West India · Maharashtra
Kolhapur, Maharashtra
Sources: wikimedia
Before you go
The Mahalakshmi Temple is counted among Maharashtra's three-and-a-half Shakti Peethas; Kolhapur is also known for its cuisine and Kolhapuri chappals.
About Kolhapur
- Riverside
Where it is
Kolhapur is a city in southern Maharashtra on the Panchganga river, at the eastern foot of the Sahyadri hills of the Western Ghats and not far from the Karnataka border.
History
Kolhapur was a seat of the Shilahara dynasty from the 10th to the early 13th century. In the 18th century it became the capital of a separate Maratha kingdom founded by Tarabai, and its ruler Shahu Maharaj became known in the early 20th century for social reforms such as free education and opposition to untouchability. The princely state merged into Bombay State in 1949.
People
Kolhapurkars speak Marathi, and the city is known for its fiery cooking, its wrestling talims and an early role in Marathi cinema. Leatherworkers make the famous Kolhapuri chappals, and the surrounding countryside grows sugarcane and makes jaggery.
Known for
- The Mahalakshmi (Ambabai) Temple
- Kolhapuri chappals
- Kolhapuri misal and tambda and pandhra rassa
- Kushti wrestling in traditional talims
- Rankala Lake and nearby Panhala Fort
Did you know?
On a few days each year the rays of the setting sun reach the image of the goddess in the Mahalakshmi temple's sanctum, an event celebrated as Kiranotsav.
Shrines and sites
- Shri Mahalakshmi
- Jyotiba Temple
- Panhala Fort
- Rankala Lake
Traditions
- Hindu
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