Purposeful designs
Posted October 23rd, 2019, 11:40 AM IST
“We work with local factories to collect non-hazardous waste — that is often of high grade and unused due to the nature of industrial processes. We then convert these materials into design elements, and combine them with conventional materials to create useful and durable everyday products,” says the 27-year-old, who studied architecture from the University of Southern California in Los Angeles before coming back to India.
After spending three years in branding in Dubai and London, Mallika decided to move back to India to pursue a career in healthcare innovation based on design thinking at Studio 5B in Mumbai, before starting her own brand in Hyderabad. “Design is a truly powerful medium to create impact in the world. I have always been interested in sustainability and pursued an education in architecture with a focus on sustainability and must be addressed in any industry today to be relevant. There is vast opportunity and profitability in creative solutions for a world that's depleting its natural resources,” says Mallika, who started her brand last November and spent around six months playing around with waste materials and experimenting with designs.
Given that fashion is one of the most polluting industries, there is strong reason to examine the way things are done and bring about meaningful change. “Fashion is more than what we wear — it’s a testament to our culture and the times we live in, this fascinates me. When future generations look back at history, the rise of sustainable fashion will be reflective of the environmental crisis we are currently living in,” predicts Mallika, daughter of DRL’s CEO G. V. Prasad and Anuradha Reddy.
Sustainable fashion is all about responsible choices, and all strategies promoting environmentally, socially and ethically conscious production and consumption are important steps towards a more sustainable industry. “We use very low-tech techniques that are not a huge burden on resources such as water and electricity. We have a small studio set up with limited and small batch production done by local craftsmen. We work with the government to help develop our weaves, which then get produced by handloom weavers in weavers’ villages in the vicinity of Hyderabad. We are a lean team, who partner with a number of artisans across the country to handcraft our products for us, thus reviving traditional crafts and providing employment while still evolving with the times and adopting a contemporary design aesthetic,” explains Mallika.
Positioned as a premium brand — Cancelled Plans — is trying to create a little something for everyone. “We have a wide price range and different collections that suit different buying patterns. We did a soft launch at the London Design Festival to which we had an incredible response. We were also part of the Hyderabad Design Week where we generated a lot of curiosity and got positive reinforcement that we are on the right track,” shares Mallika, adding, “Our first collaboration is with Jayanti Reddy, a celebrated designer from our city.”
- Kukatpally, Old City and Tolichowki made their mark as the city's top street food hubs
- Political leaders attend grand Alia Balai programme in Hyderabad
- Over 7,500 daily steps before surgery tied to fewer complications
- Deepika talks mental health with corporate bosses
- Sweet Shop - Owners of Calcutta and Other Ideas: Taste the universe
- Life in motion
- Witness The Most Riveting Courtroom Drama of The Year
- Mind-Body Synergy: Embracing Profound Connection Between Mental and Physical Health
- Red Haute Alert
- WWF-India Hosts Second Earth Series Talk: "A Tale of Two Cats"
- Hyderabad entrepreneurs ‘Modify’ clothes from aloe vera to orange peel
- How to Apply Onion Juice to Hair
- Patriotism is in thing, it’s Tricolour everywhere
- Celebs too wear fakes of reputed brands
- Elon Musk on fun trail says 'buying Coca Cola next'
More Lifestyle News
- Aditi Rao Hydari misses ‘Heeramandi’ event after wedding
- Bigg Boss winner Munawar Faruqui among 14 detained in Mumbai raid
- Mrunal Thakur follows ‘grandma diet,’ believes in not skipping meals
- Selena Gomez shares makeup-free selfies on Instagram
- Diljit collaborates with Saweetie for ‘Khutti’ Song, says ‘she just landed in Punjab’
- Malaika Arora, Arjun Kapoor, Richa, Ali Fazal, Farah, and more at KJo’s Bash
- Jamie Lever is ‘honoured’ to represent her heritage with Telugu debut film
- Janhvi and Aditya Roy Kapur shine on the ramp for Kalki at Lakme Fashion Week x FDCI
- I am fond of Kate Moss, says Diana Penty, about her fashion icon
- Kriti Kharbanda, Pulkit Samrat share pictures from dreamy wedding
A PHP Error was encountered
Severity: Warning
Message: file_get_contents(): http:// wrapper is disabled in the server configuration by allow_url_fopen=0
Filename: views/newsdetails.php
Line Number: 29
Backtrace:
File: /home5/am2pm/public_html/application/views/newsdetails.php
Line: 29
Function: file_get_contents
File: /home5/am2pm/public_html/application/controllers/News.php
Line: 135
Function: view
File: /home5/am2pm/public_html/application/controllers/News.php
Line: 83
Function: newsdetails
File: /home5/am2pm/public_html/index.php
Line: 315
Function: require_once
A PHP Error was encountered
Severity: Warning
Message: file_get_contents(http://www.indiaaffiliates.in/ads.php?size=300X250): failed to open stream: no suitable wrapper could be found
Filename: views/newsdetails.php
Line Number: 29
Backtrace:
File: /home5/am2pm/public_html/application/views/newsdetails.php
Line: 29
Function: file_get_contents
File: /home5/am2pm/public_html/application/controllers/News.php
Line: 135
Function: view
File: /home5/am2pm/public_html/application/controllers/News.php
Line: 83
Function: newsdetails
File: /home5/am2pm/public_html/index.php
Line: 315
Function: require_once