The "pagadi" was introduced 200 years ago by Mahadev Govind Ranade, who was a social reformer. It was also later worn by leaders like Lokmanya Tilak, J.S. Karandikar, D.D. Sathye, Tatyasaheb Kelkar and Datto Vaman Potdar. The "pagadi" became more famous in 1973 after a Marathi play.