The avant-garde designer Gaurav Gupta, famous for his structured and sculpted couture, is also an eco-activist.

The designer has always expressed his views openly. He protested against U.K. going to war with Iraq, rallied at the Nirbhaya marches, advocated for the LGTBQ community. He also designed anti-pollution masks for the series of slogan tees ‘having a bad hair day.’

The designer who resides in Delhi – the city was in news for deteriorating quality of air – is taking up the ecological cause more passionately. Speaking of the problem, he told Vogue, “Everything in this country becomes a media or Facebook chat story but do people know the daily pollution levels in Delhi, Mumbai, Lucknow or Kanpur? It’s a national emergency. Diwali comes once a year. Yes, it affects the pollution levels by 2 percent. But it’s about everyday choices.”

The designer encourages to begin with small steps and watch the positive change unfold. He says that activities like reducing usage of plastic, soap, controlling the carbon residue left behind, managing waste at house and factories will do wonders. He says, “More than 25 percent of the pollution in this country is to do with waste disposal. There is no waste management here, whereas Sweden is importing garbage to recycle. India had these opportunities.”

The designer truly believes in ‘Preach what you practice’. All the plastic which is used in his Noida factory comes from a Bengaluru-based packaging solutions company that specialises in biodegradable plastic. Also, all their fabric scraps are recycled.

He states, “It’s a small step, but I’m at least getting conscious of my own, and my company’s carbon footprint. So even if I’m buying soap for my house, I’m getting it from an organic shop that doesn’t use plastic to pack it. Small things like that. That’s how a culture changes.”

H/T: Vogue India