In olden days Charans were much respected, being trusted friends through thick and thin. Whoever caused the death of a Charan was turned out of his caste and treated as infamous and degraded beyond redemption. Charans (men or women), when engaged to attend a traveller, protected him by threatening to kill themselves if any harm befell their client.
Always with the Rajputs, they were found in Mewar, Gujarat, and Marwar. Kings and landlords gave them grants of villages, and various kings also gave them Lakh Pasavs, a large gift equivalent to 100,000 rupees. It usually consisted of elephants, money, and ornaments. The kings would also invite them to occupy a place of esteem in the Royal Courts.
Indeed, a Rajput's regard for a Charan was uppermost. In a procession, a Charan would sit on an elephant and the king would walk in attendance. In return, a Charan would always honour a Rajput, by giving him shelter when the Rajput was in distress. A Charan's status was such that, if anyone who committed murder and took shelter at the house of a Charan, the pursuer would not touch the culprit.While they are considered to be great warriors and extremely loyal citizens, they were equally revered by kings for their taste in literature and love for poetry. Because of their ability to compose poems instantaneously, another popular way of addressing members of the Charan caste is "Kaviraj", which literally means "king among poets".
In between social order of the Rajputs and the status of the Brahmans there is a caste of Charans which exercises a great respectability and influence in Rajasthan. The speciality of the caste is that it combines in its characteristics of Rajputs and Brahmans in an adequate manner.
