Karishma Mehta, founder and CEO of the popular storytelling platform Humans of Bombay (HOB), has taken a step towards embracing cruelty-free fashion. In a recent announcement, Mehta revealed her decision to part ways with all her luxury leather goods as she pledges to avoid purchasing leather products in the future.
The Mumbai-based entrepreneur shared her plans on Instagram, stating that proceeds from the sale of her leather items would be donated to animal welfare NGOs. The post included photographs of her luxury collection, featuring handbags and shoes from high-end brands such as Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Prada, Yves Saint Laurent (YSL), and Fendi.
“As a vegetarian, I won’t eat meat because it doesn’t sit right with me to consume a living being. How then can it sit well with me to partake in a market that prides itself on being ‘luxury’ by levying their premium-ness on the quality of animal being skinned?” Mehta wrote in her post.
Mehta explained her personal philosophy, aligning her vegetarian lifestyle with a broader commitment to ethical fashion. She described her decision as a natural extension of her values, expressing that she could no longer reconcile her stance against consuming animals with supporting industries that use animal-derived materials.
Karishma Mehta founded Humans of Bombay in 2014, creating a platform that showcases inspiring and thought-provoking stories from people across India. The platform has amassed over 2.8 million followers on Instagram, with notable personalities such as Prime Minister Narendra Modi and industrialist Ratan Tata among those featured.
Mehta’s storytelling initiative draws comparisons to Humans of New York (HONY), a globally renowned project by Brandon Stanton. While Mehta has openly acknowledged being inspired by HONY, her platform operates independently and focuses on Indian narratives.
Last year, Humans of Bombay became embroiled in controversy when HONY’s founder, Brandon Stanton, accused the platform of imitating his format. The remarks came after HOB filed a copyright infringement case in the Delhi High Court against another storytelling platform, People of India (POI).
Stanton criticised HOB’s legal action, calling it hypocritical given their similarities to HONY’s concept. In response, HOB issued an open letter defending their position, describing Stanton’s comments as a “cryptic assault on our efforts to protect our intellectual property.”
Mehta later clarified her stance in a separate post, stating that HOB had always credited HONY for inspiring their work.
“...we have been inspired by HONY, and we will always be grateful to them for showing us what storytelling can do for a community,” she wrote.
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