Journalism of Courage
Walk,ride or drive into Koregaon Park and the first thing that meets the eye is the shimmer and glitter lining the wall at the start of Lane 1 and on the path between Lanes 2 and 3. A few years back,it was only the ‘mat’ effect that would greet you. From behind an imaginary counter at these uncovered street stalls,men call out to passers-by,eagerly pointing to a new Osho chappal design. Some indulge in the skilled art of bargaining with customers. It’s only 60 rupees,madam. Fixed price, croaks a surly looking stall owner. At the other end,another owner smiles as banking professional Monika Shah,a regular customer,shows up at the corner of his stall. He knows she’ll walk away with four pairs,and she proves him right.
But a look at the goodies in her shopping bag shows how the ‘Osho Chappals’ have gone beyond the erstwhile chatai (mat) based ones. The slippers earned the name ‘Osho chappals’ 15 years ago,because the stalls were set up in Lane 1 where the Osho International Meditation Resort continues to remain a landmark. But in the last three years,the chappals have become more fashionable,stylish and blingy. The original chatai ones will never go out of fashion in fact,we are getting more colours in their velvet straps shades of pink,purple,blue,brown, says a stall owner Sunil Rathod.
The Osho chappals have been a symbol of comfortable and wearable footwear. The price of the chatai Osho chappal has gone up from Rs 40 to Rs 60 in the last one year. And the other pairs are for Rs 100-Rs 200, says Rathod,as he tends to Mumbai-based Yatin Bhosle,who couldn’t miss shopping here.
The sales of the Osho chappals have sky-rocketed in the last two years,owing to the new additions. Which is why on Sundays,our stalls are open from morning till late evening. On other days,we set up shop only in the evenings, says Sunil Gupta,the owner of a stall.
