Shark Tank India pitcher who escaped an abusive marriage, raised four daughters as a single mom, earns emotional ‘salute’ from Anupam Mittal

On the most recent Shark Tank India show, a mother-daughter team of business owners from “a village in Meghalaya” presented their handwoven fabric company, Eriweave. It proved to be the show’s most poignant pitch throughout the current fourth season. The founders informed the group of “sharks” that they want to enable local women to support themselves while also reviving a fading custom that was passed down from moms to their children. Iaishah, the mother, revealed to the “sharks” that she married at the age of 20 and had financial difficulties after ending the challenging relationship. She claimed to have worked exceptionally hard to raise her four daughters alone.

She stated that she builds her business in her free time while working as a teacher. However, she said that she is also having difficulty repaying a debt of Rs 35 lakh because every rupee they make is distributed to the craftsmen they employ and utilized to cover the loan balance. She remembers weaving to supplement her income and provide for her daughters, adding, “I know the value of Rs 100.”

The company makes handwoven eri silk fabric, eri silk yarn, and eri silk yarn that is organically dyed. Their eco-friendly products include yardage fabric, shawls, and scarves.

Their goal is to increase the sustainability of silk production while maintaining traditional skills. According to their website, ancient weaving techniques and designs are employed to create scarves, shawls, and yardage cloth, among other items. Lac, turmeric, leaves, and barks are also used to dye eri silk.

Click here to visit their website – EriWeave

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In the ancient village of Iapngar, sericulture was a time-honored tradition, primarily centered around the consumption of Eri Silk worms. However, it was in the early 70s that the enchanting art of Eri Silk Spinning and Handloom weaving found its way to Iapngar, brought by the visionary ‘Kristina Dris Lyngdoh Thaiang.’ Passing on her craft, Kristina inspired a legacy, with one of her students, Kong Prissila Rymbai, becoming a torchbearer.

Enter Kong Iaishah Rymbai, a passionate school teacher, handloom weaver, and the founder of “EriWeave.” The spark for this initiative ignited in 2018 when a scarf order fell behind schedule due to yarn scarcity, prompting Kong Iaishah to ponder the limited knowledge of spinning and weaving in the area.

Determined to bridge this gap, she rallied a team and collaborated with Raid Iapngar Handloom Weaver Cooperative Society. With the cooperative’s support, EriWeave emerged, not just as a brand but as a movement empowering women, reviving sustainable clothing, and breathing life into the age-old art of handlooms.Hand Spun Eri Silk Yarn is being produced by the Women of Iapngar, Ri-Bhoi District,Meghalaya.

Eri silk dyeing uses lac, turmeric, leaves, and barks to be environmentally friendly. Carefully processing plant sources, extracting pigments, and making a dye bath is required. For better colour fixing, ethically produced Eri silk is pretreated and optionally mordanted.

The dye solution is carefully heated to extract bright colours and strained for smooth liquid dye. Immerse and rinse the fabric to ensure uniform covering before air-drying. Water conservation, natural component use, and waste management help manufacture ethical and ecologically beneficial Eri silk fabrics.

Traditional designs and methods of weaving are preserved in the fabric that our skilled women weavers from rural areas create. The intricate patterns, varied motifs, and vibrant colour combinations of Eriweave are a testament to the creative ability and cultural heritage of our weavers.

Fabric aesthetics and community identity are both boosted by this deliberate effort to preserve and promote traditional weaving processes. Connecting generations, Eriweave influences societal ideas, gives women agency, and showcases indigenous craftsmanship.

As he put on his scarf, Peyush Bansal praised the quality and reported feeling warm. However, he refrained from investing and withdrew from the agreement alongside Vineeta. Although he backed out too, Aman Gupta commended the founders for the quality of the scarf they gave him. They told the audience that their yarn extraction approach is more humane than traditional techniques. Iaishah explained, “We don’t kill the silk worm, so the method we use to extract the yarn is gentle.” The entire panel of “sharks” was moved as they listened to her story.

“With these businesses, sometimes you have to lose money before you start making any money in order to create demand,” Anupam Mittal stated. However, you have nothing to lose financially today. You run a serious risk of not being able to repay your loan if you take on more debt. “I don’t think this is a business yet,” he added. However, I also think that everyone ought to have a chance. Because we created large companies, we consider ourselves hotshots. However, that is only because we were given the chance. Because our parents could afford it, we either received an education. Someone had a mentor.

Someone was backed by a VC. However, many folks just do not have the chance. How come aap chauka kaise maaroge agar mauka hu nahi milega? That can occasionally be the primary distinction between successful and unsuccessful people.

“The natural reaction is to say, ‘I’m out,’ but as sharks, we have a responsibility,” Namita Thapar added to Anupam’s statement. For many, many women, today’s episode can serve as an example. For many women, you serve as an inspiration. Together, we will develop Amazon. Because I want people like you to demonstrate to the rest of the nation that women in the country can do a lot and that a lot can come from little communities, I will grant you what you requested.

Listening to Namita, Iaishah couldn’t help but tear up. “I hope they’re tears of joy,” Namita said, as she offered the mother-daughter a deal. Anupam asked Namita if she’d be okay with him joining her, and the two of them happily gave Iaishah and her daughter Rs 20 lakh for 12% equity.

• Season: Shark Tank INDIA Season 4
• Original Ask: ₹ 20 Lakhs for 12% Equity @ ₹1.67 Crore Valuation
• Got Investment: Yes
• Deal: ₹ 20 Lakhs for 12% Equity
• Investment By: Namita Thapar, Anupam Mittal