To keep traditional skills alive

Freedom Tree offers a blend of Indian and contemporary designs that are made in India

With a promise of eclectic products that are handcrafted and are produced following environmentally sustainable practices, Freedom Tree has set up shop in Indiranagar. Lathika Kholsa, the founder-director, is a National Institute of Design graduate who has been working as a designer and advisor for over forty years.

“During the course, I realised that many big brands used Indian products and craftsmanship, but never gave due credit,” says Lathika, explaining the motivation behind the shift.
While there is a spurt of brands offering sustainable alternatives for almost any lifestyle product, going green is expensive. For the average Indian, many of these products remain out of reach. “Handicrafts are intricate and time-consuming to produce. It is not like a machine reproducing multiple pieces; it is a human creating and recreating the same designs,” she says.

However, the need to shift to greener alternatives is glaringly evident. The textile industry, for example. is one of the most polluting industries, with dyes being one of the main culprits. Freedom Tree attempts to combat these issues by using pure cotton, water-based paint and following environmentally safe methods every step of the way. “Where we struggle is packaging. We use cloth bags at our store, but when we have to ship our products, especially the ceramics to our online customers, it becomes difficult. We have to rely on thermocol and reusable bubble wrap, and any packaging that comes to our store, is reused,” she explains.

Sourcing products from different manufacturers also makes it difficult to ensure that the suppliers themselves follow the same sustainable practices that the brand stands for. However, relying on materials found in India, traditional skills, and relying on artisans who are skilled in a particular handicraft for generations, such as the lacquer-ware of Channapatna, remains a key goal.

“What we do helps keep a skill set alive, and even pushes our vendors to learn more. I am currently working with second-generation artisans and their children are interested in learning design, which will help make their skillsets an entity in itself,” says Lathika.