Pulhoer

A pulhoer, variously spelled pulhoor, pulhord, pulhour, or pulhor, is an ancient and traditional chappal, slippers or straw footwear of Kashmir. It is literally known as khraav. It is made of straw-rope widely used by Kashmiris in ancient times during winter season.[1] Pulhoer is one of the popular traditional tools of Kashmir like kanger.

It was primarily used by people to protect their feet from snow due to poverty and unavailability of modern footwear in the region. It is made by Kashmir artisans at home by weaving straw rope in a particular manner. Since there were lack of modern garments, people also used it as a footwear to protect their feet from thorny bushes and pebbles in forests, however it is unstable or unusable in rainy season due to flow of rain through its pores.[2]

History

The exact origin of place and date of beginning of pulhoer is not known. Pulhoer is literally associated with the culture of Kashmir and was one of the extensively used sandals before industrialisation. Following the productivity-improving technologies, mechanization and economic improvement, pulhoer began disappearing from the region. This tradition still exists in unspecified remote areas.[2]

Structure

Pulhoer is entirely made of straw which makes it unusable in wet season while khraav, another type of pulhoer, is also made of straw, however its sole is made of wood or pareve which prevents slipping on snow.[3]

See also

References
  1. "110-year-old Kashmiri man makes chappals with straw to keep a tradition alive". India Today. 2021-07-09. Retrieved 2022-01-09.
  2. Life, Kashmir (2011-03-14). "Hay days". Kashmir Life. Retrieved 2022-01-09.
  3. Naqushbandi, Ubeer (2019-01-11). "When winter used to be a delightful and productive season". Greater Kashmir. Retrieved 2022-01-09.
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