Lina Tipnis

The latest innovation on offer, under the brand ‘Linarika’, is what has got her all excited. She is more than happy to speak about d most recent addition to the brand, “I have created a caricature of a frog named ‘Mckay’ and I got this digitally printed on my garments. The frog here is an exaggerated embodiment of the qualities we attach to being a human being. He is created to reflect humorously the society we live in, our environment, its related issues and the frivolous, not so frivolous, irrational and sometimes illogical situations and even more logical emotions. Mckay is conceived as iconic, memorable and funny. He can take on many roles – a socialite, a fixer, bridegroom, an activist, traveler or a politician and maybe sometimes, all rolled into one.”

She further asserts, “This technique is all about creating three dimensional illusions of objects of art and culture that have a story to tell. Mckay is a 2D animated property that can be used to connect with different people, talk about different issues, etc.”

With such never-ending enthusiasm to create something that is far from ‘déjà vu’, the new age fashion entrepreneurs merge their instincts along with innovation to reinvent their thinking to come up with something better every single time.

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Anita Dongre

Time & again, entrepreneurs prove to be a blessing to the society. And, fashion entrepreneur, Anita Dongre, creative director, AND Designs India Ltd. is no exception. The next big thing on her mind is to promote the hardwork & skilful expertise of the poor farmers of the co-operatives of Andhra Pradesh, who are, more often than not, given a raw deal. This is the first time when the concept of ‘fair trade’ in India has been initiated by a reputed retail brand. The initiative ‘Shop For Change’ is touted as her new collection of women’s western wear under her much-in-demand fashion label ‘AND’. The highlight of the collection is the fabric which is 100% Shop for Change Fair Trade certified cotton.

When asked about her brainchild, ‘Shop For Change’, Anita is more than happy to explain, “Contemporary designers are not only fashion forward, but also experimenting with fabrics, colours and textures. The fashion industry is always looking for the next big thing and provides enough room for innovation for entrepreneurs. My latest innovation is a first-time initiative of a retail brand bringing the concept of fair trade in India. Working closely with Shop for Change gives me a chance to make a difference in the fashion world and the society at large. Having visited the farmer co-operatives in Andhra Pradesh, I see the importance of introducing this concept into the fashion industry and hope that my fellow designers will also bite the bug.”

Well, for all we can say, we wish her all the very best for her new venture and that the world follows in her footsteps to make earth a better place to live in!

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Mehra chirps in, “By borrowing a dress, one can save a tremendous amount of money, have access to good quality of clothes, flaunt a ‘designer’ label and never have to worry about being seen in the same dress twice”. She further adds, “The idea of Dial-A-Dress came to me after watching my younger sister worry about buying an expensive outfit for a wedding. Here was this girl who was willing to spend a good portion of her salary on a dress which she was going to wear just once or twice and I thought there has to be a solution to this dilemma. The idea of this concept is to not spend thousands on something you probably will never wear again. You can simply rent a designer dress, wear it, return it and you are all set to rent something new for the next event. Even better, you still have plenty of money left in your pocket,” grins Mehra.

And the uniqueness of the idea doesn’t end there. It takes an almost unthinkable humanitarian turn! She makes it a point to make a contribution of a sum of Rs.500 for every dress that she rents out to the customers which goes towards research on breast cancer. Following the sad demise of her mother after a harrowing battle with the deadly disease, Soniya was more than willing to extend her support and reach out to those cancer- affected women in the city who go through the same ordeal as her mother did. Keeping this in mind, she took it in her hands to hear out their sorrows & make a difference to their lives by allocating a regular contribution towards their betterment, both personally & monetarily.

Way to go, Dial-A-Dress!!

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Shobha Murthy

With a story that would inspire people to do their bit for the underprivileged section of the society, this Vashi -resident played the good Samaritan, who took it in her hands to bring about a change in the lives of slum children and women by imparting education and computer training to over 1,200 slum children and making provisions for education and empowerment of women.

The drive to play the role of a responsible citizen was always persistent when she worked as a Cost Accountant for a span of 12 years with big names in the corporate world. However, it took her some time to realise that there was something amiss.

It all started with her getting the much – awaited opportunity of joining a US-based funding agency as a project officer on a social service project, which brought out in the open the plight of the tribal living in the rural areas of Gujarat, Rajasthan, UP, MP, Bihar.

After the jumpstart in the social sector, she joined CRY as a finance manager and quit in 1997 in order to set up ‘Aarambh’ for the upliftment of slum dwellers.

With no proper qualification in social work and just a little experience to guide her in the new arena, she commenced work in the urban slums and is proud to be associated with six centres of Aarambh operating in various slum areas and also imparting education and computer training to over 1,200 slum children from Navi Mumbai.

Not only this, Murthy is also playing her part in providing tailoring classes to women hailing from financially weak background through Aarambh.

Shobha Murthy is now a happy and content woman with all the satisfaction she had ever strived for!

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Naheed Hafiz

‘Best out of waste’ seems to be the mantra at ‘The Paper Shoppe’ located at the plush Tardeo in Mumbai. ‘The Paper Shoppe’ was founded by Naheed Hafiz, who rejoices in the fact that there is a lot more awareness about handmade paper today, as compared to the yester years. However, Naheed confesses that it was her fascination towards handmade paper that pushed her into learning the art as well as taking it ahead by making it her field of business.

She has indeed come a long way with something that started as a mere hobby 15 years ago to the mass awareness and demand for handmade paper that prevails in the market today. And, if the present scenario is anything to go by handmade recycled paper has a promising future.

The best part about handmade paper is the ‘eco- friendliness’ of the materials used like old papers, used exercise books, cotton rags, onion garlic peels, corn husk, banana stem, mulberry stem, dried flowers and grated orange peel to make paper, while cardamom flakes or even kadi patta are added for fragrance. Some of the wares on offer include jute paper, banana stem paper and moon rock-effect paper.

In the beginning, exhibitions paved the way for Naheed to take her passion for paper to the next level– making it into a serious business seven years later. Naheed also makes it clear that she not only makes handmade paper herself but also sources it from various places of India to stock the best variety in the market.

The cost of each sheet ranges from Rs. 10 to 50 depending on the variety of sheets of different colors and textures which can be acquired by using enhancing techniques like embroidery block print and tie-and-dye technique. She also sells envelopes, bags, folders, dairies, note pads all made of handmade paper.

The most appealing aspect of making handmade paper is the convenience with which it can be made with easily available materials, even at home.

Naheed has also made sure that the art of handmade paper- making has a wide reach which will enable handmade paper to become the ‘it’ thing among the Indian masses today and tomorrow by conducting workshops for kids and adults on making of handmade paper and its products. She has held workshops for various schools, NGOs and even at the Kala Ghoda Festival.

She has more feathers to her cap with an NGO – ‘Handmade Foundation for Environment and Recycling’ running under her guidance.

Last, but not the least she has a little nugget of advice for her fellow countrymen -“It is in the hands of each and every individual to make a difference by reducing and recycling paper at home.”

Materials needed
1. Mixer, sieve (One used for flour- it has to be a detachable sieve)
2. Cloth/towel pieces 4-5 inches bigger than the sieve size.
3. Old notebooks two blocks of wood
4. A tub/bucket and water

The handmade papermaking process involves seven steps

Soaking
Tear the sheets of old paper in small size and soak the paper in water for an hour. Till they become soft and easier to grind.

Pulping
The soaked paper is ground in a mixer with water (paper:water ratio – 1:3) for 5 minutes or till it turns in to a fine pulp .The mixer is to be cleaned thoroughly after use and see that no small shreds of paper remain.

Sheet forming
Fill the tub half with water, and empty the pulp in this. Take the sieve dip it in the tub, lift it gently, you will see that a thin layer of sheet settles on the sieve, tap lightly to remove excess water.

Couching
The process of placing the paper sheets between wet cloths is called ‘couching’. The sieve is detached from the ring and the sheet formed on the sieve is carefully inverted on a cloth/towel and pressed firmly, once the sheet has settled firmly on the cloth ,the sieve is gently separated from the sheet (start from the corners). Cover the sheet with a cloth/towel. It is important to note that there should be a cloth below and above the sheet formed.

Continue making sheets this way till you have a pile of sheets. The pile of sheets is then pressed.

Pressing
The pile of sheets is placed between two blocks of wood, stand on it in a steady posture till the water drains out. Place heavy weight or trunk on it and allow it to stand for a few hours.

Drying
After pressing each sheet is gently removed from the cloth and dried on the floor or in the sun .When the paper is dry you then iron it.

Ironing
To give a finish to the paper and remove the creases it is ironed. This also gives the paper a shine.

The paper made is round; you can cut it in square.

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Vibha Narshana

India is in a state of revolution of sorts; courtesy the emerging and ever- expanding class of budding entrepreneurs. With the benefit of world-class education at hand, these entrepreneurs are bubbling with enthusiasm to put the acquired knowledge to much use and give themselves a sense of independence and responsibility at the same time. A case in point is of the young yet immensely talented, Vibha M. Narshana.

The hallmark of her services being offering a specialised approach coupled with her trademark personal touches that add a whole new dimension to her self- owned business, Solitaire Events, an event management firm that has already gained an edge over the ‘me too’ competitors in the market. With services ranging from BTL Promotions, Mall Promotion, Club Events, Public Relation and related activity to all India tour events and even wedding events, Solitaire Events aims to bring to life the dreams of its clients, in the words of its founder.

A very positive outcome of such entrepreneurial activity is the availability of opportunity to freelancers which can be explained through the association of more than 600 freelancers with the firm to date. With the nature of services on offer, it is no doubt that work begins after the normal working hours which offers scope for flexibility to its employees. But, by no means, does this imply that Event Management is a bed of roses. To elaborate on this, Vibha recollects an incident when electricity played spoil sport with not even a generator at hand. Being the tough cookie that she is, she popped up with the idea of making it a darkout party with zigzag lights using torches! What a show of taking problems in one’s stride!

However, mistakes do happen during the course of running a business, and sometimes they might just not be avoidable, as in Vibha’s case. Vibha recounts one such instance when she had to bear the outcome of trusting a fresher, while in the other, trusting a deceptive supplier meant loss as he fled away after accepting advance for the still pending order!

Despite the seldom happening bottlenecks, Vibha sees a bright future for Solitaire Events with a workforce of 500- 800 freelancers and 200 associates and plans to go national & then global.

She believes ‘being prepared is half the battle won’. However, Vibha is quick to advise her compatriots to prepare the groundwork first through a thorough research and then laying the foundation. For now, she is taking pleasure in being the ‘Mistress of one trade’ rather than the ‘Jack of all of them’.

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