What is your design philosophy?
At Boito, form follows fabric. We nurture close working relationships with artisans to understand their approach, collaborating to transform their heritage into wearable art. Only minor tweaks to scale and colour are occasionally employed. We prioritise honouring traditional expertise while promoting the richness and diversity of Odisha's textiles through modern, contemporary silhouettes. Garments are conscientiously designed as heirloom pieces for a global audience, with an aim to evoke cultural appreciation. We strive to explore new possibilities in the realm of fashion, with a primary focus on outerwear such as trench coats, jackets and kimonos - as they provide a larger canvas for the uniqueness of each textile to shine through.
What’s your favorite material to work with?
Odisha is such a rich reservoir of craft and textiles that we are spoilt for choice. Creatively, bandha (tie-dye) handlooms give us the maximum scope for collaboration and playfulness. Motifs are tied on to warp and/or weft threads prior to dying and transferring to the loom. Our weavers are open to exploring new ideas, and challenging themselves to master new patterns and scales while remaining true to traditional techniques.
How do you choose colors for your designs?
Everything about our collections is inspired by Odisha. Indigenous textiles such as Kotpad already have a vivid palette of warm, earthy tones extracted from the Indian madder tree - a process unchanged and unadulterated for generations. For such fabrics, the existing colours are part of their character and inherent appeal. For textiles like bandha, colours are chosen as representative of a wider narrative - inspired by landscape, motifs, local folklore or mythology.
How important is sustainability in your designs?
Our design philosophy is rooted in our belief that handloom textiles are the ultimate sustainable choice. They are the literal antithesis of fast fashion. Our garments are made to be cherished, repaired and passed down. Processes are slow, deliberate and transparent. Traditional textile-making processes are inherently eco-friendly - working with locally sourced natural fibres and dyes. Nothing is wasted: fabric remnants are upcycled into artistic textiles that find new life in our exhibitions and storytelling pieces. Additionally, our approach is holistic - going beyond materials. While we prosper the crafts - we look at the challenges faced not by artisans alone, but their family and wider community as well. For us at Boito, sustainability isn’t an add on - it is at the very foundation of what we do.
What’s your favorite project you’ve ever worked on?
Again, this is a hard choice to make. As Boito is also an art label, our ‘shows’ are actually exhibitions - where our garments are displayed alongside curated deep-dives into local histories, textile/craft processes and community walkthroughs. In 2025, we are most excited for the upcoming Cheongju Craft Biennale (South Korea), as part of the Hyundai Translocal Series. Our exhibit explores parallels between ancient mythologies and philosophical concepts through craft, while planting the seed for future translocal encounters. This work will travel further over the next three years - first to The Whitworth art gallery in Manchester (UK), and later to the National Crafts Museum & Hastkala Academy, New Delhi.
