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Brahmin marriage biodata format: gotra, pravara, veda and a full sample
Brahmin families across India use the same basic biodata as everyone else, but often add a few lines the other family’s elders look for: sub-community, gotra, sometimes pravara and veda, and fuller horoscope details. Here is how to write each one clearly, with regional examples and a complete sample.
- Add sub-community, gotra and horoscope details as your family uses them — none is compulsory.
- Pravara, veda, shakha and sutra are optional; include them only if elders know them for certain.
- State diet precisely: “Vegetarian, no onion or garlic at home” says more than “pure veg”.
- One short invocation line at the top is enough.
The sections in order
| Section | What to include |
|---|---|
| Invocation line | One line your family uses, such as “॥ श्री गणेशाय नमः ॥” or “Sri Gurubhyo Namaha” |
| Personal details | Name, date of birth, height, mother tongue, marital status, city, diet |
| Community & lineage | Sub-community, gotra; optionally pravara, veda, shakha, sutra, kuladevata |
| Horoscope | Time and place of birth, rashi, nakshatra with charan, lagna, manglik or dosham status |
| Education & career | Degree and institution, job, employer, city, income range |
| Family | Parents with occupations, siblings, native place, family type |
| About me | Three or four sentences in your own voice |
| Partner preferences | Age range, education, community preference if any, location |
| Contact | A parent’s name and number |
Everything else about the page — one A4 sheet, one photo, a PDF — is the same as any biodata. The basics are in how to make a marriage biodata.
Writing the sub-community
Families often write the specific group rather than just “Brahmin”, because language, food, rituals and wedding customs differ from region to region. The table below shows examples of what families in different states commonly write. It is illustrative, not complete, and no group is ranked above another.
| Region | Examples families write |
|---|---|
| Tamil Nadu | Iyer (Vadama, Brahacharanam, Vathima), Iyengar (Vadakalai, Thenkalai) |
| Karnataka | Smartha, Madhwa, Havyaka, Hoysala Karnataka |
| Maharashtra | Deshastha (Rigvedi or Yajurvedi), Kokanastha (Chitpavan), Karhade |
| Konkan and coastal Karnataka | Gaud Saraswat, Chitrapur Saraswat |
| Andhra Pradesh and Telangana | Vaidiki, Niyogi |
| Kerala | Namboodiri |
| Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh | Kanyakubja, Saryupareen |
| Bihar | Maithil |
| Gujarat | Audichya, Modh |
| Odisha | Utkala |
If sub-community does not matter to your family, write “Brahmin” and add “sub-caste no bar” in partner preferences.
Gotra and pravara
Gotra is the paternal lineage, traced to a rishi. A woman’s gotra on her biodata is her father’s. Many families avoid a match within the same gotra (sagotra), which is why this line is read early. Some also ask for the mother’s gotra before marriage; add it only if your family checks it.
Pravara is the list of rishis — usually one, three or five — associated with a gotra, recited during rituals. Some families match on pravara as well as gotra.
Example
Gotra: Bharadwaja · Pravara: Angirasa, Barhaspatya, Bharadvaja
Example with maternal gotra
Gotra: Kashyap · Mother’s gotra: Vatsa
If you are not sure of the pravara, ask an elder or the family priest rather than copying it from a website. It is part of the abhivadaye taught at upanayana, so a father or grandfather who had one will usually know it.
Veda, shakha and sutra
These are optional and more common on biodatas from South India and Maharashtra. They record which Veda the family follows, its recension (shakha) and the ritual manual (sutra). Include them only if your family knows them.
Tamil Iyer family
Veda: Krishna Yajurveda · Shakha: Taittiriya · Sutra: Apastamba
Deshastha Rigvedi family
Veda: Rigveda · Shakha: Shakala · Sutra: Ashvalayana
Families in Maharashtra, Goa and Karnataka also commonly write their kuladevata, for example “Kuladevata: Shri Mahalakshmi, Kolhapur”.
Horoscope details
Many Brahmin families match horoscopes, so the section tends to be fuller than on other biodatas. Get the time of birth from the birth certificate or hospital record, not from memory.
| Field | Example |
|---|---|
| Date, time, place of birth | 11 August 1994, 5:18 AM, Thanjavur |
| Rashi / raasi | Kadagam (Cancer) |
| Nakshatra and charan | Punarpoosam, padam 4 |
| Lagna | Kadagam |
| Manglik / chevvai dosham | No |
| Dasa balance (common in Tamil families) | Guru dasa, 2 years 7 months |
Keep the full kundli or jathagam as a separate file to send on request. More detail is in horoscope details in a biodata and biodata with jathagam.
Diet and practice
Most families expect a vegetarian diet line, but “vegetarian” covers a lot. Write what you actually follow:
Examples
Vegetarian · Vegetarian, eats eggs · Vegetarian, no onion or garlic at home · Vegetarian at home, occasionally non-vegetarian outside
Practices are optional and should only appear if they are true and matter to you — for example “Performs sandhyavandanam daily” or “Trained in Carnatic music and Vedic chanting”. Do not add them to sound traditional; a family that cares about them will ask.
The invocation line at the top
Use the line your family puts on wedding invitations. One line, centred, small — it should not compete with the name.
| Line | Commonly used by |
|---|---|
| ॥ श्री गणेशाय नमः ॥ / Shri Ganeshaya Namah | Families across North and West India, and many others |
| ॥ श्री ॥ / Shree | Maharashtrian and Gujarati families, among others |
| Sri Rama Jayam | Many Tamil and Telugu families |
| Srimathe Ramanujaya Namaha | Sri Vaishnava (Iyengar) families |
| Om Namah Shivaya / Sri Gurubhyo Namaha | Families who follow a Shaiva tradition or a particular guru |
Sample Brahmin marriage biodata
Sri Gurubhyo Namaha · Biodata — Karthik Ramanathan
Personal details
| Date of birth | 11 August 1994 |
| Height | 5′ 10″ |
| Marital status | Never married |
| Mother tongue | Tamil |
| Diet | Vegetarian |
| Lives in | Hyderabad |
Community & lineage
| Community | Iyer (Vadama) |
| Gotra | Bharadwaja |
| Pravara | Angirasa, Barhaspatya, Bharadvaja |
| Veda / sutra | Krishna Yajurveda, Apastamba sutra |
Horoscope
| Time & place of birth | 5:18 AM, Thanjavur |
| Star | Punarpoosam, padam 4 |
| Raasi | Kadagam |
| Lagnam | Kadagam |
| Dosham | None |
| Dasa balance | Guru dasa, 2 years 7 months |
Education & career
| Education | B.Tech (CSE), NIT Tiruchirappalli · MS (Computer Science), University of Texas at Austin |
| Occupation | Senior Software Engineer, Microsoft India Development Center, Hyderabad |
| Income | ₹38 – 45 Lakh per annum |
Family
| Father | R. Ramanathan — retired Deputy General Manager, BHEL Tiruchirappalli |
| Mother | Lalitha Ramanathan — teaches Carnatic vocal music at home |
| Siblings | One elder sister, married, chartered accountant in Chennai |
| Native place | Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu |
| Family type | Nuclear |
About me
| I work on cloud storage systems in Hyderabad and enjoy explaining technical problems simply. I learnt mridangam as a boy and still play at family functions. Weekends go to cricket, long walks and cooking the Thanjavur meals I grew up on. I value honesty, calm conversation and staying close to both families. |
Partner preferences
| Age 26–30, graduate or above, from a Brahmin family (sub-sect no bar), different gotra. Vegetarian. Working or not, as she prefers. Hyderabad, Bengaluru or Chennai. |
Contact
| Father | R. Ramanathan — 94XXXXXX52 |
Sample only — all names, dates and numbers are invented.
Partner preferences and language
Open
Age 26–30, graduate or above, from a Brahmin family (sub-caste no bar). Vegetarian. India, preferably South India.
Specific
Age 25–29, postgraduate, from an Iyer or Iyengar family, different gotra. Open to relocating to Bengaluru.
Broad
Age 27–32, well-educated, vegetarian, from a family with similar values; community no bar.
Leave out complexion and anything about the other family’s wealth. English works for most Brahmin biodatas, but elders in Tamil, Kannada, Marathi or Hindi-speaking families often prefer their own language; it helps to keep both versions. The Marriage Biodata Maker app has Ganesh, Shree, Om and Kalash emblems and supports 13 languages including Tamil, Kannada, Telugu, Marathi and Hindi.
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Last updated 25 September 2026 · Biodata for Marriage team
Frequently asked questions
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