Burmese Indians are from an array of ethnic backgrounds. There are Tamils, Telugu, Marwaris as well as Bengalis. Prior to the expulsion of Indians, there were also Oriyas, Punjabis, Gujarati speaking Parsis, and Gujaratis proper. All can and were able to communicate in Burmese, due to years of assimilation and lack of education in languages other than English. Other languages used by Burmese Indians include Tamil and Telugu.