Kapu refers to a social grouping of agriculturists found primarily in the southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Kapus are primarily an agrarian community, forming a heterogeneous peasant caste. They are classified as a Forward caste in Andhra Pradesh, where they are the dominant community in the districts of East Godavari and West Godavari. They are distinct from three other Kapu communities that were present in the state prior to its bifurcation with the creation of Telangana in 2014. The Munnuru Kapu are found primarily in Telangana, the Turpu Kapu in the areas of Srikakulam, Vizianagaram and Visakhapatnam, and the Balija in Rayalaseema. The first two of these other three communities are classified as Other Backward Classes. Etymology Kāpu literally means cultivator or agriculturist in Telugu. Various subgroups of Kapus branched off into separate communities in the post-Kakatiya period (Velamas, Panta Kapus and Pakanati Kapus—both of whom got labelled Reddys, and Kapus of Kammanadu—eventually labelled Kammas). The remaining Kapus continue to use the original label. All the cultivator caste clusters have a common ancestry in the legends. According to Cynthia Talbot, the transformation of occupational identities as caste labels occurred in the late Vijayanagara period (17th century) or later. Status The Kapu are considered to be a Sat-Shudra community in the traditional Hindu ritual ranking system known as varna. The Kapu have been described by Srinivasulu as a "dominant peasant caste in coastal Andhra", with the Telaga listed as "a backward peasant caste" and the Balija as a peasant caste who hold Lingayat beliefs. Srinisavulu has analysed the 1921 census of India to cause alignment with the present-day state and classification system, from which he concludes that Kapus (including Reddys) amounted to around 17 percent of the state's then population and were regarded as a Forward caste, whilst the Balija and Telaga were regarded as Backward castes, comprising 3 percent and 5 percent of the 1921 population, respectively. Srinivasulu notes that the Reddys and Kammas are the politically dominant communities of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, and that the Kapus are among a group with lesser but still significant influence, despite their small population. They are particularly effective in the districts of East Godavari and West Godavari, although Srinivasulu notes that "The Kapus of the coastal districts are distinct from the Munnur Kapus of Telangana. While the former are fairly prosperous, the political emergence of the latter, who are