Blog

Interviews by Akanksha Pandey. Photographs by Asad Sheikh.

John Roberts, The Woolmark Company

Tell us about The Woolmark Company’s recent developments with sustainable wool.
At The Woolmark Company, we are constantly working on innovations that bring positive change in the fashion industry. The natural colouration technology is one of the process innovations, where we worked with our partner BioDye from Samantwadi. The raw materials, like plant leaves, flowers, stems, etc., are all grown locally by BioDye. Focusing on sustainable dyeing processes with minimal impact, BioDye seeds scientific breakthroughs using the best of nature to create 100-per-cent natural dyes and biodegradable ingredients through eco-friendly processes. This innovation helps in making fashion more sustainable as designers can use 100-per-cent natural fibres like wool and process it in vibrant natural colours to get desired results.

The other innovation is in the shoes category, where The Woolmark Company has used advancements in knitting technology to facilitate the use of wool in footwear. Combining wool with different yarns in a shoe upper draws on wool’s natural properties to promote dryness, breathability, freshness (anti-odour), comfort and warmth. With fully fashioned knitwear uppers, waste is reduced by directly mounting the shaped piece onto the sole of the shoe. Filament-wrapped wool yarns add strength and resistance to abrasion, extending the wear of the shoe.

Are you collaborating with any Indian designers?
We constantly collaborate with designers to educate and inspire as they are an integral part of our supply chain in our farm-to-fashion journey. The Wool Lab, which is a wool trend forecasting and sourcing tool from The Woolmark Company, is a valued resource for designers. In the past we have collaborated with Péro, Rajesh Pratap Singh, Eka, Dhruv Kapoor, to name a few. Pre-COVID-19, Péro and The Woolmark Company did a show at Lakmé Fashion Week with a handwoven merino wool collection with Bhuttico [a wool weavers’ cooperative society].

What does sustainable design mean to you?
Sustainable design means following these three steps. First, designing for the long life of the garment with fibres, yarns, fabrics and constructs that are durable in garments that don’t go out of fashion (choose slow fashion). Secondly, educating consumers on best-practice care, repair and reuse of garments. Finally, designing for the afterlife of the garment by choosing natural fibres that are biodegradable and designing for disassembly so that components of a garment can be reused and recycled. The Woolmark Company has developed a toolkit for designers to help them implement circular design in their workflow.

Kirti Poonia, Relove

What is the process through which you are enabling sustainability in the industry?
Our approach is to build circular tech that can help brands become more sustainable. We are doing this in three ways. Relove, a brand-owned resale programme, which helps brands to increase the lifespan of their products and acquire new customers. Rescue, a digital factory outlet, which helps brands liquidate slightly defective items. And take-back models, where brands take back their items in exchange for store credit. The brands then upcycle these items to ensure they don’t make their way to the landfill.

How did you arrive at this idea?
Sustainability can become easy to imbibe into businesses through technology. Brands today want to do the right thing, but are often very overwhelmed while trying to achieve their sustainability goals. So, we were looking for a tech-first solution that could be smoothly executed. Since I have worked in sustainable fashion, I understood the problems of customers — being able to wear only 20 per cent of their wardrobes 80 per cent of their time. Co-founder Prateek Gupte worked in technology that was making the lives of brands and consumers easier. Together, we built this solution to make fashion more circular.

What does sustainable design mean to you?
It’s the future — a future for businesses and the planet is only possible if we learn to co-exist. Sustainable design is the only way for all of us to survive.

Himansha Singh, Craste

What is the process through which you are enabling sustainability in the industry?
Our vision is to provide an alternative to timber (to save forests), to offer a solution to crop burning, and to put waste to work. At Craste, we innovate to utilise waste to produce value-added products. We have pioneered the novel technique, FuMa Solv, which converts any type of crop waste into food-grade pulp (patent pending) and can be transformed into paper for packaging and other applications. We have also extended our R&D to use textile waste, sanitary pads waste and any other plant-based waste. Our pulping technology is based on circular economy principles and adheres strictly to green manufacturing, further lowering carbon footprint at the manufacturing level.

We have also innovated with developing India’s first tree-free E0 engineered boards for furniture and construction applications. Usually, MDF and particle boards contain high amounts of formaldehyde, a known carcinogen. Our boards are E0, which makes them formaldehyde-free (CARB-certified) and therefore, a much healthier alternative. We also offer circular packaging to the industry, where their waste can wrap their products.

How did you arrive at this idea?
My brother Shubham Singh (co-founder and CEO) was a student at Imperial College London, where he was working on carbon-capturing technology as an advanced chemical engineering student. At the time, news of crop burning in India and the pollution it caused in the capital was all over BBC and The Guardian. Shubham, who was already working on projects related to reducing the burden of greenhouse gasses on the environment, decided to work on crop stubble to focus on finding a solution for crop burning in our country. I was a PhD student and a research fellow at the University of Cambridge and I was working on drug development and microbiology. I joined Shubham when he set up his laboratory in Venture Center, Pune and from there Craste was born to bring scientific innovation into the conventional sectors of paper and board-making.

What does sustainability mean to you? 
Sustainability should be part of everyone’s life and become the norm. It should be as much of a priority as drinking clean water, and people should autonomously opt for it without compromising or thinking of it as an option.

Vishal Tolambia, Humanity Centred Designs

What is the process through which you are enabling sustainability in the industry?
India is the second-largest apparel and textile manufacturing destination worldwide. Ninety per cent of the production takes place at micro and small-scale factories, which currently operate in an unorganised and decentralised way. One challenge they face is accumulating pre-consumer textile waste at the manufacturing stage; over 1,600 thousand tonnes of textile waste is generated even before a garment reaches a consumer, and directly ends up in landfills. Humanity Centred Designs has designed and developed an innovative local circular recycling technology that utilises the pre-consumer textile waste from these marginalised MSEs (Micro and Small Enterprises) and converts it into a recycled range of 100-per-cent low-impact luxury textile materials, which we call HCD-Tex. A highly durable, flexible, and strong range of recycled materials that can be utilised by any fashion brand for sustainable product development. Developed at London College of Fashion during my master’s studies, Humanity Centred Designs is working alongside London College of Fashion researchers to transform their low-impact materials into net zero-impact materials in the future.

What does sustainability mean to you?
For us, sustainability means enabling sustainable operations. To fulfil this commitment, we provide training, support, guidance, and workshops to the partner MSEs for advancement towards a circular economy. Sustainability also means that we care for the planet and protect it, by making sure that 80 per cent of our production is through renewable energy sources, responsible consumption of water, and minimised resource utilisation. We’re on a journey to make all fashion MSEs in India circular.

Priya Krishnamoorthy, 200 Million Artisans

What is the medium through which you are enabling sustainability in the industry?
200 Million Artisans (200M) is an impact-first ecosystem enabler reimagining the potential of handmade in India. As a social enterprise dedicated to accelerating growth for craft-led Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (brands, impact enterprises and producers), we bridge gaps in information, innovation and investment in India’s artisan economy with a clear focus on addressing the livelihoods, gender inequality and climate change nexus. By leveraging new media and creative storytelling, we also work towards making information accessible to the larger public, and getting them interested and invested in the long-term sustainability of the artisan sector and the communities that make up this rich, vibrant, creative universe of handmade.

How did you arrive at this idea?
200 Million Artisans started out as a COVID-19 platform to help connect the Indian diaspora who were keen to support artisan communities and enterprises in India but didn’t know how. 200M served as a platform to reduce some of the many information gaps in the sector. We did this by listing resources, creating visibility for fundraisers, and by championing enterprises employing and supporting artisan communities. India’s artisan sector is the second-largest employer after agriculture but simply does not attract the same level of investment or innovation. Our focus on research is to bridge the information asymmetry and leverage data to communicate its sheer size and potential. We believe that the artisan has the potential to usher in a more equitable, sustainable and green economy. It’s time investors, corporates, and policymakers view this in a new light and direct much-needed capital and resources to plug in gaps and build infrastructure.

What does sustainability mean to you?
More than 56 per cent of artisans in India are women, and this is because the artisan sector is designed to offer meaningful employment opportunities at the doorsteps of women in rural India. For us, sustainability means empowering our many creative and social enterprises working with handmade in India to address the ever-present challenges of livelihoods, climate change and gender equality by helping them grow and scale sustainably. Not to mention, handmade inherently champions small-batch production, eco-friendly or sustainably sourced raw materials, thoughtful processes and traditional skills that have been passed down the generations.

Ankit Agarwal, Phool

What is the process through which you are enabling sustainability in the industry?
Fleather is a biomaterial. It is a sustainable, animal-free and non-plastic alternative to conventional animal leather. The process of manufacturing Fleather is based on the principles of biomimicry — a naturally occurring biological process replicated in the lab. We utilise waste flowers, a source of pollution, as our raw material. These flowers serve as a source of nutrition to a particular microbial species, which grow over them. As an end result of this growth process, sheets are formed, which are further treated with certain plant extracts and vegetable dyes. The manufacturing of Fleather is carbon negative and does not incorporate any harmful or hazardous component whereas its conventional competitor, the animal leather, undergoes tanning as a part of its manufacturing process and this tanning involves usage of a lot of toxic chemicals, heavy metals, etc. that wash away with the tannery effluents and mix in river water. Fleather is a step forward in the direction to stop such environmentally degrading practices and establish sustainability.

How did you arrive at this idea?
It was serendipity. Initially, we identified temple flower waste as a source of pollution and started making incense sticks and cones out of it. In the beginning, production capacity was small and a lot of collected flowers remained unutilised. One day, we observed a thick, white, fluffy lump over an unused flower pile. We were intrigued. A deeper dive into it allowed us to understand the microbial growth phenomenon. We also noticed that the velvety touch of this fluffy layer was familiar. The texture resembled that of leather. We were curious to replicate the same in the lab and experiments in that direction led us to the invention of Fleather.

What does sustainability mean to you?
A circular economy model with triple bottom-line benefits along social, economic and environmental lines is sustainability for us.

Interviews by Akanksha Pandey. Photographs by Asad Sheikh. Styled by Sarah Rajkotwala.

Ateev Anand of Re-
Age: 35
Hometown: Mumbai

Model: Shambhavi Dubey

Your collection “re- ceremonial” presented occasion wear without the heavy embellishment and bling that is almost customary when it comes to Indian bridal wear.
The textiles, handwoven and dyed naturally with utmost care, are the true soul of these pieces. They need not be decorated any further. They are crafted into abundant shapes while maintaining a lightness that is hard to achieve with recycled raw material. Each piece is intelligently cut to be able to evolve with an evolving body shape and mood, so the wearer can enjoy it over many years. We feel there are people seeking this ease in ceremonial clothing. We perceive a shift in consumer consciousness. Individuals are becoming more mindful of their impact on the environment, especially Gen Z who are next in line to get married. We also feel these pieces resonate with the zeitgeist of our time, seeking not only a deeper relationship with each other but also with our planet. This collection is for individuals who choose to wear their values on their sleeves, who want to travel and carry their beautiful heirlooms with them. These individuals will rewear their choices with pride because it validates their discernment and because they will truly be able to enjoy the versatility of these pieces by styling them uniquely each time.

Can you share some of the processes or techniques you employed to create recycled ceremonial clothing? Tell us about your work with unwanted pre-consumer fabrics and how you merged them with natural virgin textiles.
All our textiles are crafted from GRS-certified recycled cotton yarns. These are made by recycling post-industrial and pre-consumer textile waste and mixing it with virgin cotton to spin 100 per cent natural yarns, which we can easily dye using plant dyes. We have used these with silk and metal zari yarns which are traditional to many weaving cultures in our country. Our dyes also come from recycled sources like marigolds from temple offerings and tender coconut skins among others. We have explored hand sewing with some of our pieces. No electrical machines are involved in the production of such pieces. They are entirely sewn by hand; this was how clothes were made for royalty in the past. It takes us around 80 hours to sew a kurta and 250 hours to put together a lehnga with over 50 kalis [panels of fabrics attached along the flare of the lehnga].

What does Indian fashion mean today? How do you see Indian fashion evolving in the future?
Fashion is the story of our time. The Indian story is currently very diverse and rich, taking inspiration from our heritage and influences from an ever-evolving global conversation. We are discovering our own potential. There is a sense of joy in knowing how connected we are as a culture and there are many of us who wish to return to those roots and respond from an authentic, uncolonised space. We are witnessing a very opportune moment in our story as a people.

Tell us what stands out in this collection and why?
This collection is our effort in realising beauty without compromise. We have made sure each piece or idea was pushed to become the best version of itself. We have tried to emulate historic pieces and practices of ceremonial dress while staying relevant to our time. At the same time, we have crafted future-positive flat knit garments using the same yarns. Both are coloured by the same plant dyes. This beautiful juxtaposition is a personal win for us in this collection.

What does sustainability mean to you as a brand?
Sustainability is a state of no fear, a friend once told us. That sentiment drives our actions.
Respect: we seek to create an honest relationship with our planet and everyone who comes together to realise our ideas.
Responsibility: we are mindful of our physical impact on our surroundings and the impact of our choices on the generations that follow.
Recycling: we are committed to building circular and conscious consumption patterns in fashion.

Do you have a particular direction in mind for your brand?
After the pandemic, we see a greater potential in working within the domestic market. India is a large population with traditional conscious consumer sensibilities and our brand speaks to those ideals. With the “re- ceremonial” line, we are creating pieces that will appeal to the Indian aesthetic.

Where do you see your brand in the next five years?
Creating slowly but with kindness. We look forward to integrating all the aspects of our recycled textile manufacturing process in-house. Maybe soon we could be the first to craft elegant handmade wedding ensembles by recycling pieces from the wardrobe of the wearer.

Previous: Pratyush Kumar Maurya, Pieux
Next: Aseem Kapoor, Aseem Kapoor

Text by Shirin Mehta, with inputs from Akanksha Pandey. Photographs by Asad Sheikh.

Sharp tailoring (he is fabled for drafting every pattern himself, his construction skills deemed “legendary”) juxtaposed with flowing lines. An almost manic attention to detail. Embroideries that are somehow almost cerebral. (A sari with monotone embroidery in its geometric magnificence recalled a map of the constellations to my mind and has stayed with me over decades). After 12 years of resounding silence, Mumbai’s quiet couturier — sometimes called the “Armani of India” — Shahab Durazi and his 34-year-old eponymous label have returned to the ramp with all this and more, in a collection that was partly a retrospective of his brand. The soft bows, the fringes, the bejewelled tassels, the beaded trousers, the short skirts and jackets, the ’40s- and ’50s-inspired fringed dresses remain, all presented this time around with a blurring of masculine and feminine looks, transcending season and genre. A fluidity places the brand squarely into the modern context of indistinct gender lines with lace and bows on men and slouchy suits for women. The men’s line is inspired by the English dandy look, with beaded yokes; collars, cuffs and bows with pearls and silk ribbons; and bandhgala jackets embellished with glass beads, pearls and cord embroidery. “The capsule collection will endorse slow fashion and the relevance of timelessness that defies the concept of trends and promotes classic couture with contemporary nuances,” the designer had said.

Verve has always appreciated that Durazi’s collections never bent to trends or Bollywood (though he famously dressed stars like Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Sushmita Sen) as evidenced in our interviews over the decades. “I must be doing something right,” he told us in 2002. “The shock, in my work, comes from the starkness and simplicity. It is very challenging to do very little to a garment and have it completely right.” So, while most couture brands in India have played the wedding market with finesse or not, bowing to the bottom line, Durazi has held true to his vision of couture as an entity that is separate from bridal and his silhouettes continue to speak to this distinction. We have a designer then who, while offering what’s classic, has created his own path and profile. And this often means presenting entire looks that start at hairpins and end at perfectly coordinated shoes, as audiences witnessed at his most recent presentation, where cummerbunds and belts with diamante buckles and resplendent capes and coats complemented his predominantly black line, along with hand-embroidered clutch bags, envelope briefcases and pearl-encrusted bow clips. Durazi left little to chance in the entirety of his luxurious looks.

Verve speaks to the thoughtful designer about the hiatus years and what the future will hold. One thing’s for sure — no one forgot Durazi during his “missing” years — the palpable excitement to once again witness his particular aesthetic on the ramp bore testimony to this….

Excerpts from a conversation:

How did it feel to be back on the ramp after such a long gap?
I was very excited; I had worked hard, and I believe that is reflected through the collection. I had the good fortune of having the time to put together the pieces and for that I’d like to thank FDCI’s Sunil Sethi, who believed in the work I was doing. It was great to be back on the ramp and present my work to a live audience. What I liked was the energy of the models. I worked with a completely new set of models, and they were excited because a lot of them had heard about me but hadn’t worked with me yet. It was very gratifying because I knew they were giving it their best shot.

Photograph by Naomi Shah.

How has the brand and your design philosophy evolved over the past 12 years and how is this collection different from your previous ones?
This collection is very elegant, there is nothing garish or chunky about it, it is very refined and delicate. And that is my strength and what I’ve come to be known for. It’s also something I hear a lot about from my clients, that they come to me for my refined embroidery. I have incorporated all this into this collection, not only through the outfits but also through the jewellery, bows for men, lace collars embroidered with small pearls and Swarovski crystals — look closely and you will find that the details are all there. I’ve borrowed a lot of the refinement I’ve learnt over the years and used that in this collection.

Have you noticed style evolutions among Indian actors, stylists and designers?
Today, Bollywood is far more adventurous with their fashion choices as compared to a few years ago. The younger generation of actors is willing to push the envelope to make bold statements. However, I personally feel these attempts often backfire due to a lack of self-awareness and their understanding of what works for their body type and personality.

How would you define fashion?
Fashion is art. It’s a medium of expression not just for the creator but even the end user. It should be embraced with thought and vision; a language to express your persona not just to the world around but to yourself too. Fashion has little to do with clothing and more with the process. How a designer unfolds his story has greater meaning than the collection as a whole. How a customer uses the pieces from various collections to address their needs is of far greater importance than the pieces by themselves.

The industry is notorious for having no discipline or depth as long as what you make sells, but you are not cut from that same cloth, what has been the reason behind this?
I have tried to stay true to my philosophy; creating classics that are timeless. I create pieces that are built on a foundation of high quality, not just physical quality but a high quality of thoughts and ideas. My focus is always on the product. I spend 95 per cent of my creative time working on my product. Only a small part of my efforts are expended to promote, market or sell the product and although this may be slightly defeatist in an ever-growing competitive arena, it has certainly worked for me over the past 34 years and positioned my brand in a hierarchy that respects and applauds the brand ethos.

Are there any Indian actors, celebrities or influencers from today’s generation who catch your interest for their choices of cinema, work and personality?
Rajkummar Rao for his commendable body of work as an actor of substance. Shefali Shah for her cinematic choices and exemplary performances. Bibhu Mohapatra for his creative sensitivity. Alia Bhatt simply for her talent, one of the most gifted actresses from the new generation.

Can you expand on why it’s important to be wholesome in order to be successful?
The brand should reflect the persona of the creator. In this lies the essence of design, a reflection of the person. To create magic, one must be connected to oneself in a way that allows one to express effortlessly the emotions one feels. The product must be laden with emotion and for that it’s imperative that the person creating it is true to their sensibilities, principles and values, both personal and professional. If one sees the brand and product profile, certain emotions will come to mind. These are part of my personality and how I perceive the world around me. There’s an emotional connect that links the personality to the product and that’s inevitable since the method to the madness stems from our inner being.

Photograph by Naomi Shah.

Who are the people that you look up to?
I greatly admire kindness and humility in a person. It is by far the most attractive attribute to possess. It’s also commendable to see those who smile while they struggle. It’s a reflection of strength of character and I have immense respect for patience and perseverance.

How has your education played a role in who you are today and has your perspective changed about education and training over the years with the influx of tech?
My parents and teachers were the greatest influences in shaping me as an individual. I hail from a family that believes in the goodness of human beings and reciprocates the love received. This, to me, is the secret to a happy life; to acknowledge and embrace the goodness that surrounds us and to give back the same. My value system evolved over years of struggle, debate and failure. I believe that we are a sum of our choices, and the wrong choices taught me great lessons that I hold close to my heart till this day.