This woman entrepreneur wants to preserve Odisha’s rich textile legacy by empowering remote weaving communities

Richa Maheshwari grew up all over the country because of the transferable nature of her father’s job who was an officer at State Bank of India. Somewhere along the journey through many cities, an engineering degree, and a career at SAP, Maheshwari missed having roots to hold onto.

“I missed being grounded or rooted to a place. I was always like this 'floaty' person, picking up wherever she went, but nothing was stable,” she tells HerStory.

Maheshwari was born in Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh but her home state is Odisha. In 2021, she decided to take a year off to travel through rural India, starting with Odisha.

By the beginning of 2022, she had ventured into Odisha’s heartlands. Soon her travels and interactions with tribal communities sowed the seeds for Boito, an apparel and clothing line that celebrates the unique and distinct craft forms of the state.

“It was a homecoming, and what struck me was that everyone in the state is such a fantastic storyteller. We have so much history, which still remains untapped.

“Odisha has a rich history of Ashoka and the Kalinga. We also had access to a port and established foreign trade. The sea merchants would travel to countries like Indonesia and China and take cotton and silk for exchange. The boat was called Boito, which is also the name of our brand,” she explains.

Exploring Odisha through textiles

Maheshwari started her travels with the eastern belt in Pipli, near Puri, which is famous for its applique work.

Then she moved onto Khandua in Nuapatna where Ikat is practised, Sambalpur, and other textile pockets such as Sonepur, Bargarh, and Barpalli on the Western belt.

In Koraput, she met the Kotpad weaving community famous for its Kotpad shawls.

Then she met the Dongria community that makes the Kapdaganda shawl, which depicts the surrounding mountains.

Maheshwari also talks of the Bondas, one of the oldest tribes living in Malkangiri district, whose striking appearance is marked by beautiful neckpieces and headgear.

“They have a culture of their own, cover their bodies with beads, and have a little loincloth called ringa that covers their lower body, traditionally made using kerang (a tree found in the local forests of Odisha) fibre but now replaced by cotton yarn. They don’t depend on anything outside of their land, and so it’s as sustainable as it can get,” she says.

After listening to and documenting the stories of these tribes, Maheshwari felt it was time to use their textile legacy beyond saris and stoles. She wanted to figure out a way to work with designers to take the unique art forms to the world.

Six months following her travels, Maheshwari spoke to several people in the space to understand how she could take her ideas forward.

The first person to join her was Anshu Arora, a multi-disciplinary designer who works at the intersection of fashion, space design, and crafts.

In April 2022, Maheshwari started speaking to artisans from the tribal communities for collaborations. But it was a daunting task in the beginning.

“I met with one of the weavers on the eastern belt and asked if he could make sarees in particular colours for me. But there was no response. It took time and perseverance, and I figured out that the only way was to sit, chat with them, and understand their culture,” she explains.

Currently, she has onboarded four Odia women from the Bonda community to make the ringa weave.

Classic and unique masterpieces

Boito also works with the Mirgans in Kotpad for Kotpad textiles and the communities in Nuapatna and Sambalpur for Ikat. The brand is also exploring Kerang textiles woven by the Gadaba community in Koraput.

It works with artisans in Rayagada for metal accessories.

“The designers and weavers have discussions, and contrary to fast fashion, what we present are classic masterpieces that have been passed down through generations,” she says, adding that the tribal communities are open to slight colour shifts and ready to take on challenges.

Boito does trench coats and all kinds of jackets, as they provide more scope for storytelling and are easy to don.

“We can also go international with a jacket without being too size-specific. Right now, we are focusing on jackets. Our catalogue features trench coats, kimono jackets, pants, basic shirts, and dresses.”

These outfits have different artforms–the Khandua turtle kimono, a beaded Bonda jacket, and a jacket with a Dongria design overlay (Kapadagandha with dhokra accents).

Jagabandhu Panika, a weaver from Kotpad village says, “I have learned the art of Kotpad motifs and weaving from my grandfather and have been practising this craft for over 30 years. Working with Boito for the past few months has significantly improved my financial stability, as I receive immediate payment for my work every few weeks, and my efforts are highly appreciated.”

Boito had its first round of sales when it launched at Baro Market’s 47-A–an art gallery at Mumbai’s Kotachiwadi heritage village–in December last year.

The brand is in the final stages of launching its website. It also wants to do cycle-wise fashion launches and popularise its collections as heirloom pieces.

“We are also looking to do heritage shows where we can talk about the story behind each garment, the way it’s woven, and have the artisans describe their weaving techniques and represent their communities,” says Maheshwari.

Boito is currently bootstrapped; Maheshwari wants to raise funds only when the brand gets into “the big sales mode” and is “ready to go international”.

(The story has been updated to mention Boito's focus on jackets.)