1. Punah, Indore Once you clear your wardrobe, Punah will then arrange a pick-up based on the area you are in and sift through the pieces to decide which ones can be upcycled.

2. Oh Scrap Madras, Chennai The venture collects garment waste from exporters and tailoring units in the city and breathes new life into the clothes.

Dominique Lopez, the co-founder of the initiative, says, “A prerequisite is that the clothes need to be freshly cleaned.” “We assess the items to see if they are in a condition to be donated or upcycled. If the clothes are in excellent condition, we suggest thrift stores that would accept these,” adds Dominique.

3. Rimagined, Bengaluru A business consultant, Shailaja Rangarajan wanted to be a part of the solution when it came to waste management. Each item donated has a different fate.

“If they are in wearable condition, we redirect them to ‘Restore’, a thrift store in Bengaluru. If the donations are sarees, bed sheets or curtains, they can be shipped to the Kolkata centre where they can be upcycled.”

4. Clothes Box Foundation, Delhi With 3.5 million wearables distributed to date, the Clothes Box Foundation, a Delhi-based NGO, is putting a smile on people’s faces.

Through their programme ‘Refresh’, rural women have a chance to earn an income by manufacturing blankets, bags, etc from waste fabrics.

5. Twirl, Kolkata Sujata Chatterjee from Kolkata, Founder of Twirl, started this initiative on realising the overflow of unwanted clothing.It is also one of the few lake treks accessible during the peak winter season.

As far as the process for donating these clothes, there are boxes kept at strategic locations across Kolkata, where people can dispose of their clothes.

6. Ka‐sha, Pune Karishma Sahani Khan, the founder of the brand, says they upcycle sarees into dresses. “We urge people to send sarees to us, and we then give them three dress style options for them to choose from.”

The fabric waste donated by businesses is used to make cushion covers, rugs, bags etc.

7. Temptations from Devaki’s, Bengaluru Started by a mother along with her two daughters 25 years ago, the brand upcycles sarees into quilts.

One of the daughters, Vinaya Shenoy adds that they also turn smaller patches of fabric into cushion covers, bags etc which they send back to the donor for a minimal charge.