Velama
[1] The earliest recorded use of the term "Velama" to refer to a community dates back to the 17th century.In the following century, some held zamindari positions under the kings of Golconda, which gave them considerable power over small regions in Telangana.This emphasis on status and trappings led to rivalries based on recognition of wealth and honors historically granted.Their prestige became such that in the 1870s, their sons were adopted as heirs by rival Velama clan leaders, such as the Pittapores, whose own lineage faced extinction due to infertility or the early death of male children.[4] According to Cynthia Talbot, who has challenged the theories of historians from the British Raj era, the terms Velama and Padmanayaka are not synonymous.