Tracing a new route
The coming together of IndianRoots and Banka Silk is firmly rooted in their very similar back-stories, apart from their recent partnership to bring Bihar’s artisans to the forefront.
IndianRoots wanted to give back the community of weavers and their biggest challenge, CEO Rahul Narvekar says, was finding a market for artisan products. “People are willing to pay for handcrafted Italian brands but when it comes to Indian handicrafts, there are not many takers.”
Udyan Singh, who grew up in the Banka district in Bihar, has seen the number of Banka Silk weavers come down drastically, thanks to the unavailability of markets, exposure and their exploitation. “There are about 10,000 weaver families left in the district. And if we don’t find a market in at least five years, this tradition will be lost. The weavers and their children are already looking out for other jobs.” It’s then that Singh started Banka Silk to help weavers showcase their work at exhibitions and create a sustainable ecosystem.
Rahul and Udyan met in the latter’s hometown, when they were invited to give talks on entrepreneurship. Rahul was particularly intrigued by Udyan’s effort — “He had the products but didn’t know how to market them. Within Bihar, Banka Silk is very popular; but there is a lack of interest from everyone,” says Rahul.
IndianRoots initially started retailing “high-end, flauntable products”, according to Rahul. “It was once, that we sold a restored heirloom shawl by a relatively unknown designer Pranavi Kapoor, worth Rs. 19 lakh, we realised that people are indeed willing to pay for Indian products as well.” The Banka Silk weavers, both Rahul and Udyan point out, are duped by a host of middlemen by charging high prices. “A Banka silk weaver makes only Rs. 20 to Rs. 40 a day and they work a lot,” explains Udyan.
The Banka Silk is completely handmade, assures Udyan. Women gather around eight to 10 home-grown cocoons, extract silk filaments and make yarn, which is interlaced on handlooms. “Even the dyes are natural, vegetable ones; there are no power looms or chemicals. It’s a completely organic process,” he says. As a result, Banka Silk products might be on the expensive side. But both Rahul and Udyan prefer to put it as “competitively priced”.
IndianRoots has roped in young designers from institutes such as NID and NIFT and are providing a production facility for them to come up with innovative and fun products that appeal to the sensibilities of today’s urban Indians. “Designers can directly work with artisans, eliminating middlemen,” says Rahul and adds that, “the line will include both western and Indian apparel and home décor products.” So expect funky stoles, kitschy accessories and, of course, regular saris, salwars and kurtis apart from menswear. In the home décor segment, there are a lot of silk cushions and covers and a couple of silk laptop sleeves and iPad covers.
“The buying behaviour of youngsters and of people in general today is changing. E-commerce is big, but at the same time anything that appeals to their roots is also popular. If they are willing to spend a couple of thousand rupees to make a small impact and they get a good product out of it, it’s a great deal,” says Rahul.
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