Prada's take on Kolhapur sandals riles artisans

Indian footwear sellers and artisans are tapping into national-ist pride stoked by the Prada 'sandal scandal' in a bid to boost sales of ethnic slippers with history dating back to the 12th century, raising hopes of reviving a struggling craft.

- DHWANI PANDYA ARPAN CHATURVEDI ELISA ANZOLIN

Sales are surging over the past week for the 'Kolhapuri' sandals that have garnered global attention after Prada sparked a controversy by showcasing similar designs in Milan, without ini-tially crediting the footwear's origins.

After viral photos from a fashion show drew criticism from Indian artisans who make the sandals — named after a his-toric city in Maharashtra state — Prada was forced to acknowledge that its new open-toe footwear was inspired by ancient Indian designs.

"Prada 0: Kolhapur 1," said an Ins-tagram post by e-commerce website Shopkop, whose founder Rahul Parasu Kamble's open letter to Prada pointing out the footwear is "soaked in tradition" has been shared 36,000 times on social media.

"I saw the controversy as a way to pro-mote Kolhapuri," said Mr Kamble, 33, who has seen sales of sandals he sources from local artisans bring 50,000 rupees ($584, or 18,900 baht) in three days, five times the average.