Every state has a different sense of dressing that makes them unique from others. The clothing in any area is decided based upon the availability of resources (clothing material) and art methods. Himachal Pradesh is among the beautiful state in North India and famous worldwide because of its tradition of clothing and tourism. A journey to Himachal wouldn’t be complete if you didn’t take photos with a Himachali cap. This post will look upon depth details about the Himachali Cap in Himachal Pradesh, like Pahari and Kinnaur caps varieties, and some methods to identify them from ordinary caps.

The Specialty of Himachali Cap

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Caps in Himachal Pradesh are thought to be a glorious crown. Locally, it is known as Kullu topi, Bushari topi, etc., based on location in India.

These Topi are an essential part of man’s clothing and act as a symbol for the residents of Himachal Pradesh. It is round in shape with a flat design on the top. Its design with a colourful border adds beauty to its pattern.

The portion covering the head is made of woollen yarn or cotton. But, most of the caps come in bright colours, which symbolize the resident of Himachal Pradesh. The price for the hats is based upon the quality of the material used for its preparation.

Types of Himachali cap in Himachal Pradesh

A slight change in the dressing culture varied significantly based on different districts of Himachal Pradesh. It, therefore, makes variations in the types of caps among the people living in other regions of the state.

Bushahri Cap

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The speciality of the Bushahri cap is the design of the lappet. It goes from left to right with many foldings. This cap comes with a parrot green colour which symbolizes the state colour of Himachal Pradesh. It is made from Chino cloth material that is a special type of fabric found, especially in Himachal Pradesh.

The cap came into trend from the people of the Bushahr royal family who used to live in the state of Himachal in earlier days. The chief minister Birvadra Singh used to wear this cap which was the former chief minister of Himachal.

Kinnauri Cap

img src: Aruna Kullu Handloom

The name of this cap came from the region of Kinnaur in Himachal. The design of this cap is the same as the Bushahri cap, but it shares a bit different quality of the fabric used on the top layer. It doesn’t come in a parrot green colour.

The cap varieties are available in Crimson, deep red, and velvet colour with a channel stripe. But, now, as the ruling party BJP comes into control over the region of Kinnaur, people started thinking of it as support for the BJP party. Most party members used to wear caps of this design to show their support for the ruling party. People still wear different designs of this cap to add beauty to their clothing style in Himachal Pradesh.

Kulluvi Cap

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 Kullu cap is worn by the residents belonging to the district of Kullu. It’s beautiful design attracts the people coming to Himachal to spend their holidays. This cap has gained importance to become the global icon for tourists visiting from other countries.

The lappet of the hat comes with multiple geometrical shapes and colours. The decorated design of the stripes adds beauty to the faces and gives them an identity of being Himachalian even for a short time.

Nowadays, these types of captures designed in western-style provide a beautiful look for the faces. The cap comes with a half and completes coverage of the forehead to add a different relapse to the fashion of Himachal Pradesh.

Lahauli Cap

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As like the above, this cap is worn in the region of Lahaul in Himachal. The dimension of the cap seems to be the same as the above caps, but the only difference that it shares is a simple style. This cap doesn’t come with a lot of decorations like strips on the edges.

The lappet provided on the lid has a simple ornamental-coloured material with only one pattern. It can be the best choice of the cap for those who like standard colours. The quality of simplicity makes it unique from other Himachali caps.

How to Choose the Best Himachali Cap?

People who can identify the cloth used on the cap can easily catch the original product while buying. The following specification would help choose the best cap for your journey and give the identity of being an Himachalian.

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•   Types of Yarn used: The speciality of the Himachali cap is the stripes on woollen. More than 2/16 woollen blends are worsted in the hat to give a thick covering looks in the forehead region.
•   Pattering: Except for the Lahaul cap, the rest of Topi comes with around 44 to 48 colour patterns on the single cap. They are well decorated with acrylic fiber that makes them unique among the group of caps. A person residing in the place can quickly identify if it is a Himachali cap or not.
•   Weight of the cap: There are no such specific criteria to distinguish caps based on weight, but because of the high ornamental decoration in the hat, it weighs around 100 to 200 grams. The rest depends upon the design and material used in the cap at the time of manufacturing.
•   Size chart: It is an important specification that should not be ignored while selecting caps. The types of caps differ based on the size of the forehead. The best part is that no unique, distinguishable character is taken care of for selecting caps based on gender.

 Final words

Clothes are an essential parameter in determining the identity of a person in India. The different States have something special and unique that makes them remarkable from other cultures. People following the ritual of clothing value their ancestors who thrived this civilization in their region. Himachali cap in Himachal Pradesh is among such identities that make people feel special inside any country.