“A smart merchant will never openly discriminate against a rich merchant, no matter the caste, though both of them will surely discriminate against the poor peasant, no matter the caste.”

While debates have erupted over the issue of caste reservation — its necessity in today’s modern India and its modification — a new form of discrimination, rooted in the very essence of casteism, is now proliferating in the heart of the urban culture of this democratic nation. Caste discrimination is not limited to rural settings it takes its place in government and elite settings as well, however honour killings, stigma against inter caste marriages, and caste driven rapes are now not the only issue at hand but to add on to the intensity of situation the glass sheet of class has been installed to keep the poor far from the areas of the rich but near enough to make some middle aged rich people feel human again and teach their kids the importance of giving back to the society.

What is the New Varna System of the Modern Man?

In densely packed concrete jungles, discriminating based on caste comes with a huge risk. Most often, people have begun to ignore the concept of caste in some morally progressive societies. But how does man now decide who holds supreme power, who are the top lords, and where the underdogs stay? While the dream of puncturing the casteist propaganda remains miles away, class has become the new resort to establish superiority.

It rarely comes as a shock when we ponder the issue of socio-economic divides in a capitalist society. Yet, what grabs the attention of the urban revolutionary — sitting in his air-conditioned office behind a screen — is not how the blue-collar and white-collar employees not only have different dress codes but also different mugs to drink coffee, but rather how the manager did not thank him after he sent the right email on time.

A company with its values embedded in class decides who is the rightful employee to drink from an organic, china mug worth twelve hundred rupees, and who drinks the “same coffee” (a symbol of equality) from a steel glass.

However, offices are not where classism is taught; to learn that, we send our children to fancy schools. Education is a right — but only for the children whose parents are privileged enough to read and write this sentence. And if they do so in English, it adds a cherry on top for the school board, which stays impressed not with the students but with the guardians boasting political connections, heavy pockets, and extravagant vocabulary.

A school trip to Japan or an “educational fair” in Spain sounds like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity — and if your parents are at the top of the social pyramid, congratulations! You’re eligible to enjoy this opportunity multiple times. What you pay for is what you get — easy and simple. But sometimes, when you pay an equal fee, you get something extra: a sense of exclusion — learned very early in your schooling days — which seats are yours, and where the classmates with fancy lunch meals and personal chauffeurs sit.

From schools to offices to households, a nurse is not equal to a doctor, a maid can never sit beside her madame, and a child without an iPad is not welcome in group study sessions. These rules are not written in any Manusmriti, nor are they spoken of in public, but all the kings and pawns are aware of what move to make — and exactly how many steps they are allowed to take.

This modern Varna is simple: if you are a rich, heterosexual man, likely from the general caste, you belong to the elite group by birthright of man. But if you are not any of these — and just rich — you can still be accommodated somewhere, unless you act like “your people” do.

Politics in Play, Politicians in Action

The Bihar elections of 2025 are right at the doorstep, and party heads are searching for poor, Dalit families to invite into their homes for a “simple” and “grounded” meal — of course, accompanied by a few photographs promoting brotherhood and the end of class divides in an already casteist society, where who wins the election race depends largely on their father’s surname.

Speaking of fathers, some once used their caste assertion to start a movement to bring light into darkness, but only for that light to flicker shortly, while their privileged children developed disdain toward the poor, confusing it with hatred for poverty. No matter Dalit or a Brahmin, all castes will be hated alike until you smell of Dior Sauvage. Conditions apply.

Poverty is the initiator of hate from the rich, but the killer of division amongst the poor. Bihar seems to have grown; the youth are taking over. And this time, the aroma of fish fry, mutton rogan josh, and biryani might not be enough to impress the young voters.

Finding the Ouroboros’ End

Caste and class are partners in crime — they always show up in pairs and have each other’s backs. Separating one from the other is neither possible nor practical. To understand the reality of social division in the Indian context, the intersectionality of class in caste (and vice versa) must be understood. Not all Scheduled Castes stand at the same level in the social hierarchy — there are divisions within divisions: higher SCs and lower SCs, rich STs and poor STs. This cycle will never break until the wheel is destroyed from the centre through literacy and love.

Will the social stigma ever end? Is Generation Z unaware of such customs — or equally interested in stepping into their ancestors’ shoes? Time will tell, as it always does. Since Partition, we have come a long way, but the way ahead is still too long. Much remains to be achieved. Social divisions cannot simply be erased; they must be dismantled, not from offices reaching the skies, but from the grassroots. 

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