3 min readPuneJun 10, 2026 01:12 PM IST
First published on: Jun 10, 2026 at 01:12 PM IST
Marlon Brando, Arnold Schwarzenneger, Tom Cruise, Shahrukh Khan and Hrithik Roshan. Some of the biggest names in films have helped make the leather jacket a symbol of swag and style. Leather has spread into a number of other locations as well, such as the auto industry, luxury products workshops, sports goods makers and industrial gear manufacturers.
Environmentalists have been calling out the leather industry for its large carbon footprint, especially deforestation, the release of methane, a Greenhouse Gas, from cattle farms and the irreversible pollution of water bodies with chemicals used in tanning, and animal cruelty.
While working in the laboratory at Pune’s Venture Center, a technology incubator hosted by the National Chemical Laboratory, Mumbai-based Jinali Mody had enough reason to think about the need for an alternative to leather. She had grown up scuba-diving from the age of 12 and had seen the oceans deteriorate. She once spent six months doing beach cleanups and conservation work.
“I am passionate about climate change and studied climate change for post-graduation at Yale University. I always thought I would go into policy but policy was slow and I wanted to build something impactful,” says Mody, who spent three years working at McKinsey & Co in finance and other areas.
In 2022, while still completing her post-graduation course, Mody set up Banofi. If the name reminds you of bananas and cream, hold on to half that thought. Banofi is a startup that uses banana waste to create leather that imitates leather but is much better. Soon, Banofi will start using other forms of plant waste but, for now, it is bananas.
“India, as the largest producer of bananas in the world, also produces 4 tons of waste for every 1 ton of fruit. Most of the wast is dumped. We started wanting to create a plant-based leather alternative. We looked at rice straw, wheat husk, and mango. We looked at a lot of different options and then we landed on this,” says Mody. It helped that banana is available throughout the year and its very cellular structure was suited to the manufacture of leather.
Banofi has been welcomed by the auto industry, which makes up 20 per cent of the leather market, as well as a few big names in global luxury and fashion. Banofi leather boasts the strength, flexibility, appearance and texture of the real thing and looks good as bags and wallets. “It has potential for shoes and apparel,” says Mody. Where Banofi still has its work cut out is its smell. “People really love the smell of leather. It is one of those things that are intangible to solve from a metrics point of view,” says Mody. She adds that Banofi leather ensures 90 per cent lower water usage, cuts carbon emissions by more than 80 per cent and causes zero generation of toxic waste.
As an innovator in the field, Mody is in for the long haul in confronting global warming. “It’s a long journey. You have to be passionate and love what you do,” she says.
Banofi is a startup that uses banana waste to create leather that imitates leather but is much better. Soon, Banofi will start using other forms of plant waste but, for now, it is bananas. 
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