Natural Diamonds and Conscious Denim Aren’t Just Icons of Style
A curious parallel emerges in the juxtaposition of real diamonds and contemporary denim. Carrying stories of craft, emotion, and innovation, they define sustainability beyond a buzzword to a way of being. The country’s coolest denim designers have transformed this utilitarian fabric to a canvas of conscious fashion — as they champion natural dyes, upcycled textiles, and handcrafted techniques, they further a narrative real diamonds have told for eternity: natural, classic, built to endure. Expressions of resilience, forged from the earth.
We bring together the original bastions of style and substance, in a series of standout looks worn by the original supermodel Sheetal Mallar.
JEWELLERY KHANNA JEWELLERS • RIGIL PANTS & RBLAZER 11.11
Coming of Age
The thesis of sustainable fashion is simple: invest, don’t buy. Look out not only for who you are today, but who you may be in the future. And let the pieces accompany you along the journey — withstanding change, enduring challenges, and preserving the heart of one’s identity. Like natural diamonds, an alchemy of carbon and time, finding their lustre over centuries, and denim, a symbol of strength and durability from its 19th-century workwear origins.
“We work with denim because it is timeless,” says Nishanth Chopra, founder of Oshadi, a regenerative fashion initiative rooted in ancient agricultural practices. “One should be able to wear the designs now and even five years later because they are still fresh. In fact, there are pieces we designed years ago and launched recently, waiting for the right colour or fabric, because classic shapes in denim are always relevant.”
WE’RE BRINGING ANCIENT TECHNIQUES
INTO OUR COLLECTIONS.
NOTHING IN FASHION CAN BE INVENTED, IT’S JUST ABOUT A NEW ITERATION.
NISHANTH CHOPRA, OSHADI
JEWELLERY DIAMANTINA FINE JEWELS • MURALI WORKWEAR JACKET OSHADI • WSHIRT 11.11
Materials drawn from nature reflect character, much like individuals with their own journeys — each natural diamond is shaped by its unique circumstances, building resilience under pressure and transforming over time. “ Denim can be manipulated based on how you wash or dye it. But it also continually evolves, making it more meaningful as time passes.”
As You Like It
Objects that are immune to trends make space for personal assertions of style and identity — in their versatility, they make a case for sustainable living, underscoring ideas of longevity, circularity, and thoughtful consumption. Like an old Baroda tiara refashioned into a necklace for HRH Radhika Raje Gaekwad, or Rhea Kapoor’s natural diamond jewellery, inherited from her mother and worn during her intimate wedding celebrations.
JEWELLERY MEHTA JEWELLERY & A S MOTIWALA FINE JEWELLERY • FLARED TOP OSHIN
Denim designers are finding ways to enhance the material’s innate versatility, creating a new language of design that is rooted in sustainability. Moonray founders Avantika and Karishma Swali repurpose leftover fabric for repair and reuse, while designer Diksha Khanna’s collections transform scrap fabrics into patchwork and distressed denim saris, with hand embroidery details — transforming the traditional nine yards into a youthful, fuss-free expression of style.
“Our signature denims are ethically sourced from textile mills in southern India. These factories discard rolls of denim due to weaving discrepancies, excess production, and speckled indigo washes, which are labelled as ‘dead-stock’ by the mills. We repurpose these to craft all our products,” says Oshin Sarin, whose eponymous label launched in 2022. “We find ways to give denim a new look, clubbing it with other materials or patterns like gingham and windowpane checks.”
JEWELLERY ROSA AMORIS • KIRA DENIM TOP & BARROW TWO-TONED SKIRT MOONRAY
In With The Old
A collective reimagination of processes to prioritise thoughtful creation — grounded in not just sustaining the environment, but regenerating it. For contemporary denim designers, this means a return to agricultural roots. Nishanth Chopra of Oshadi took this seriously, when he paused operations to form a collective of regenerative cotton farmers, traditional weavers, natural dyers, and block printers, taking control of every process — from growing the cotton to designing and manufacturing the products. “We’re bringing ancient techniques into our collections. Nothing in fashion can be invented, it’s just about a new iteration.”
JEWELLERY KHANNA JEWELLERS & ANTARA JEWELLERY • SAREE DIKSHA KHANNA
Similarly, Himanshu Shani of 11-11 works with zero-waste indigo dyers, continuing indigenous methods in small batches. “We embarked on this journey by experimenting with indigo cultivation in Hapur, the same land where indigo was traditionally grown 60 years ago.” reveals the brand, in their digital journal.
A new norm is underway, too, in natural diamonds — prioritizing ethics, responsible mining, and biodiversity, nothing hidden behind the shine of these stones. Industry leaders, like De Beers Group, are committed to carbon neutrality through renewable energy, carbon offsetting and sequestering, rewilding projects, and water recycling, among others. Meanwhile, technologies like blockchain address historic challenges of traceability, allowing for a chain of custody through each step of the process — from mining to certification and retail — ensuring ethical, real diamonds.
JEWELLERY MEHTA JEWELLERY • REGOLITH DENIMS OUTBREAK LAB
The only way to be timeless? Adapt to the times. In both denim and diamonds, innovations that bring people closer to the source also enhance their relevance.
