The 바카라�Sustainability바카라� Facade: Do Fashion Shows Pass The 바카라�Greenwashing바카라� Test?

바카라�Conscious Fashion바카라� seemed to be the catchphrase last week during the Lakme Fashion Week with the who바카라�s who of the fashion world and enthusiasts from across New Delhi driving (and flying) down to Pragati Maidan to strut against 바카라�fast fashion바카라� and 바카라�fashion pollution.바카라�

By now it is a well-known fact that the fashion industry has a significant impact on the environment. Fast fashion brands selling garments made from polyester and other synthetic fibres are a prime source of microplastic pollution as they rely heavily on petrochemical products driving greenhouse emissions. Fashion moguls like Louis Vuitton, Burberry and Gucci have often faced criticism over their unsustainable choices that propel a consumer practice devoid of environmental sensibilities. Similar criticisms have been showered down on leading Indian designers as well. To combat it, for the last few seasons, fashion designers worldwide have picked up on the 바카라�eco couture바카라� and 바카라�slow fashion바카라� trends, and 바카라�organic바카라� fabrics like cotton, khadi, linen and 바카라�vegan바카라� silk have taken the front row at fashion shows.

The same was seen at the 23rd Lakme Fashion Week in partnership with FDCI, as they dedicated an entire day to sustainable fashion and brought in designers whose collections focus on 바카라�conscious바카라� clothing with words like 바카라�handspun바카라�, 바카라�handwoven바카라�, 'hand-illustrated바카라� generously thrown into the mix. But beyond the textiles, embroideries and handloom techniques (the artisanship certainly deserves more recognition), how else are designers defining sustainability? Lest we forget, the entire concept of fashion week itself is not an ideal medium for talking about sustainability. 

Sustainable or Not?

The Oxford Dictionary defines 바카라�sustainability바카라� as 바카라�the ability to continue or be continued for a long time바카라�, which goes against the fundamental idea of fashion shows. If the purpose is to last longer, then why do we need a fashion week every six months to sell us changing trends? According to researchers, a 15-minute runway presentation at the four major fashion events in Paris, London, Milan and New York can take up to six months to create, with hundreds of trials and errors, and usually ends with a dumpster of plastic bottles, press notes, invitations, flowers and decor. 

At the Lakme Fashion Week this time, a lot of talk was about making it a 바카라�carbon neutral바카라� event, yet the disposable plastic water bottles readily available at the canteen made it a little difficult to believe it. On the runway, the luxurious drapes and jackets, skirts and pants made of fashion-favourite fabrics like khadi and linen, as well as 바카라�vegan바카라� alternatives for polyester and nylon, like Ecovero and Econyl, got a few heads turned. Varun Bahl바카라�s festive edit collection on Day 1 also brought back Reliance바카라�s next-gen fabric R|Elan which is made by 100% repurposing of PET bottles and has been a hit the past two seasons. Yet, the use of plastic accessories and embellishments like zippers, buttons and sequins throughout the shows made these 바카라�conscious바카라� choices questionable.

On Day 2, themed Sustainable Fashion Day, Designer Kaveri바카라�s 바카라�The Romance of the Rose바카라� Autumn-Winter 바카라�23 collection in fine linens and silk organza with beautiful roses appliques in pastel shades gave an easy-A to comfort. Showstopper and influencer Sakshi Sindhwani expressed that her 바카라�curves were loving바카라� the fabric, and we are here for body positivity. However, on the sustainability report, the designer falls back ever-so-slightly. The designer said she uses fabric scraps to make the appliques and hair accessories. And while linen, one of the fabrics she uses, is among the most sustainable natural fibres, the use of silk could make many animal rights activists angry, as it has in the past, due to its unkind process of boiling silkworms alive. 

Designer Anjali Patel Mehta showcased her luxury resort wear brand Verandah바카라�s Goan-Portuguese-inspired collection with hand-illustrated prints, fine embroideries on Bemberg바카라�s 바카라�vegan바카라� silk. This silk is made of cupro fibre, a regenerated cellulose fibre made from linter 바카라� tiny fibres left out during cotton yarn production that otherwise ends up in waste. While cupro is an eco-friendly alternative to silk as it is biodegradable and helps combat waste, its chemical-heavy production process is known to involve large quantities of copper, ammonia and caustic soda. The brand, however, promises of small-batch production and zero-waste manufacturing even if some of the sequin-heavy clothing pieces tell a different story.

Fighting 바카라�Greenwashing바카라�

With 바카라�slow fashion바카라� and 바카라�sustainability바카라� becoming a USP for major brands, greenwashing often becomes the biggest challenge for those that are truly trying to do better for the environment, tells Karishma Shahani Khan whose brand Ka-Sha, while trying to be as sustainable as possible, focuses on a unique approach of individuality. On every piece of clothing purchased, the label mentions the name of the creator (the tailor), the material used, the hours taken to make the product and the technique used. 

바카라�Sustainability has become an overused and loosely used term,바카라� Karishma tells Outlook. 바카라�There are many ways to be sustainable but it needs to stop being the USP and become a value. And that바카라�s the biggest challenge.바카라� 

A welcome change was the 11.11/eleven eleven show, which not only brought a wholesome atmosphere with classical musicians performing a live concert but also gave recognition to each player of the collection, many of whom 바카라� tailors, stylists, designers, actors, a sustainability advocate and co-founder Shani Himanshu himself 바카라� walked the ramp. Their 바카라�Handspun바카라� Spring Summer 바카라�24 collection was an artisanal time capsule of handspun textiles and techniques in carefully sourced naturally dyed colours. For the show, the brand partnered with UNESCO as it placed 바카라�madurkathi바카라� reed mats all over the runway to honour the rural craftsmanship of West Bengal. Shani Himanshu, who co-founded 11.11/eleven eleven with Mia Morikawa 15 years ago, says that it has been their core principle to acknowledge the strength of the indigenous practices of India.

The brand바카라�s sustainability focuses on the economic aspect, giving fair recognition to the artisans from rural parts of the country. Himanshu questions the need to bring these artisans to 바카라�urban바카라� spaces for their earnings when they have cleaner air and a better lifestyle where they are. 바카라�The challenge is to honour the indigenous techniques that these artisans have been practising for generations and bring them to a larger audience without disrupting their livelihoods,바카라� he says. The brand believes in educating its customers about the entire process of making a garment from the kind of yarn used, to where and how it is sourced, the techniques used and all artisans involved. One of the achievements of 11.11/eleven eleven, he says, has been being able to use natural dyes in all their products for which they had to educate the artisans who were not aware of the effects of the chemicals used in dyeing.

The designer also admits that while it has been their target to be a fully sustainable brand, they have not yet been able to achieve the target of using organic cotton in 100% of their production. The prefix of 바카라�organic바카라� on any and every cotton product just because it is found in nature does not make sense, Himanshu says, until it is grown without pesticides and chemical fertilisers. 바카라�As of now, close to 60% of the cotton that we use is organic. Sourcing organically grown cotton which gives us a finer yarn of the 200 count is difficult. We have to keep in mind how the cotton is being grown and learn and practice better methods,바카라� he notes. 

There is a fine line between sustainable fashion and 바카라�greenwashing바카라�, the latter being a marketing ploy to capitalise on the trend of environmentally sound products that fashion brands like Zara and H&M have been infamous for. In 2021, Gucci-owner Kering, H&M and Inditex, Zara's parent company, signed the UN바카라�s Fashion Industry Charter for Climate Action. But much remains unclear about their products as the labels barely give any details to the consumers as to how their garments are 바카라�conscious바카라� or sustainable.

When British fashion designer Stella McCartney addressed the COP26 Climate Change Conference at Glasglow two years ago, she spoke about the necessity of adopting vegan methods. 바카라�The future of fashion and our planet is vegan,바카라� she said and added, 바카라�If we do not act decisively, we know the consequences.바카라� McCartney is a co-founder at Bolt Threads, which uses mycelium, a root-like structure of a fungus, to make 바카라�Mylo바카라� 바카라� a vegan alternative to animal leather 바카라� using technology powered by renewable energy.

While many Indian designers have made it a mission to be eco-conscious, sustainable fashion remains a gimmick unless it becomes a part of the hygiene adopted by designers and brands in an end-to-end manner instead of making token gestures and 바카라�woke바카라� advertisements. Transparency is at the core of sustainability as without creating awareness among the consumers about the length of the processes, how can we close the 바카라�conscious바카라� loop? Fair-trade practices and maintaining ethical standards are on the other side of the loop, without which the fast fashion trends which fail to give any recognition to the actual makers of the garments will continue to dominate the fashion industry.