Weaving Sustainability: India’s Sustainable Fashion Trends

India has produced a diverse range of traditional textiles for centuries, which have been handed down through generations. These are more than fabrics: these are a continuation of the legacy, symbols of regional identity, and forms of artistic expression.

Illustration by The Geostrata

The rich Pashmina shawls and Banarasi silk of the North, through radiant Kanjeevaram and Kasavu of the South, across the radiant Baluchari and hand-woven Kantha stitch of the East, to the intricate Bandhani and symbolic Ajrakh of the West, these textiles not just express artistic excellence but weave the diverse cultures and landscape of India.

EVOLUTION OF THE INDIAN TEXTILE INDUSTRY

India’s textile heritage goes back to the Indus Valley Civilisation, which prospered around 2500 BC. Remnants of cotton and silk textiles revived by archaeological excavations signal the nascent phase of textile manufacturing methods. With time, Indian textiles gained global recognition for their excellent craftsmanship and complex designs, attracting traders all around the world. 

During the medieval period, Indian textiles reached new heights. With the arrival of the Europeans in the 17th century, there were changes in the textile industry.

The British East India Company brought with it mechanisation, which undermined the old traditional handloom industries. The Indian textile industry, nonetheless, has sustained the changes and embraced technological progress. 

With leaders like Mahatma Gandhi promoting the use of khadi, the Swadeshi Movement played an important role in reviving the traditional handloom industry. After independence, the Indian Government recognised the significance of the textile industry and brought in new measures to promote the development of this industry. Efforts are also constantly being made to amalgamate sustainability with traditions.

India’s traditional textile industry, however, faces a challenge due to the fast-evolving fashion trends all over the world. But it also provides immense opportunities for appreciating its artistry and cultural significance. This remains a timeless asset that the country possesses, despite the world's rapid evolution. 

SUSTAINABILITY OF INDIAN FASHION

India, being one of the world's largest textile manufacturers, is uniquely positioned to show the path for the world’s sustainable fashion journey. The textile market has grown by 15% in the last decade due to increasing consumer affordability despite competition from foreign firms and fast-evolving fashion trends. 

On the other hand, longevity plays a crucial role, especially in a country where tradition and modernisation are linked together at a time when the market is flooded with cheap and disposable products. 

Ecological and social concerns, triggering pollution, waste generation, as well as unsustainable consumption patterns, have been intensified due to the surge in global fast fashion culture.

The World Economic Forum’s 2023 report accounts that up to 10% of greenhouse gas emissions are generated by the global fashion industry, while approximately one-fifth of industrial water pollution is due to dyeing and finishing processes. 

Against such a backdrop, India, with its rich textile heritage, has the potential to pioneer global efforts towards sustainable fashion. At Delhi’s Dilli Haat, vendors rely on local materials like Jaipuri block prints, prioritising traditions and trust. Methods such as Kantha stitch, where old fabrics are stitched into a new creation, are a testament to the fact that the need-motivated reuse of fabrics is an intrinsic component of the Indian textile market.

These are traditions passed down through generations and not just mere practices. Further events like “Weave the Future”, organised by the Ministry of Textiles, focus on championing sustainability in fashion through upcycling textiles. 

In contemporary times, various Indian brands have embraced sustainability as one of their cornerstones. Startups like Dwij of Mumbai have upcycled 2000 pairs of jeans in 300 utility bags in three months.

 Brands like Anavila, known for their handwoven linen sarees, Doodlage uses factory remnants for making dresses, jackets, and co-ords, and reuses its waste into home furnishing and bags.

Okhai promotes women's empowerment by employing rural women in handicrafts and embroidery.  Ka-Sha focuses on sustainability by using waste plastic with old fabrics to create new textiles. Suta is known for its sarees created from cotton and silk, commemorating the rich Indian textile heritage. 

Indian fashion has always focused on durability over disposability. For instance, sPrarees in India have been passed down through generations and not disposed of.  This carries more meaning along with craft stitching, memories of the loved ones. 

CHALLENGES TO THE SUSTAINABLITY OF INDIAN FASHION

Sewing the fabric of sustainability comes with hurdles from all domains, ranging from environmental, social, to economic. The textile industry utilises heavy water for cotton industries, and the use of synthetic dyes and mass production of waste harms the environment. 

On a social level, the sector faces exploitative labour practices like poor working conditions, low wages, and long hours, along with gender issues and child labour, coupled with a lack of transparency in the supply chains. Women workers in this sector are underpaid and often offered low-skilled jobs as opposed to their male counterparts, who are offered managerial roles.

Women primarily operate within the informal sector, engaging in activities like embroidery and stitching. Therefore, their work often remains invisible, lacking official data despite their valuable contributions.  

Economically, sustainability in fashion comes with higher production costs associated with sustainable raw materials and ethical labour. Due to higher costs, consumers would prefer the affordability promised by the cheap fast fashion sector. Further investments are very low in the sustainable fashion sector, hindering its growth. 

Finally, a major challenge comes from cultural appropriation and a lack of credit to traditional artisans on a global platform.

 One such incident has been the recent Prada-Kolhapuri controversy, where Prada launched a design of a sandal closely resembling the iconic Indian Kolhapuri chappal but without initially giving credit to the Indian artisans.

However, later, due to massive backlash on social media, Prada gave the artisans their due credit.

This incident brought to the forefront the issue of how various Western fashion brands often borrow India’s heritage textiles without formal acknowledgement of the Indian artisans, offering momentary credits only when the issue draws public attention. Such issues lead to a deeper concern about how India’s efforts to promote sustainable fashion are exploited rather than empowered.   

Indian fashion is innately sustainable, not as a trend but as a deep-rooted tradition. From handwoven fabrics and using pieces of fabric to curate new textiles, to using natural dyes and upcycling waste, India offers the world a cultural tapestry of sustainable fashion. Sustainability is woven into the very fabric of India’s culture. 

As the global fashion industry grapples with challenges like climate change and waste production, India has a lot of potential to spearhead the global transition to sustainable fashion for a better future. India is a perfect example of how traditions and innovations can amalgamate to give rise to a better future for the fashion industry.

With its rich textile heritage and indigenous crafts from generation to generation, India is not just a participant in this global movement for sustainable fashion but an effective and important player who can revolutionise the sustainable fashion industry.  

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BY ANUSHKA DHAR

TEAM GEOSTRATA

info@thegeostrata.com