Avishek Mandal / Rias Jaipur - INDIA

“Avishek Mandal is a textile designer from West Bengal, India, holding a Bachelor’s degree in Textile Design and bringing over a decade of experience in the textile industry since 2012. Raised in a family of traditional gamcha weavers, his early exposure to craft laid the foundation for a lifelong engagement with textiles.

In 2018, he co-founded Rias Jaipur with his partner Arshia—a brand that seamlessly bridges heritage craftsmanship with contemporary design. Creating women’s and unisex clothing, the brand is guided by the philosophy that one can live the art while wearing it.

His practice centers on textile innovation, where traditional techniques are reimagined through a modern aesthetic. Rias Jaipur works with handspun, handwoven fabrics, enriched through surface techniques such as Dabu (Rajasthan’s mud-resist printing), Bagru printing, Kalamkari, and natural dyeing.

Avishek works exclusively with indigenous fibers—from cotton and silk to desi wool—championing materials that are grown and made in India. His work is deeply collaborative, engaging closely with artisan communities to sustain and evolve traditional knowledge systems.

Driven by a vision to bring craft into a new era, he preserves the integrity of traditional techniques while transforming their visual language for contemporary audiences. Rias Jaipur operates as a sustainable, zero-waste circular brand, rooted in ethical and responsible design.

His work has been exhibited at the National Crafts Museum & Hastkala Academy and the San Diego Museum of Art, and was recognized at the 2023 United Nations Climate Change Conference. His practice has also been featured in international publications, highlighting his contribution to contemporary sustainable textiles.”