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First Post
18 hours ago
- Business
- First Post
Fashion Police: Amid Kolhapuri scandal row, Italian luxury brand Prada arrives Kolhapur - here's why
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 read more 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. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD On their second day visit, the team toured
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Business Standard
a day ago
- Business
- Business Standard
After global misstep, Italian luxury brand Prada walks into Kolhapur
A four-member team from Italian luxury brand Prada visited Kolhapur in Maharashtra on Tuesday and Wednesday to understand the craft of making the Kolhapuri chappal. The team included 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. Prior to their visit, the team had an online meeting on July 11 with executives from the Maharashtra Chamber of Commerce, Industry & Agriculture (MACCIA). During their two-day visit, the team toured four clusters in and around Kolhapur where Kolhapuri chappals are made, including Subhash Nagar, Jawahar Nagar, Kandalgaon, and Kagal village — the last of which is home to a cluster of women artisans. The visit comes in the wake of a controversy surrounding Prada's Spring/Summer 2026 collection, which featured models wearing footwear resembling Kolhapuri chappals during Milan Fashion Week last month. The sandals, priced at around ~1 lakh, drew backlash for failing to credit India as the source of inspiration. '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,' Lalit Gandhi, president of MACCIA, told Business Standard. Gandhi added that, if all goes well, Prada's business team will visit Mumbai in August to discuss how to move the proposal forward. MACCIA has also recommended that Prada consider adding four more Maharashtra-origin products to its catalogue, including traditional jewellery from the region. In June, MACCIA had written to Prada regarding the use of the Kolhapuri chappal in its fashion show. In response, Prada said: '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.' The letter further said: '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 collection s— to ensure rightful recognition of their craft.' Separately, the Bombay High Court on Wednesday dismissed a public interest litigation filed against Prada for its alleged use of the Kolhapuri chappal design. The plea had argued that the chappal is protected as a Geographical Indication under the Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act. (With inputs from PTI)
India Today
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- India Today
Prada team visits Kolhapur, meet local artisans after Kolhapuri sandals row
Days after facing criticism for showcasing Kolhapuri-style leather slippers without proper credit, a team from Italian fashion house Prada arrived in Kolhapur on Tuesday to learn about the history and craftsmanship behind the iconic Kolhapuri Gandhi, Maharashtra Chamber of Commerce, Industry & Agriculture, told India Today TV, 'A few days ago, Prada held a fashion show in Milan, Italy, where Kolhapuri slippers were featured. However, Prada described them merely as leather garments, without acknowledging their origin.'advertisementFollowing the backlash, six senior representatives from Prada, including Paolo Tiveron, the director of the men's technical and production department (footwear division), Daniele Contu, pattern-making manager of the footwear division, Andrea Pollastrelli and Roberto Pollastrelli, visited Kolhapur to gain a better understanding of the traditional craft. 'They assured that such a mistake would not be repeated in the future. Furthermore, the Prada representatives promised to help give Kolhapuri slippers rightful recognition on a global scale,' Gandhi team visited the Jawahar Nagar area, known for producing traditional Kolhapuri footwear, and interacted with local artisans including Shubham Satpute, Balu Gawli, Arun Satpute, Sunil Lokre and Balasaheb the recent Milan Fashion Week, at least seven of Prada's Spring/Summer 2026 looks featured models wearing Kolhapuri-style slippers. These were priced at around Rs 1.2 lakh each but were not referred to by their original name or cultural roots, causing outrage in experts called the lack of credit a serious oversight. Kolhapuri chappals have held Geographical Indication (GI) status in India since 2019, recognising their unique heritage and regional also said, 'The state government is being urged to take steps to protect the reputation and popularity of Kolhapuri slippers.' Earlier, the Maharashtra Chamber of Commerce, Industry & Agriculture had written to Prada, raising concerns about cultural appropriation and the lack of response, Prada said it would work towards 'responsible design practices, fostering cultural engagement, and opening a dialogue for a meaningful exchange with local Indian artisan communities.'Furthermore, earlier last week, Prada expressed interest in launching a limited-edition "Made in India" Kolhapuri-inspired collection in partnership with Indian artisans.- EndsTrending Reel IN THIS STORY#Maharashtra
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First Post
29-06-2025
- Entertainment
- First Post
Luxury brand Prada acknowledges inspiration from Indian craftsmen and Kolhapuri footwear at their show in Milan after massive online backlash; here's what happened
In their statement, the brand said 'Prada acknowledges that sandals inspired by traditional Indian footwear made in specific districts in Maharashtra and Karnataka, India, were featured in its Men's 2026 Spring Summer show in Milan.' read more Luxury brand Prada was under social media scrutiny after the footwear they unveiled at their Spring/Summer 2026 show in Milan was inspired by the Kolhapuri chappals designed by Indian artisans and craftsmen. And the fashion brand failed to give them their due credit. These footwears are primarily designed in the states of Maharashtra and Karnataka. In their official statement, the brand was quoted saying, 'Prada acknowledges that sandals inspired by traditional Indian footwear made in specific districts in Maharashtra and Karnataka, India, were featured in its Men's 2026 Spring Summer show in Milan. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD We are committed to responsible design practices, fostering cultural engagement, and opening a dialogue for a meaningful exchange with local Indian artisan communities as we have done in the past in other collections to ensure the rightful recognition of their craft. We are in contact with the Maharashtra Chamber of Commerce, Industry &Agriculture on this topic.' Netizens react One said, 'This is not called inspiration it's called rebranding that's it. The designs used by Prada are not theirs it's a very old design more than a 1000 yrs old.' A second said, 'What the hell inspired they are kolhapuris and this is violation of our IP.' What next for Prada? Sant Rohidas Leather Industries & Charmakar Development Corporation (LIDCOM), which shares geographical indication (GI) certification for Kolhapuri chappals with Karnataka's LIDKAR, is taking the legal route after the blunder on the brand's part.
