Kolhapur has enormous significance both historically & culturally. Since ages, Kolhapur has been a peaceful, prosperous & tradition-rich city. Merchants from Kolhapur had trade relations with people of numerous countries since the past thousands of years. Not only commerce but also the exchange of art, heritage & culture was commonplace in those times. This led to the development of Kolhapur culturally & traditionally. Shahiri (the singing of ballads about brave warriors), Kushti (wrestling), Mardani Khel (martial games) has a rich tradition in Kolhapur . Film-making took root in Kolhapur way back in 1906. Kolhapur was the first place in India to produce films in those days. Many famous painters, musicians and actors hail from Kolhapur . Kolhapur holds it’s own in the spheres of Classical Music & Natya Sangeet (the indigenous vernacular opera). Today the city is taking flight in the fields of education & industry. The younger generation is working harder to maintain this treasure of tradition & culture, ably guided by the rich trove of experience of their elders.