Social
Change. Brahminization refers to the process whereby lower-caste Hindus adopt the lifestyles and
ritual practises of Brahmins, gradually changing their own ceremonial practises and way of life in the
process. Sanskritization, on the other hand, was a more general concept that he defined as people
engaging in the rites of any upper caste. Within the confines of Indian customs, it had brought about
modifications. This idea was further set apart from westernisation, which mostly resulted from the
British Raj's arrival. These two ideas were chosen to represent the evolution of social transformation.
 CONCLUSION

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The benefits of sociology include keeping us informed about current events, fostering good
citizenship, assisting in the resolution of social issues, expanding our understanding of
society, assisting individuals in determining their place in society, connecting good
governance with the community, assisting individuals in understanding the root causes of
events, and many other benefits. The individual can benefit from sociology in a practical way
by using it to better understand himself, his capabilities, his limitations, and his place in
society. Indian sociologists have made major contributions to the profession by concentrating
most of their work on the Indian context and exploring the regional customs and rituals.

The sociological work of M.N. Srinivas and Romila Thapar has greatly benefited Indian
society. It has helped to shape the concept of the sociological side of history. We have been
able to follow the events that led to the social transformation thanks to it. The study of Indian
villages has mostly been influenced by M.N. Srinivas' fieldwork and Romila Thapar's idea of
ancient India. Both sociologists' theoretical contributions continue to be a significant course
topic. The evolution of the ideas of Sanskritization, Brahaminization, Westernization, etc.,
has helped to explain how social change in the Indian economy has affected society, resulting
in the modern society that India is today.
Sources overview