Belagavi man who humbled Prada with Kolhapuri chappal passes away
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G. N. Gopikrishna, a social worker hailing from Belagavi, established an extensive network of social service contacts and artisan communities across India and abroad. | Photo Credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
G. N. Gopikrishna, a social worker hailing from Belagavi, passed away on September 20 at Lakshmeshwar in Gadag district of Karnataka. He was 75 years old.
Originally from Ballari, Mr. Gopikrishna completed his primary education in various cities, including Belagavi. He obtained a master’s degree in Rural Development and Social Work from the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) in Mumbai.
He served as the head of the Indian division of the service organisation Oxfam. He consistently provided financial assistance and training support to countless artisans, service organisations, and women’s groups across India. After retirement, he settled down in Belagavi.
He served as a board member for the company Fabindia and various organisations in the khadi sector. He played a pivotal role in providing branding and modern design to khadi, handloom, and handicraft products from various States, thereby enabling producers to expand their markets both within India and abroad.
In 2025, he organised an exhibition titled ‘Living Lightly’ in the Bangalore University campus. This event provided a platform for Karnataka’s shepherd and wool-weaving communities to showcase their products. He established an extensive network of social service contacts and artisan communities across India and abroad.
To train local students and artisans, he would invite subject-matter experts to various districts of Karnataka. Most recently, he invited the internationally renowned designer Lloyd Richard to Sankeshwar in Belagavi district to inaugurate a three-month embroidery workshop for women.
He founded an organisation named ‘Mitan’ in Mekalmaradi village near Yaragatti (Belagavi district) to train women from surrounding villages in the production and export of various items, such as home décor products, bags, and wallets. Members of this organisation have been exporting their products to the United States, Europe, and the Middle East for the past 20 years.
He established a rural skill training centre next to the Bireshwara temple in Kadoli village (Belagavi district) to train women in manufacturing products from sheep wool and leather.
He was among those who set up the Artisan Maker Space, a production and marketing centre for artisans near Devarayanadurga in Tumakuru district. For the farmers in the Vijayapura and Bagalkot districts, he established an organisation aimed at delivering ‘Khapli’ wheat rava — produced by these farmers — directly to consumers in major cities.
When the European fashion house ‘Prada’ began using the design of Kolhapuri chappals (manufactured in Athani, Belagavi district) without prior consent, Mr. Gopikrishna leveraged his influence to arrange a meeting between the government of Karnataka, the company, and the artisans. Subsequently, engineers from ‘Prada’ visited Athani and began training the local artisans.
The Kolhapuri Chappal Artisans’ Association, the Kadoli Training Centre, and others have expressed condolences on his demise.
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