Why in the News?

Recently, an Italian luxury brand Prada unveiled footwear inspired by India’s Geographical Indication (GI)-tagged Kolhapuri chappals.

What’s in Today’s Article?

• Geographical Indications (Introduction, Legal Framework, Past Experiences, Safeguards, Conclusion)

India’s Geographical Indications and the Threat of Cultural Appropriation

• In June 2025, Italian fashion house Prada showcased a footwear line inspired by India’s iconic GI-tagged Kolhapuri chappals at its Spring/Summer 2026 menswear show in Milan.
• The move triggered sharp criticism in India, reigniting debates over cultural appropriation and the effectiveness of Geographical Indications (GI) in safeguarding traditional knowledge and craftsmanship.
• The incident is part of a broader pattern where Indian cultural and artisanal products are used, often without acknowledgement or benefit-sharing, by global corporations.
• As the conversation around cultural appropriation intensifies, GI tags emerge as a legal and policy mechanism to both protect and promote India’s cultural heritage.

Understanding Geographical Indications (GI)

• A Geographical Indication is a form of intellectual property right that identifies goods as originating from a particular geographical region, where specific qualities, reputation, or characteristics of the product are essentially attributable to its place of origin.
• India currently has 658 registered GI-tagged products, spanning diverse categories such as textiles (e.g., Kancheepuram silk), agriculture (e.g., Basmati rice), handicrafts (e.g., Madhubani paintings), and food (e.g., Darjeeling tea).
• What sets GIs apart from trademarks is their collective ownership. Unlike a trademark owned by a single entity, a GI belongs to a community of producers, artisans, or cultivators, and it cannot be sold, assigned, or transferred.

Legal Framework in India and Globally

• India, as a signatory to the TRIPS Agreement under the WTO framework, enacted the Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act, 1999, which came into effect in 2003. This law provides:

• Registration of GI goods
• Legal protection against unauthorised usage
• Penalties for infringement
• Legal standing for authorised users to initiate action against misuse

• Internationally, GI protection stems from agreements like the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property (1883) and more clearly from the TRIPS Agreement (1995).
• However, GI rights are territorial; there is no globally recognised GI tag. This means that even if Kolhapuri chappals are GI-protected in India, that protection doesn’t extend automatically to countries like Italy or the U.S.

India’s Experience with Cultural and Biological Appropriation

• India’s struggle against cultural misappropriation is not new. Some notable past instances include:

• Basmati Rice Patent (1997): Ricetec Inc., a U.S.-based company, was granted a patent for novel lines and grains of Basmati rice. After legal intervention by Indian authorities, the patent was eventually nullified.
• Turmeric Patent (1995): The University of Mississippi was granted a patent for turmeric’s wound-healing properties, a use deeply embedded in Indian Ayurveda. India successfully challenged and revoked the patent.
• Neem Patent (2000): A neem-based antifungal patent granted to a U.S. agency and a multinational firm was revoked by the European Patent Office after evidence of traditional Indian knowledge was submitted.

• These cases exemplify the vulnerability of traditional Indian knowledge and the need for pre-emptive protection mechanisms.

Towards Stronger Cultural Safeguards

• While GI tags offer domestic legal protection, they fall short when it comes to transnational enforcement. There are some pathways to international GI protection, such as:

• Seeking bilateral or multilateral recognition.
• Registering GIs in foreign jurisdictions.
• Using trade negotiations to include GI protections in Free Trade Agreements.

• Furthermore, experts advocate for the expansion of the Traditional Knowledge Digital Library (TKDL), a government-run initiative that documents traditional medicinal knowledge.
• The proposal is to widen its scope to include cultural artefacts, arts, crafts, and grassroots expressions, and to make it a searchable database. This could aid brands and foreign agencies in conducting due diligence before launching culturally inspired products.

Conclusion

The Prada-Kolhapuri incident highlights the urgency for robust international frameworks and enhanced domestic capabilities to prevent cultural misappropriation. While GI tags serve as effective tools for domestic enforcement, their scope must be broadened through diplomacy, global advocacy, and digital documentation of traditional knowledge.

India must continue to build institutional capacity, strengthen cross-border GI enforcement mechanisms, and raise awareness globally about the significance and sanctity of its cultural and artisanal heritage.