Meet the Community:
Roopa Pemmaraju
Founder & Designer, Roopa Pemmaraju
Wearing a face mask is an act of love for your community. But when you wear a beautiful, handcrafted Roopa Pemmaraju mask, you’re also supporting communities across the globe – brilliantly talented, hardworking artisans whose wages give their families the food and housing they need and the education they deserve.
Roopa, who lives in New York City, designs stunning, one-of-a-kind women’s clothing, all handmade in Bengaluru, India, where she grew up. Her dresses, blouses, and skirts sing with color, and her beaded headbands seem to come straight from a modern art museum.
Roopa, who lives in New York City, designs stunning, one-of-a-kind women’s clothing, all handmade in Bengaluru, India, where she grew up. Her dresses, blouses, and skirts sing with color, and her beaded headbands seem to come straight from a modern art museum.
Perhaps most importantly, though, the artisans who craft each Roopa Pemmaraju garment earn generous wages and work family-friendly hours. “Our skilled artisans are the lifeblood are our brand,” Roopa says. “Making sure they are supported is our number-one priority.”
These artisans spend most seasons crafting runway-favorite looks and statement pieces for wearers to treasure. But when the pandemic struck, both in the States and India, orders slowed and Roopa worried about her team. Meanwhile, New York was suffering from a mask shortage. “I wanted to help both at home and abroad in any way I could,” Roopa tells us. So, almost as an experiment, she used one of her prints to make a face mask – and for us, it was love at first sight. Our special-edition mask collaboration, featuring vibrant patterns and unique braided straps, is only available at Anthropologie.
These artisans spend most seasons crafting runway-favorite looks and statement pieces for wearers to treasure. But when the pandemic struck, both in the States and India, orders slowed and Roopa worried about her team. Meanwhile, New York was suffering from a mask shortage. “I wanted to help both at home and abroad in any way I could,” Roopa tells us. So, almost as an experiment, she used one of her prints to make a face mask – and for us, it was love at first sight. Our special-edition mask collaboration, featuring vibrant patterns and unique braided straps, is only available at Anthropologie.
This pivot to mask-making has helped to spare Roopa’s community in Bengaluru from some of the pandemic’s worst ripple effects – the loss of jobs, businesses, livelihoods, and homes. “We bought cotton from local mills, helped the digital printer reopen, and modified the atelier to have our team safely come back in to work,” she says. She cares about them like family.
Roopa’s work has always celebrated the people behind the pretty dress. In 2005, she had just moved from India to Australia, and was fascinated by the Indigenous Australian art she discovered. She dreamed of rendering Indigenous art onto textiles that would become clothing – a concept that grew into Roopa’s first collection under her eponymous label. She worked closely with Australian artists to design each piece, and in turn, with Indian craftspeople to print, cut, and sew them.
Roopa’s work has always celebrated the people behind the pretty dress. In 2005, she had just moved from India to Australia, and was fascinated by the Indigenous Australian art she discovered. She dreamed of rendering Indigenous art onto textiles that would become clothing – a concept that grew into Roopa’s first collection under her eponymous label. She worked closely with Australian artists to design each piece, and in turn, with Indian craftspeople to print, cut, and sew them.
“Australia really laid the groundwork for my overall design style you see today,” she says, which plays with the juxtaposition of different geometric and floral patterns. She lived and worked down under for nearly a decade before moving to New York in 2014.
Roopa’s Indian roots also play an important role in her work. “My grandmother would weave her own saris…these beautiful silk dresses for the different festival seasons in India,” she remembers. “Silk dresses are where my love for fashion and art really took root.”
For design ideas, she often looks to Indian wildflowers, gardens, and even pottery, Roopa says. “Indian botanic gardens are known for spreading seeds across the soil in a way that creates a sporadic clash of colors, and that’s what’s inspires a lot of my designs.”
At Anthro, her aesthetic is right at home. “What really resonates with me about Anthropologie is the emphasis on color, texture, and the boho lifestyle,” she says. “Working together has been amazing.”
Roopa’s Indian roots also play an important role in her work. “My grandmother would weave her own saris…these beautiful silk dresses for the different festival seasons in India,” she remembers. “Silk dresses are where my love for fashion and art really took root.”
For design ideas, she often looks to Indian wildflowers, gardens, and even pottery, Roopa says. “Indian botanic gardens are known for spreading seeds across the soil in a way that creates a sporadic clash of colors, and that’s what’s inspires a lot of my designs.”
At Anthro, her aesthetic is right at home. “What really resonates with me about Anthropologie is the emphasis on color, texture, and the boho lifestyle,” she says. “Working together has been amazing.”
One of the things we love most about teaming up with Roopa is her brand’s ethos of sustainability – in her words, “being kinder to the Earth.”
“Our artisans weave cotton using a handloom,” she explains. “This takes a lot of skill but is a carbon-neutral process, since it doesn’t use any electricity. It also makes a higher-quality cotton.” Roopa’s studio takes advantage of digital printing, which requires less water than other techniques, and uses locally sourced and recycled materials whenever possible.
“Social responsibility and sustainability are always at the forefront of what we do,” she says. “I want to see the community I grew up in thrive while also making the world a better place for all living things.”
As part of an intentionally slow-fashion brand, Roopa and her team treat every garment as a piece of art. In the tiny, individual details, she says, you can always see a glimmer of the artist who made it.
We think you can see a bit of Roopa – her enormous talent, and her even bigger heart – in every gorgeous piece, too.
“Our artisans weave cotton using a handloom,” she explains. “This takes a lot of skill but is a carbon-neutral process, since it doesn’t use any electricity. It also makes a higher-quality cotton.” Roopa’s studio takes advantage of digital printing, which requires less water than other techniques, and uses locally sourced and recycled materials whenever possible.
“Social responsibility and sustainability are always at the forefront of what we do,” she says. “I want to see the community I grew up in thrive while also making the world a better place for all living things.”
As part of an intentionally slow-fashion brand, Roopa and her team treat every garment as a piece of art. In the tiny, individual details, she says, you can always see a glimmer of the artist who made it.
We think you can see a bit of Roopa – her enormous talent, and her even bigger heart – in every gorgeous piece, too.