Varna Status
The varna designation of Reddys is a contested and complex topic. Even after the introduction of the varna concept to south India, caste boundaries in south India were not as marked as in north India, where the four-tier varna system placed the priestly Brahmins on top followed by the Kshatriyas, Vaishyas, and Shudras. In south India, on the other hand, there existed only three distinguishable classes, the Brahmins, the non-Brahmins and the Dalits. The two intermediate dvija varnas, Kshatriyas and Vaishyas did not exist.
The ruling castes of south India such as Reddys and Nairs held a status in society analogous to the Kshatriyas and Vaishyas of the north with the difference that religion did not sanctify them i.e. they were not accorded the status of Kshatriyas and Vaishyas by the Brahmins in the Brahmanical varna system. Historically, land-owning castes like the Reddys have belonged to the regal ruling classes and are analogous to the Kshatriyas of the Brahmanical society.
The Brahmins, on top of the hierarchical social order, viewed the ruling castes of the south like the Reddys, Nairs and Vellalars as sat-Shudras meaning shudras of "true being”. Sat-shudras are also known as clean shudras, upper shudras, pure or high-caste shudras. This classification and the four-tier varna concept was never accepted by the ruling castes and the latter challenged the authority of the Brahmins who described them as shudras.
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