Iba Malai’s Journey To Founding Kiniho & Finding Her Roots In Meghalaya
Iba Mallai is a Meghalaya-based fashion designer who wants to bring the world’s focus to the indigenous fabrics of North East India. In her quest for a meaningful career in sustainable fashion, she built her own independent clothing brand: Kiniho.
Kiniho was born with the idea of creating responsibly. Through her brand, Iba wants to bring the indigenous traditions of her community to the world along with preserving the rich heritage of textile weaving and designing. Iba always wanted to give back to her community. She wanted to reconnect with her roots and have a purpose & meaning in life. And this is exactly what she has been doing through Kiniho since 2016. In this piece, we will discover Iba’s journey as she founded Kiniho and what she wants to achieve in her future.
Iba Malai is a Meghalaya-based fashion designer
Finding purpose back home
In 2013, Iba felt unfulfilled in her fast-paced corporate life in Bangalore and longed for purpose and a deeper connection. Discovering her passion for textiles and fashion, she pursued a degree at the JD Institute of Fashion Design in Bangalore, determined to start her own venture. However, she was torn about what material to focus on and whether to remain in Bangalore or return home to Meghalaya. A conversation with her mother, who worked with local weavers, gave her clarity. Inspired by her roots, Iba decided to build her brand in Meghalaya using Eri silk, an indigenous, sustainable fabric sourced locally.
Initially, Iba had Eri silk delivered to Bangalore for her first collections, but as her business grew, managing communication with the weavers became challenging. This prompted her to move back to Meghalaya, where she could work directly with the local community and stay true to her mission of creating a sustainable brand rooted in tradition.
Starting a business with no prior experience was challenging for Iba — especially after leaving her corporate job and returning to Meghalaya, where she initially lacked local connections and faced issues like financing and sourcing fabric. Determined to overcome these obstacles, she set up a weaving shed at home with two weavers, which allowed her to produce her own textiles and eliminate any middlemen in the process. This bold move gave her complete control over the quality of her textiles. It further laid the foundation for her brand, which now boasts 16 weavers with an in-house production. Now, Iba sources her own cocoons and extracts the Eri silk fiber independently. When asked about starting from scratch, her response was simple: "Why not?!"
Eri Silk native to Meghalaya
Eri silk: world’s first non-violent silk
Eri silk — also known as non-violent or peaceful silk — is celebrated for its ethical production process, where the silkworm is not harmed. Unlike conventional silk production, which involves boiling silkworms to extract fibres, Eri silk is made only after the moth leaves its open-ended cocoon. This cruelty-free approach makes Eri silk one of the most eco-friendly and sustainable fabrics in the world. Its soft texture and thermal properties make it a versatile fabric which can be worn year-round — offering warmth in winter and a cooling effect in summer.
Eri silk is primarily woven in Meghalaya, Assam, Mizoram, and Nagaland by indigenous weavers. The weaving is traditionally done at home, which ensures both authenticity and quality. While the fibres might have slight imperfections due to the unique production method, they only add to its natural charm. With growing demand for sustainable textiles worldwide, this peaceful silk has been gaining popularity for creating high-quality clothing and upholstery. To add to that, its eco-friendly appeal and cultural significance further fuels its potential in the fashion and textile sectors.
Iba’s idea of sustainability
Iba ensures that Kiniho upholds sustainability at every stage, from sourcing raw materials to producing the final product. For her, sustainability means creating responsibly — using resources wisely without depleting them, while preserving them for future generations. According to her, sustainability goes beyond environmental concerns. It encompasses socio-economic progress, community welfare, and ethical practices across an organization.
Through Kiniho, Iba approaches sustainability by combining minimal environmental impact with maximum social welfare. By working with an indigenous fabric such as Eri silk, she preserves her community's heritage craft, passed down through generations. She prioritizes handlooms over power looms and natural dyes over chemical ones to maintain eco-friendly practices. Iba also focuses on preventing overproduction, reducing waste, and avoiding deadstock by offering custom-made pieces, ensuring an overall thoughtful and sustainable production process. In future, she plans to focus on the way of production. She wants to prevent overproduction, wastage and piling of deadstock. In order to achieve this, the idea is to focus more on custom-made pieces.
According to Iba, “sustainability is all about creating responsibly. It is the ability to use available resources without compromising it. In simple terms, it means to maintain and preserve.”
The future: what lies ahead for Kiniho
Kiniho’s philosophy is to use local techniques and blend them with modern ways of weaving. Five years down the line, Iba wants to improve the brand’s approach to techniques & introduce new, innovative designs. She also has plans to increase the brand’s reach to pan India and globally, launching Kiniho in international markets. Iba believes getting global recognition won't just help her brand, it will benefit the weaving community as well. This way, Kiniho can help sustain the heritage craft and give it a well-deserved global stage.
The artisans at Kiniho
Iba’s message for aspiring entrepreneurs
Iba says, “finding the right material is a start”. She urges new entrepreneurs to make sure that the processes of sourcing their materials are environmentally and socially friendly. She points out that we can easily get carried away with customer demand and over produce. Hence, creating a sustainable business model first and foremost is crucial.
The need for prioritizing the workers and their welfare is equally important. She advises against burdening the workers with excess demand, paying decent wages and keeping their well-being in mind.
“When it comes to handwoven products, business owners should realise that weavers have their own lives and social responsibilities. Respecting their well-being and ensuring a balanced workload is vital to foster a healthy and sustainable working environment.”
Iba’s most important advice: “Believe in what you do. Be passionate about your dreams because when there are roadblocks, your passion will always have your back. Understand why you want to do it. Once you know your why, the how and what will follow.”
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