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$595, artisans, ‘Robert’, base, blue-fin trout, British, celebrities, chappli kababs, democracy, designer, developing countries, footwear, global corporations, headlines, inspiration, irrigation, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, literati, naswar, neon, Pakhair Raghlay, Pashtho greeting, Paul Smith, Peshawari chappal, pink, pride, profits, publicity, railways, recognition, sandal, stripe, Subcontinent, Tariq Ziad Khan, unlicensed, website
The British often boast, with some merit, that they brought democracy, irrigation, railways and the blue-fin trout to the Subcontinent. Recently it seems they decided to take something back in terms of inspiration.
The world famous British designer Paul Smith launched a new $595 sandal called ‘Robert’. The sandal is identical to the ubiquitous Peshawari chappal, that hallmark of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK), with the exception of a pronounced pink neon stripe around the base of the shoe. The launch had many a nationalist up in arms claiming that nothing screams “Pakhair Raghlay” (a Pashtho greeting) more than naswar, chappli kababs and the Peshawari chappal.