Breast tax

Common card · No. 206206

Mulakkaram, literally translated as breast tax, was a head tax imposed on women belonging to Nadar, Ezhava and other lower caste communities by the erstwhile Kingdom of Tranvancore (in present-day Kerala state of India), and was not applicable to upper caste women of Travancore. The term "breast tax" was used to denote the gender of the person and not breasts per se. According to subaltern beliefs, the breast tax was imposed on lower-caste women if they covered their breasts. This belief has been questioned, as lower-caste women were not allowed to wear upper garments in public at all until 1859.

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