Puneri Pagadi

Puneri Pagadi is a turban, a cloth worn on the head. This turban is worn by people from Pune on special days. Puneri means "belonging to Pune" and pagadi means turban.  It is used as a mark of respect in Pune.  It is a custom that is about 200 years old.  

The pagadi used to be worn by people to show pride but now it is also worn on special occasions.

History

The pagadi was introduced 200 years ago by Mahadev Govind Ranade, who was a social reformer. It was also later worn by leaders like Lokmanya Tilak, J.S. Karandikar, D.D. Sathye, Tatyasaheb Kelkar and Datto Vaman Potdar. The pagadi became more famous in 1973 after a Marathi play.

In 2009, it was given the status of Geographic Indication (GI) which means that the pagadi will be a property of only Pune.  No one else can sell any such turban under the name of Puneri Pagadi outside Pune.Only Brahmins used to use this pagadi in that era.

Uses of this pagadi
The pagadi is used in marriages. It is also used on special events in schools and colleges (commonly on traditional days). It is used by actors while performing gondhal art form. The pagadi is also given as an award sometimes.

Proprietary status

Shree Puneri Pagadi Sangh is a group of 10 people. They are the ones who applied for getting a GI tag for the pagadi. Actually, Great Mission Group Consultancy submitted the application for them.  The aim of this was to protect the identity of the pagadi. They also wanted to protect the Puneri culture. The application was accepted and on 4 September 2009, the pagadi became an intellectual property. Before this, the GI tag was also given to Indian products like Tirupati ladoos, Darjeeling tea, Banarasi saris.

References

Category:Headgear
Category:Pune