In the northern Indian city of Kanpur, where the sacred Ganges flows past ancient temples, thousands of tons of flowers that are offered at temples as a mark of devotion have been getting dumped into the river. Laden with pesticides, these flowers, which earlier used to appropriately decompose into the soil of the river banks, started rotting in the river because of stagnation of water flow due to the construction of dams and other modern interventions. They turn into major pollutants and disrupt the aquatic ecosystem. Ankit Agarwal, CEO of Phool and a native of Kanpur, returned to his hometown after studying and working outside the city. While showing a Czech friend around, who pointed out the massive levels of wastage and pollution, Ankit had an idea—what if these flowers could be repurposed instead of discarded? Ankit then began reaching out to the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur’s scientific community for support, where he met Nachiket Kuntla, now the Head of Research and Development at Phool. The company got its name from the very raw material its business model is based on. ‘Phool’ is the Hindi word for ‘flower’.

Their goal was ambitious: to create a sustainable enterprise that could turn floral waste into meaningful products, while also providing employment to marginalised women in the local communities. They started handcrafting incense sticks and natural colors from discarded flowers—mostly marigolds and roses. Their process involved meticulous segregation, drying (they rely on sun drying wherever possible versus electrical drying) and grinding of flower petals into a fine powder, which was then used as a base for various products. Unlike conventional incense, which contains charcoal and synthetic fragrances, Phool’s toxin-free incense is made purely from flower powder and essential oils.

They started in Kanpur, but soon expanded to other temple cities including Varanasi, Ayodhya, Kedarnath, Badrinath and Bodh Gaya. In Hindu tradition, releasing temple flowers into rivers (especially the Ganges, which flows through many temple cities) is considered sacred with the belief that the river will wash off the worshipper’s sins. So convincing temple staff to deposit floral waste into designated drums took some effort, Nachiket said. Collection units were placed near temples and women from nearby villages, many from marginalised communities, were employed to process the flowers and earn stable incomes as “flowercyclers”, he explained. So not only are they using waste as a resource, their products are also designed to be sustainable and biodegradable, and their supply chains are localised and decentralised.

Some years later, an accidental discovery in their factory led them to innovate on a new material—Fleather, which is a sustainable, plant-based alternative to animal leather made from flowers. During the humid monsoon season, the team noticed a strange white fibrous growth on unused flower piles. Intrigued, Nachiket and his research team examined it under a microscope and found that it was a naturally occurring harmless microbial species forming a network of interwoven fibers. And its texture resembled leather.

The team began experimenting with controlled growth environments to cultivate the microbial species on flower-based substrates (base/foundation), gradually refining the process into what is now Fleather. Fleather is different from what’s currently available in the market: synthetic alternatives like faux leather are made of non-biodegradable polymers; vegan leathers derive their base material from natural fiber sources such as coconut, pineapple, mango, banana and cactus but rely on plastic binders, making them not fully biodegradable; and animal leather requires toxic tanning chemicals, which again is not sustainable. Fleather, however, is entirely biodegradable and processed using natural tanning agents derived from plant extracts. Fleather mimics the qualities of animal leather—it is strong, supple and durable and suitable for use in fashion, upholstery and accessories. Nachiket said they plan to launch Fleather as a separate brand under which they will sell Fleather sheets as raw materials to other businesses. They are preparing for a full-scale launch in the near future, likely this year.