MATERIAL BOY
Prat ush Kumar, 33, Guru ram The designer who uses carpet waste and econyl to create modular fashion
Gorakhpur-born and multiple awardwinning sustainable fashion design er Pratyush Kumar uses carpet waste textile—or cartex—to make apparel, footwear and bags. He also creates outerwear and accessories from econyl, recycled polyester, and deploys 3D printing for his modular eyewear range.
“These have a longer lifespan because if any one part gets damaged, it can be replaced since customers can buy small parts. Our footwear is modular too,” says Pratyush, who was the first Indian designer to partner with Cartoon Network and the only one to have represented India at the Fashionology Summit in Dhaka.
Pratyush started his namesake label three years ago to generate enough revenue to launch his sustainable business. “In 2020, I began Pieux and when the lockdown happened we had to shut it down. But I used the next two years to do research and came across carpet waste,” he shares.
What made him interested in cartex? “As a designer I thought of exploring the home décor in dustry, un der which carpets are an integral part. I realised there are millions of tonnes of carpet waste being generated every year and that started the whole process of looking into what the small and big manufacturers are doing with the waste—we started procuring all that waste yarns, knitted and weaved to make cartex textiles, and in the future we want others to source cartex from us so more and more people can use it,” he elaborates.
If he doesn’t reveal they are made from carpet waste or damaged shirts, you can’t tell that his pieces are sustainable. “What people buy is what appeals to them without knowing it is sustainable and we are purposely not talking about this! However, the biggest challenge I face is with sequins. We can’t use them as they are made from plastic, so we are working with a few professors to create biodegradable sequins,” he shares.
Pratyush has been working on mindful fashion for 13 years now. It started when he was in his second year of college at Pearl Academy, when they went to Orissa for a week to study the craft of Pattachitra artists.
“The artists were using colours extracted from nature and creating their art on palm leaves. Everything was biodegradable and good for the environment. After returning, I thought even I could create something sustainable that conveys the message of art, and that’s when I created my first piece made from organic viscose and dyes. Plus, the same outfit could be worn in three different ways, which is also a way of depicting sustainability as a person can buy one instead of three products,” says the designer.
For this piece, the designer was selected to participate in the DEFRA x The Centre for Sustainable Fashion project, an initiative by the Ministry of Textiles, the London College of Fashion and Pearl Academy.
When he went to the UK to do his Masters from De Montfort University in 2012, he was influenced by Stella McCartney, the biggest name in sustainable fashion. “She was creating mindblowing pieces using materials that no one could tell were sustainable or luxury,” he says.
This year, after winning the Clean Tech Challenge as well as the Circular Design Challenge, Pratyush is looking forward to fashion week in October and is planning to expand his capsule collection of sustainable home décor.
“THE BIGGEST CHALLENGE I FACE IS SEQUINS. WE CAN’T USE THEM AS THEY ARE MADE FROM PLASTIC, SO WE ARE WORKING TO CREATE BIODEGRADABLE SEQUINS.“
—PRATYUSH KUMAR, DESIGNER