The historic city of Kolhapur is located in the south-west part of Maharashtra in the Sahayadri Mountains of the Western Ghats. This is the 6th largest city of Maharashtra with a population of 5,50,000, a literacy rate of over 90 percent, where majority of the population speaks Marathi. The Marathi spoken in Kolhapur is distinct, and it is said that the erstwhile princely rule over the population has brought a certain degree of masculinity to the language. There is some influence of Kannada too. The city serves as the headquarters of the Kolhapur district. As per the 2011 census, the total population of the district is 3.8 million, the literacy rate is over 81 percent and 44 percent are in the working age. Out of this, 55 percent work in the agriculture sector, 3 percent in the household industry and 42 percent work in services and Industry. The Kolhapuri Chappals are the most famous product from the district, hand-crafted from buffalo leather that is locally tanned using vegetable dyes. Other handicrafts include hand block printing of textiles, silver, bead and paste jewellery, pottery, wood carving, lacquer ware, brass sheet work and oxidized silver artwork, lace and embroidery making. The city became the primary centre for the Marathi film industry since the late 1920s and Kolhapur continues to host many film festivals, including the Kolhapur International Film Festival. This region was the seat of power of the Shilahara dynasty, and was the site of intense confrontation between the western Chalukayas and the Chola Empire. Prior to Indian Independence, Kolhapur was a nineteen gun salute princely state ruled by the Bhosale Chhatrapati (Bhosale royal clan) of the Maratha Empire and continues to preserve the Maratha culture and heritage.
