Manushi Chhillar has been crowned Miss World 2017 in China this weekend. Her surname is the most-talked-about feature of her victory, thanks to Sashi Tharoor's tweet punning on her surname immediately after her victory.
Here are some facts about Chhillar, the surname, and it is pronounced with a 'Ch 'as in chatri, or temple, in Hindi. However, Manushi pronounces her surname 'shillar' with an anglicized twang.
- Chhillar, Chhikara, Dalal and a few other surnames refer to Jat gotras, or exogamous groups (people who marry outside social groups), who live in Haryana, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Gujarat and Rajasthan.
- The current Chhillar Khap pradhan in Haryana is Balwan Singh Chhillar. There is a Khap for almost every gotra among Jats.
- Chillar gotra members in Haryana live mostly in Bahadurgarh tehsil and Rohtak district. Their villages include Kheri, Bamnoli, Ladrawan and Barahi.
- This year has been a violent one in Bahadurgarh, especially for the pradhans and sarpanches of the area. In a series of shoot-outs, they have been killed due to mutual rivalry and business conflicts. The region has a high crime rate in general.
- For 112 years, the Jats belonging to Chhillar and Chhikara gotra did not socially interact with each other in Haryana's Jhajjhar and Bahadurgarh regions. This changed in 2015 when a 'settlement' was worked out by both sides. They have now resumed 'bhaichara' or close relationships.
- The compromise by the communities spells doom for young Chhillar couples seeking to marry Chhikara Jats and vice versa. One result of resumed 'bhaichara' is that they would not allow marriage between the two communities. This was already 'prohibited', technically, but there have been some inter-marriages.
- Now such marriages will be considered as between nieces and nephews, while parents of such couples would be considered brothers and sisters. Thus the community would try to impose penalties for intermarriages between Chhillars and Chhikaras.
- Manushi Chhillar is perhaps the very first Chhillar woman from Haryana to make a mark on the world--or even national--stage. Among men, recently, two kabaddi world champs, Mohit and Manjeet, who got their titles in 2016.
