Sustainable Elegance: The Shop's 'MalMal Mela' introduces comfort and fresh styles for you this summer
Beating the Chennai summer is a tough task that we are all trying to accomplish. In the pursuit of comfortable clothing, multiple fabrics and silhouettes that would help beat the heat are often overlooked. With the launch of their new collection of eco-products — MalMal Mela, clothing, home décor, and accessories label, The Shop is ready to help Chennai “float around in natural, light voile muslin.” Aishwarya Kumar Singh, who heads the design team at the label, shares the reasons behind choosing said fabric, how they’ve upheld the sustainability and eco-friendly aspects of this collection and more.
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For Aishwarya, muslin as a conscious choice for the collection was brought about due to its feature of being a lightweight fabric. “Everybody wants a perfect Indian summer. And when it rolls out, we want to wear what is lightest for comfort and to stay cool,” she says, adding, “For our clothing line, malmal (or muslin as it is known in Europe) is our speciality. It is a soft and luxurious hundred per cent natural cotton that is light airy, durable and feels heavenly on the skin.”
Included under the smooth textured, light, sheer, skin-friendly silhouettes like dresses, kurtas, angel tops, kaftans and others, are a diverse range of motifs, including patterns, tie-dye designs, solids and more. With a colour palette spread across “natural and soft shades,” it is also highlighted that they can be “easily mixed and matched.” Aishwarya goes on to mention that although the prior collections are different in their inspirations and approaches, various other elements from them have been carried forward to the silhouettes in this collection. “Our design sensibilities are universal and simple, and our commitment is to the environment,” she says.
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Further elaborating on how they’ve maintained an eco-friendly approach to this collection, she explains, “We are forced to be creative and innovative while looking for “green” solutions.” The label’s effort to upcycle its fabric waste in order to ensure a sustainable future is also emphasised by Aishwarya. She further singles out that a fabric-based packaging process is carried out by the brand to uphold sustainability. Adding to this she exclaims, “Our stores are plastic-free!”
Talking about the evolution of fashion in Chennai, Aishwarya adds, “The city is continuously evolving, and experimenting. They are also attached to their culture and choose what they feel they are comfortable wearing.” MalMal Mela will be available in-store and online, with more “ethically produced artisan-made products.”
INR 700 onwards.
At The Folly, Amethyst, Royapettah.
Also available online