{{Short description|Banjara community in India}} The '''Kolhati''' are an Indian nomadic community that form a subgroup of the Banjara people.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Satya|first=Laxman D.|title=Colonial Sedentarization and Subjugation: The Case of Banjaras of Berar, 1850-1900|journal=The Journal of Peasant Studies |volume=24 |issue=4|year=1997 |doi=10.1080/03066159708438653 |pages=317-318 <!--314–336-->}}</ref> They belong to central India and Maharashtra. They traditionally are professional entertainers and acrobats. They are classified as a nomadic tribe by the government of Maharashtra.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=54gyRnhIugkC&pg=PA385|title=Peoples on the Move: Introducing the Nomads of the World|last=Phillips|first=David J.|date=2001-01-01|publisher=William Carey Library|isbn=9780878083527|language=en}}</ref> They have also been employed with tamasha troupes.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.livemint.com/Leisure/jqc5GcWGbN826l9DVTn9FM/Know-your-Lavani.html|title=Know your Lavani|last=Ratnam|first=Dhamini|date=2016-11-29|newspaper=Livemint|access-date=2016-12-19}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.mid-day.com/articles/tune-into-the-world-of-traditional-lavani/16170180|title=Tune into the world of traditional Lavani|newspaper=mid-day|access-date=2016-12-19}}</ref> The kolhati language is spoken in considerable numbers in Pune district. Kolhati lavani-tamasha performers have got social prestige from the patronage of the art form by the Maharashtra state government,<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.thehindu.com/books/books-reviews/courtesans-bar-girls-and-dancing-boys-book-review/article6281126.ece|title=Dancing on the fringes: the shadowy world of courtesans|last=Kakodkar|first=Priyanka|newspaper=The Hindu|access-date=2016-12-19}}</ref> and is vital to their identity as performing artists according to Morcom.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nshUAgAAQBAJ&pg=PT87|title=Courtesans, Bar Girls & Dancing Boys: The Illicit Worlds of Indian Dance|last=Morcom|first=Anna|date=2014-02-07|publisher=Hachette India|isbn=9789350097939|language=en}}</ref>
== References == <references /> Category:Social groups of Maharashtra Category:Tribes of India Category:Banjara people