MADE IN INDIA

Sustainable, handwoven, and handcrafted domestic luxury brands are making a mark globally. At the backend are weavers, artisans and craftsmen, who are harnessing generations-old knowledge to create goods that are truly Indian.

- ARNIKA THAKUR

DESIGNER RAHUL MISHRA'S brand is on a roll. From winning the coveted Woolmark Prize in 2014, to shows at Fashion Weeks in London, Dubai and Australia, and a new joint venture with Reliance Brands (RBL) to create a ready-to-wear brand that will be sold in independent stores around the world, Rahul Mishra is literally going places. His USP? Handcrafted garments made using sustainable materials.

"Sustainability is all about processes that are slowed down to follow the rhythm of the world," says Mishra. "When we increase the number of hours, it allows nature that many more hours to replenish itself. The slowness allows hundreds of people to work on it, creating job security," he adds. The focus on sustainability and handcrafted products has earned him a name, and fame, in international fashion circles. In fact, a major chunk of the revenue for his eponymous couture brand, which retails in the range of ₹50,000-6,00,000, comes from abroad.

"I saw my grandmother spin Khadi on a charkha. It was given to a local weaver, who would make sarees for her, which she would block print herself. That way, you are never going to throw away those sarees," says Mishra. Exposure to this way of living defines his design language. He prefers his clothes to be more colourful, so that they can be worn on different occasions (not just weddings), and mixed and matched. Sample this: Natasha Poonawalla, executive director of the Serum Institute of India, wore one of his lehengas on four different occasions, styled differently for each. He has also dressed Hollywood actors, including Zendaya, Mindy Kaling, Poorna Jagannathan, English singer Ellie Goulding, and Asian celebs like Chinese singer Bibi Zhou.