The African community of Siddis left their homeland to settle in India back in the 7th century. There is an African origin community that has lived here for so long they're as Indian as one could be. Southeast Africa consists of approximately three million people of Indian origin. Also known as Siddhi, Habshi or Makrani, this ethnic group has descended from the Bantu peoples of Southeast Africa. In 1987, the Sports Authority of India started the Special Area Games Scheme that focused exclusively on training budding athletes from the Siddi community.

Source: India Today June 11, 2016 11:37 UTC