 "Fashion Police: Amid Kolhapuri scandal row, Italian luxury brand Prada arrives Kolhapur - here's why")
Italian luxury brand Prada’s four members visited in Maharashtra’s Kolhapur to understand the craft of making the Kolhapuri chappal on Tuesday and Wednesday.
The team of Paolo Tiveron, director of the men’s technical and production department — footwear division; Daniele Contu, pattern-making manager — footwear division; and external consultants Andrea Pollastrelli and Roberto Pollastrelli had an online meeting with executives from the Maharashtra Chamber of Commerce, Industry & Agriculture (MACCIA) prior to their visit.
On their second day visit, the team toured 4 clusters in and around Kolhapur, which included, Subhash Nagar, Jawahar Nagar, Kandalgaon, and Kagal village. The latter is the home to a cluster of women artisans.
This visit from members came after garnering backlash during the showcasing of Prada’s Spring/Summer 2026 collection in the Milan Fashion Week last month, which featured their models wearing footwear resembling Kolhapuri Chappals and was priced at around Rs 1 lakh. Prada faced severe criticism for not giving credit to India as the source of inspiration.
Talking about the visit, Lalit Gandhi, president of MACCIA, told Business Standard, “The team from Prada has been in India for the last two days to evaluate our production facilities. While their standards are very different from ours, they will return to Italy and issue a report on the same.”
MACCIA had written to Prada regarding the use of the Kolhapuri chappal in its fashion week in June, to which the Italian company replied, “We acknowledge that the sandals featured in the recent Prada Men’s 2026 Fashion Show are inspired by traditional Indian handcrafted footwear with a centuries-old heritage. We deeply recognise the cultural significance of such Indian craftsmanship.”
“We are committed to responsible design practices, fostering cultural engagement, and opening a dialogue for meaningful exchange with local Indian artisan communities —as we have done in past collections— to ensure rightful recognition of their craft,” the letter further said.
Bollywood celebs showcasing their support for traditional Kolhapuri Chappals
Kareena Kapoor Khan and Neena Gupta, both actresses, took to social media to showcase their own Kolhapuri chappals amid the controversy around Prada’s “Toe Ring Sandals” design. The Metro…Inn Dino actress even shared a video of her handmade Kolhapuris, gifted by the late actor Laxmikant Berde and recounted the story behind this gift.
With inputs from PTI
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