India: A maharaja riding an elephant, mural on a wall in Udaipur, Rajasthan. Rajput (from Sanskrit raja-putra, 'son of a king') is a member of one of the patrilineal clans of western, central, northern India and some parts of Pakistan. They claim to be descendants of ruling Hindu warrior classes of North India. Rajputs rose to prominence during the 6th to 12th centuries. Until the 20th century, Rajputs ruled in the overwhelming majority of the princely states of Rajasthan and Surashtra, where the largest number of princely states were found.