Why We Started Avartan

Sometimes when we look at the world around us, we find it difficult to understand the contradictions we are living with. On one side, clean water, fresh air and good-quality food are becoming increasingly difficult to access for many people. On the other, we continue to generate enormous quantities of waste every year, much of which we struggle to deal with.

We all know that irresponsible consumption is part of the problem. We have heard enough about sustainability, climate change and the damage we are causing to our planet. Awareness is certainly growing.But what happens after awareness? Where are the solutions, and how do we make them part of our everyday lives?

These were some of the questions that kept coming up when Avartan was still just an idea.We started with a relatively simple thought. Could we take existing textile waste and create something beautiful and useful from it? Something people would genuinely enjoy wearing, rather than buying only because it carried a sustainability label.

It sounded straightforward in the beginning. But as we started researching, we realised the problem was much more complicated.Textile waste often contains blended fibres that are difficult to separate and recycle. Even natural fibres such as cotton raise questions about water consumption, particularly in regions already facing shortages. Then there are the processes of bleaching, dyeing and finishing, which consume further resources.

At times, it felt as though every solution came with another problem. After months of research, discussions and sampling, we decided to begin with recycled cotton in its undyed and unbleached form, avoiding conventional ready-for-dye processing wherever possible.

We knew this wouldn’t solve everything, but it was a beginning we believed in.Gradually, we realised something else. If we created a garment from recycled fabric, but it went out of fashion and was discarded after a few wears, what had we really achieved?

For us, circularity could not be limited to recycling textile waste. We had to think about where a material came from, how a garment was made, how long someone would want to wear it, whether it could be repaired and what might happen when it was no longer useful. It was no longer just about making clothes differently. It was about questioning the way we make, consume and value them.

What should Avartan feel like?

The founder Asha and Gautam, Coming from a design background, have always believed that clothes should make people feel good. Our co-founder, Gautam, has spent more than 23 years working with Indian textiles, crafts and embroideries. His love for nature and belief in spreading kindness and togetherness has always influenced his approach to design. He often speaks about how interconnected our world really is. The soil, rivers, trees, birds, animals and human beings are all part of the same ecosystem. Yet in our everyday lives, we seem to be moving further away from this understanding.

We wanted Avartan to express something positive in a world that often feels increasingly divided. Love, peace, harmony and coexistence became important thoughts behind our collections. Not as slogans, but as feelings we hoped to communicate through forms, colours, textures and craftsmanship.

Our first collection, One World, was born from this belief. We also wanted the clothes to be practical and comfortable. Gautam himself has always preferred minimal, easy clothing that works equally well for travel, long working days and everyday life. And when we discussed this as a team, we realized how much comfort matters to all of us.

After all, clothes stay against our skin for hours. If something doesn’t feel comfortable, how often will we really wear it? We never wanted people to choose Avartan out of guilt or a sense of obligation towards sustainability.

We wanted them to choose it because they loved wearing it. The fabric should feel good, the silhouette should be contemporary, and the design should have enough individuality to make it special without becoming irrelevant when the next trend arrives. For us, a garment that someone loves and wears repeatedly has far greater meaning than one that is admired briefly and then forgotten.

Beyond the garment

As we began building Avartan, another thought became increasingly important. Fashion is not just about the person who wears a garment. There are people who grow and process the fibres, those who weave the fabric, the artisans who embroider it, and the many hands involved before it reaches someone’s wardrobe. We wanted the people behind our clothes to be part of the purpose too.

Our work with women artisans in Deulpur, West Bengal, was one of the early steps in this direction. The idea was to create opportunities for women to earn through their skills while working from home or closer to their communities.We believe that if we are trying to build a greener economy, it should also create more inclusive livelihoods.

And then there is the person who eventually wears Avartan. We don’t want to encourage people to keep buying endlessly. We would rather see a garment being worn for years, cared for, repaired when needed and passed on instead of being discarded. Because changing fashion cannot remain the responsibility of designers and manufacturers alone. It needs the participation of everyone who creates, buys, wears and cares for clothes.

When we look at all of this together, our purpose comes down to a relationship between three things: the Creator, the Wearer and the Earth. The creator deserves dignity, fair compensation and recognition for their skills. The wearer deserves comfort, thoughtful design, honesty and something they can enjoy for years.

And the Earth deserves consideration in every decision we make, from the resources we use to what happens to a garment at the end of its life. We know we are still at the beginning. There are many questions we have not answered and many things we need to learn.

We certainly don’t claim to have created the perfect sustainable garment. But we believe fashion can be beautiful without encouraging endless consumption, that traditional craftsmanship can find relevance in new ways, and that responsible choices can become a natural part of how we design.

The name Avartan means a cycle, a turning, a circle.We began with the thought of giving textile waste another life. Somewhere along the way, that thought grew into something much larger. We want to create clothes that people love wearing, that respect the hands that make them, and that place less burden on the planet we all share.

That is why we started Avartan.

Team Avartan