The Indian designers turning waste into artwork – and insult into pleasure

When Rihanna perched on a putting black ‘flap chair’ at flagship design honest Design Miami 2024, the picture went viral. The pop star’s alternative of seat wasn’t nearly fashion: it carried with it the story of Chamar Studio, a design collective from Mumbai’s slums. The annual showcase of latest furnishings and objects had put the marginalised Dalit group on the worldwide stage.

For hundreds of years, Dalits – traditionally labelled ‘untouchables’ – occupied the bottom rung of India’s caste hierarchy. Excluded from training and public life, many have been restricted to low-status work. Though such discrimination was abolished by the Indian structure in 1950, prejudice continues. Between January and June 2025 alone, 113 caste-based assaults have been reported nationwide.

Amongst Dalits, the phrase Chamar historically referred to leatherworkers, however was weaponised as a slur. “Rising up in Mumbai slums, I was cursed as ‘Chamar,’” recollects Sudheer Rajbhar. He’s a Dalit artist from Uttar Pradesh, the founding father of Chamar Studio and designer of the flap chair. “In the present day I embrace the phrase that when degraded me, utilizing my artwork.”

Chamar Studio was born in 2015, simply as bans on cow slaughter started spreading throughout India following the election of Narendra Modi, who promised to say Hindu cultural identification. Inside a couple of years, 20 of the nation’s 28 states had utilized beef bans. For a lot of Dalits who relied on leather-based trades for survival, the regulation lower off entry to uncooked supplies and destroyed livelihoods.

“After the ban, the Chamar group might now not work with animal leather-based,” Rajbhar instructed Optimistic Information. “Generational abilities turned out of date in a single day. As an answer, we launched recycled rubber as a sustainable different, reworking necessity into inventive chance.

“Most individuals see discarded tyres and internal tubes as waste, however for us they turned a brand new medium. We clear, lower, and sew them into sturdy, waterproof baggage, sneakers, and furnishings that feel and appear like leather-based however are cruelty-free and eco-friendly.”

For Rohan Kumar, a cobbler who nonetheless retains a modest spot at Mumbai’s Virar railway station, becoming a member of Chamar Studio opened new doorways. “I used to battle with my every day earnings, engaged on the roadside,” he says. “Now my work is valued – not only for cash, however for the respect it brings.” Kumar now crafts items that journey to galleries, with the studio’s current exhibitions together with PAD London, India Artwork Honest and Design Democracy Hyderabad.

Chamar Studio’s mannequin permits artisans to remain rooted of their neighbourhoods. Rajbhar and his staff assign inventive duties, accumulate completed merchandise, and supply honest wages, profit-sharing and medical insurance by the Chamar Basis. “Employment right here means greater than revenue; it provides dignity, visibility and long-term group development,” says Kumar.

Rihanna’s viral second on the flap chair put Chamar Studio on the worldwide map, says Anubhav Nath, director of Delhi’s Ojas Artwork gallery. “The great thing about artwork is that it may be a fantastic social equaliser. When folks worth the design, it doesn’t matter the place the artist comes from.”

Rahul Gandhi, chief of India’s opposition Congress social gathering, visited the studio earlier this 12 months, calling it a mannequin of “manufacturing and participation”.

“We wish Dalit identification to be seen in galleries, in museums, and within the international creativeness,” stated Rajbhar. “By reworking waste into artwork, and insult into pleasure, we’re reshaping each our surroundings and our society.”

This story was revealed with Egab.co, which helps native journalists within the Center East and Africa attain regional and worldwide media 

Most important picture: Chamar Studio