Uma Prajapati, a fashion designer from NIFT,Delhi lives in Auroville (www.auroville.org ) since 1996. She founded Upasana (www.upasana.in) and currently heads many social projects, guides entrepreneurs,consults on strategy planning for NGOs and teaches conscious fashion nationally and internationally. Umas projects demonstrate the creative power of design for grass-root communities and creating social businesses.
Asadesigner, Umashowcases the vibrancy and rich cultural heritage of India in modern silhouettes. She has created various social brands, apart from the social projects, namely –
Upasana – Started off with the Know India through textiles collection, which has grown to one of Indias most reputed fashion brand and a Conscious Fashion Hub.
Devyani – Luxury silk clothing line from Varanasi
Paruthi – Indias local organic cotton clothing line
Uma believes in holistic design, where creativity, culture, responsibility towards society, business and spirituality come together.
Upasana uses fashion as “design for change”. We touch the lives of farmers, weavers, dyers and countless families through our work in the area of textiles.
Located in Auroville in southern India, Upasana is a place where responsible design, wisdom of Indian culture, social business, and spiritual progress get woven together seamlessly. It is a place where people are the central focus and all the projects, products and resources are to help people grow and develop into their full radiance.
As an ethical fashion brand,Upasana uses fashion to tie threads to larger issues of sustainability and empowers countless people through textile work. We create clothes that go beyond beauty and vanity.
Upasana’s mission is to create conscious sustainable fashion where we are taking care of our environmental cost and not passing it on to the future. For us, design is creative, problem-solving. Upasana has started various projects that were born out of real-world social issues, such as:
Tsunamika – a tsunami related project providing livelihood to fisherwomen –www.tsunamika.org
Smallsteps compact re-usable shopping bags as an alternative to plastic bags –www.smallsteps.in
Varanasi Weavers – support and revive the weaving communities of Varanasi –www.varanasiweavers.org
Paruthi – Organic cotton brand to support and encourage organic farming in India –www.facebook.com/paruthiclothes
Janaki – Retail project that houses conscious fashion and lifestyle products –www.facebook.com/JanakiHouseOfConsciousLiving
Upasana combines social initiatives with high quality designer apparels, so one not only looks good, but also feels good about wearing Upasanas clothes.
RETAIL STORES –
Upasana – Auroville
La Boutique – Auroville
Janaki – Pondicherry
Aura – Pondicherry
Casablanca – Pondicherry
Either Or – Pune
Neemrana – Delhi
Serenity – Bangalore
Paper Boat – Goa
People Tree – Goa
Mahi Roj – Jaipur
Weavers Studio – Kolkata
GVK – Mumbai
Options – Ahmedabad
ONLINE STORES –
www.amazon.in
