Kolhapuri chappals are Indian decorative hand-crafted and braided leather slippers that are locally tanned using vegetable dyes. Kolhapuri Chappals or Kolhapuris as they are commonly referred to are a style of open-toed, T-strap sandal, but also braided leather Mules or braided leather shoe type designs are also common.
The origin of Kolhapuri Chappals dates back to 12th century when the King Bijjala and his prime minister Basavanna encouraged Kolhapuri Chappal production to support local cobblers. According to historic records, Kolhapuris were first worn as early as the 13th century. Previously known as Kapashi, Paytaan, Kachkadi, Bakkalnali, and Pukri, the name indicated the village where they were made. [1]
Shahu I of Kolhapur (and his successor Rajaram III) encouraged Kolhapuri Chappal industry and 29 tanning centres were opened during his rule. [2] [3]
In July 2019 Kolhapuri chappals got a geographical indication tag from the Controller General of Patents, Designs & Trade Marks. These chappals were first made in Kolhapur but artisans from Karnataka are also involved in making Kolhapuri chappals for centuries. Districts such as Kolhapur, Sangli, Satara and Solapur districts of Maharashtra as well as Bagalkot, Belgavi, Dharwad and Bijapur district of Karnataka will only be able to carry the tag of "Kolhapuri chappal". [2] [4] [5]
It can take up to six weeks to make a pair of Kolhapuris. [6] Originally made from buffalo-hide and thread, they weighed as much as 2.01 kilos because of the thickness of the sole, which made them durable despite the extreme heat and mountainous terrain found in the state of Maharashtra. [7]
For making Kolhapuri Chappal various operations are done step by step like skiving, pattern making and cutting, attachment of upper and bottom heels, stitching, finishing, punching and Trimming, decoration and Polishing, and assembling.[ citation needed ] Kolhapuri chappals are known to last a lifetime if maintained well and not used in rainy seasons.
In 2020, the total business market was estimated at around ₹9 crore, with over 10,000 artisans working in Kolhapur. Of the total six lakh pairs produced annually, 30% were exported. [8] The designs have moved from the ethnic to ones with more utilitarian value and materials from primal hard materials to softer and more comfortable to wear materials. The artisans themselves designed ethnic patterns and sold, but today the traders and businessmen with demand for cheap products drive the requirement of minimalist designs.[ citation needed ]
In recent decades, the business has struggled for survival with market decline, low profits, irregular leather supply, duplicates & fakes, environmental regulations on tanneries, cow slaughter ban, among other issues. [9] [10] [11] [12]
In the seventies, with the Hippie movement Kolhapuri chappals became a very popular footwear in the United States. The success faded out and recently came back influencing now models that are called toe ring sandals. [13] [14] A French brand called CHAPPAL exports these traditional sandals in various colors and with a feminine design to France to make it popular in that country. [15]
A shoe is an item of footwear intended to protect and comfort the human foot. Though the human foot can adapt to varied terrains and climate conditions, it is vulnerable, and shoes provide protection. Form was originally tied to function but over time shoes also became fashion items. Some shoes are worn as safety equipment, such as steel-toe boots, which are required footwear at industrial worksites.
Footwear refers to garments worn on the feet, which typically serve the purpose of protection against adversities of the environment such as wear from rough ground; stability on slippery ground; and temperature.
Kolhapur is a city on the banks of the Panchganga River in the southern part of the Indian state of Maharashtra.
Clogs are a type of footwear made in part or completely from wood. Used in many parts of the world, their forms can vary by culture, but often remained unchanged for centuries within a culture.
Flip-flops are a type of light sandal-like shoe, typically worn as a form of casual footwear. They consist of a flat sole held loosely on the foot by a Y-shaped strap known as a toe thong that passes between the first and second toes and around both sides of the foot. This style of footwear has been worn by people of many cultures throughout the world, originating as early as the ancient Egyptians in 1,500 B.C. In the United States the modern flip-flop may have had its design taken from the traditional Japanese zōri, after World War II as soldiers brought them back from Japan.
Zori, also rendered as zōri, are thonged Japanese sandals made of rice straw, cloth, lacquered wood, leather, rubber, or—most commonly and informally—synthetic materials. They are a slip-on descendant of the tied-on waraji sandal.
Waraji are light tie-on sandals, made from ropemaking fibers, that were the standard footwear of the common people in Japan.
The juti or jutti is a type of footwear common in North India, Pakistan, and neighboring regions. They are traditionally made up of leather and with extensive embroidery, in real gold and silver thread as inspired by royalty in the subcontinent over 400 years ago. Prior to that, Rajputs of the northwest used to wear leather juttis, also called ethnic shoes. Now with changing times, different juttis with rubber soles are made available.Today Amritsar and Patiala are important trade centers for handcrafted juttis, from where they are exported all over the world to Punjabi diaspora. Closely related to mojaris. Jutis have evolved into several localized design variations, even depending upon the shoemaker. However by large, they have no left or right distinction, and over time take the shape of the foot. They usually have flat sole, and are similar in design for both women and men, except for men they have a sharp extended tip, nokh curved upwards like traditional moustaches, and are also called khussa, and some women’s jutis are backless. Even with changing times jutis have remained part of ceremonial attire, especially at North Indian weddings, the unembellished juttis are used for everyday use for both men and women in most of Punjab, mostly called Jalsa Jutti which is blackish in color.
Kolhapur district is a district in the Maharashtra state of India. The city of Kolhapur is its district headquarter. It is situated near Panchaganga river.
Channapatana is a city and taluk headquarters in Ramanagara District, Karnataka, India. Channapatna is approximately 60kms from Bangalore and 80kms from Mysore. The Kannadiga film actor Kishore was born here in 1974.
Gadhinglaj ([ɡəɖᵊɦiŋɡləd͡z]) is a city in India in the Kolhapur district in the southwest corner of the state of Maharashtra, India. It is located on the banks of the river Hiranyakeshi. It is the Taluka (Tehsil) headquarters of Gadhinglaj Taluka and a subdivision headquarters of the Gadhinglaj Subdivision of the Kolhapur District. It is governed by a municipal council. The rapidly growing city is the third largest in the Kolhapur District, with population of more than 50,000. Places to visit like Samagad fort, temples and beautiful weather.
Huaraches are a type of Mexican sandal, Pre-Columbian in origin.
Athani is a town in the Belagavi district of Karnataka, India. It is 140 kilometers from the city of Belagavi, 70 kilometers from Vijayapura, 55 kilometers from Miraj, 100 kilometers from Kolhapur, and 624 kilometers from Bengaluru.
Sindhi Mojari is a type of handcrafted footwear produced in the Indian subcontinent. They are traditionally made by artisans mostly using tanned leather. The uppers are made of one piece of leather or textile embroidered and embellished with brass nails, cowry shells, mirrors, bells and ceramic beads. The bonding from the upper to the sole is done by cotton thread that is eco-friendly and enmeshes the leather fibers to strengthen the bonds. Some product range also uses bright and ornate threads.
Madabhavi is a large village located in Athani taaluk of Belagavi district, Karnataka state of India. The village is famous for the production of leather chappals, which have main market in Kolhapur. The village name comes from "Madya" meaning central and "Bhavi" meaning an open well. The open well is situated near panchayat of the village. Kalbhairava and Madhukeshwar are two ancient temples in this village.
The Peshawari chappal is a traditional type of footwear of Pashtuns, worn especially by Pashtuns in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa region. The shoe takes its name from the city of Peshawar, where it originates. While chappal is the word for flip-flops or sandals in Urdu, locals in Peshawar call the Peshawari Tsaplay. The shoes are worn by men casually or formally, usually with the shalwar kameez. Because of their comfort, they are worn in place of sandals or slippers in Pakistan.
A Solapur chaddar, is a cotton blanket made in the Solapur city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. These blankets are popular in India where they are manufactured, previously by hand loom but now by Jacquard machine and are known for their unique design and durability. Solapuri chaddars were the first product of Solapur, in Maharashtra, to obtain Geographical Indication (GI) status.
Santiniketan Leather Goods are leather products made in Santiniketan and surrounding villages near Kolkata, West Bengal, India. The material used is vegetable tanned leather with art work done by touch dyeing. Its artistic leather bags are popular in foreign markets and are exported to many countries including Japan and the U.S. They are generally made of E. I. Leather from sheepskin and goatskin.
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