Green Scene

“A considerable part of our products come from Auroville in Puducherry. We decided to have a store here as the city has a huge demand for these items,” says Rajat,the store’s manager. The hand-painted,handcrafted and food-safe golden pottery designed by American artist Deborah catches one’s attention,as does the aromatic fragrances,soaps made from natural ingredients and essential oils and textiles that use natural dyes. According to Rajat,Mangolia’s Shradhanjali range of hand-made paper flowers,made by recycling cotton rags and adding other natural fibres like straw,wool,algae,banana pulp or bamboo,is a rage. The carved candles here are a must-see,with the outer surface of the wax hand-carved in intricate patterns and the wax recycled over the years. Other attractions include organically grown soap shells,natural reetha for laundry,garden sticks that emit harmless smoke,lead-free pottery and aromatherapy oils.

Vanity Box is another newly-opened store that stocks products bound to appeal to style conscious,ecologically aware customers. Each piece here is hand-picked,including accessories like coasters,platters,bags,bowls,natural incense,fragrant stones and candles,essential oil burners and wood art. At Fab India,the range of organic food on offer keeps growing,with salad dressings,condiments,sandwich spreads,jams and marmalades,snacks,teas,breakfast cereals now available. “Good for health and for the planet,” says a representative,smiling.

While designers are flaunting their green creations on ramps,brands like Levi’s have come up with an organic cotton denim range. The Tree-hugger friendly jeans come with recycled buttons,zippers and is packed in recycled bags which have soy-based ink printing. Formal work wear by Van Heusen is also organic. “We encourage our fashion design students to work on collections where the fabric is eco-friendly,and synthetic is a big no,” says Anuradha Thakur,the head of department at INIFD. Their Alinkrata range of clothing uses pure cotton,khadi fabrics,natural dyes,printing and traditional hand embroidery and is a sell-out. Organic clothing is made of cotton that uses no pesticides,herbicides,or insecticides and is skin-friendly and Ludhiana-based UV&W Products which sell organic cotton apparel has opened exclusive stores here.

The Vatsal Chaya Trust runs Good Beginnings,an educational and vocational program for street children,as well as an environmental programme. Sangeeta Vardhan,who is involved with the project,believes in sensitising people towards the environment. She helps recycle and reuse things to create art and impart skills that can help children earn a livelihood. Seating stools made of bottle caps,wrapping sheets made of toffee,chips,chocolate wrappers decorated with pencil shavings and crayon stubs,fabric scraps for gift wraps and gift bags,envelopes,bags,diaries,chimes made of old toys,recycled trinkets are regularly exhibited and Vardhan encourages everyone to their bit by reducing junk in their daily lives.