ABOUT NEW LEAF
New Leaf came into existence to add a “New Leaf” to an old branch of fashion. Handcrafting modern-age bags with contemporary designs is what makes us unique. We aim to create Timeless Collections with high-fashion and artistic products, inspired by traditional Indian art and craft techniques, reimagined for the modern world.
Over the years, New Leaf has grown into a brand that does not just create bags — we create art you can carry.
Each collection mirrors the vibrant personality of our founder, Ms. Anjali Kanodia — her love for travel, her fondness for new experiences, and her deep intrigue in Indian artistic heritage. In every New Leaf creation, you will find a glimpse of her journey, her dreams, and her belief that tradition and modern design can beautifully coexist.
At New Leaf, we believe in the power of dreams. Despite reality checks and diverse experiences, it is a dream that gives purpose to one’s life. And it was one such dream that quietly took shape… and became New Leaf.
NEW LEAF PERSONIFIED
She has the mind of an entrepreneur and the eye of an artist. A designer at heart, creativity is the essence of her being. Born in a loving family and raised with strong values, discipline and traditions, Anjali grew up surrounded by stories, colours and culture.
Always brimming with energy, she is a dance lover, a Bollywood fanatic, a dreamer, a nature lover and a true foodie — a true Mumbaikar at heart. Complimenting her creative intellect is a deeply spiritual side that believes in the Law of Attraction, positivity and gratitude.
Her unconditional love for family and friends, her infectious laughter and her compassionate soul are what truly define her. And it is these very qualities that slowly began shaping a brand with heart.
INCEPTION OF THE IDEA
Anjali’s love for handcrafted gifts started early. For every special occasion, she would spend days planning surprises and making personalized handmade creations for the people she loved. The joy of creating something meaningful and watching it touch someone’s heart became second nature to her.
This instinct — to make people feel special through thoughtful creations — slowly became the core value of New Leaf.
Designing was always her calling. After completing her textile design degree from SNDT Women’s University, and later a postgraduate diploma from the School of Fashion Technology (affiliated to NIFT), her fascination with bags naturally turned into a dream.
In 2013, during her first visit to The Lil Flea, she quietly imagined a future where her own creations would be displayed at exhibitions and worn by people she had never met. That feeling — indescribable yet powerful — turned her contemplation into certainty.
She knew: someday, she would build her own brand.
About what happened next-
Designing was her calling, there was no doubt about that. After high school, our founder decided to major in textile designing from SNDT Women’s University, Mumbai . It was in her second year, when she had started designing for college projects, that she started contemplating the idea of starting her own brand. Seeing her fascination with bags and her love for making hand painted bags in her time, her friends often teased her to start “Anjali Bags”. Little did they know, what her future held!
It was 2013, she was in her second year of college when she had visited "The Lil Flea" for the first time (It was their first flea as well) . That's when she started dreaming of having her products displayed at events and stores. Anjali used to dream about seeing products designed by her being used by people around . Even while dreaming, she used to experience something amazing, something she could not describe. It was an exhilarating feeling- a feeling that helped her initial contemplation turn into certainty. She knew, this is it. She knew, she wanted to launch her own brand someday. This was going to be her dream.
Post her graduation, after doing a brief internship at Being Human, our founder wanted to take a course in Accessory Designing; when she could not find anything suitable for her, she decided to pursue a Post Graduate Diploma in Fashion Designing from School of Fashion Technology , Pune (Affiliated to NIFT) instead. Any additional knowledge, in the fashion designing field was sure to add value. This was the step that would bring her closer to achieving her dream!
THE VISION
In 2016, a handcrafted weaving collection created for her college fashion show won the award for “Most Commercially Viable Collection”. Standing on that stage, listening to her name being announced, something changed forever.
The path became clear. New Leaf was no longer a distant dream — it was now a plan.
THE LAUNCH
It was Jul 2016, with some seed money, she had started working on the production of her first collection. She had a brand name, she had a brand logo, she had her first collection. A 22 year old dreamer, was all set to make her dreams turn to reality, all by herself.
On 10-Oct-2017, New Leaf was launched at a celebrity event exhibition by actor Gauri Pradhan. The event’s outcome didn’t meet our founder’s expectations, but she knew she had taken her first step in the right direction.
She began exhibiting at many such events and gradually started learning the small nuances of this business. Her eye for detail, observation skills and multiple interactions with customers helped her understand their reactions and preferences. Developing the learning curve and continually incorporating her learnings to make necessary tweaks in her products has helped our founder create loyal and satisfied clientele.
OUR JOURNEY
In the next 2 years, New Leaf achieved various milestones- we got featured in fashion magazines like Grazia, Cosmopolitan, Tulip and SNA; our brand got attention from few TV artists ,multiple bloggers and celebs like Taapsee Pannu , Anita Hansannadani , Indira Krishna ,Urmi Daga, Tina Datta, Sonal Devraj , Siddhi Karwa to name a few, all of whom spoke fondly of her collection; we were able to showcase our collection at different Multi Designer stores like Toile, Maalgaadi, Spoil me silly; and we also got opportunities to exhibit at The Lil Flea and Kala Ghoda Art and Literature festival- all of which is a wish list worthy experience for almost every artist.
Well aware of the fact that bags are an accessory, our founder’s next strategic step was to collaborate with few apparel brands like Inaaya & Co. , Label Silayi and Itya. These collaborations gave birth to a new set of beautiful collections, that make us extremely proud.
TACKLING THE HURDLES
Like any new venture, our journey also had few rocks and hurdles.
Anjali had always been a designer and she was an expert in designing products. She also had the plan and concept ready, but starting an entrepreneurial venture meant she needed to execute everything perfectly. With very basic knowledge of branding, costing and accounting she had started the brand, but taking the brand forward meant dealing with multiple vendors, negotiating for prices, interacting with local artisans, so on and so forth. With lots of introspection, and using her past learnings, our founder eventually developed these skills and continues to pursue to become a better version of herself, by the day.
Our founder has had a very protected childhood. And so, when she declared that she wanted to open her own venture, though everyone around her was supportive, they perceived it more as a hobby than as a profession. Further, production of bags required her to deal with local artisans who were situated in different parts of the city. This specially bothered her family as they were worried of her safety. Out of concern and care, they often suggested that she should work with an established brand, and maybe later, start something of her own. Our founder could not take a step back; she was too determined to make this happen. After some convincing and by finding mid-ways to balance her family’s concerns with her own goals, she was able to manage it all!
THE EVENT THAT CHANGED IT ALL
Like any entrepreneur, Anjali had always dreamt of having her own retail space, and in her heart, she knew she wanted one, but her mind warned her against incurring such fixed costs at this stage. One Tuesday morning, our “Law of Attraction” believer received an email. And just like that, one e-mail gave her an opportunity to make her dream come true.
Every year, Inorbit Malls organise the “Pink Power” initiative. It is a competition that aims at promoting Women Entrepreneurs with unique business ideas. While Anjali thanks her stars for receiving that e-mail, she knew, it was on her to make the most of this opportunity. This competition had multiple selection criteria- selection on the basis of application, an interview round, performance of the brand in a 7-day exhibition, and finally Jury’s selection. Our founder enrolled her brand into this competition. With every passing stage, the only thought that got her through, was her belief in herself and in this brand.
It was 3rd-Jun-19, when an e-mail confirmed that Anjali’s potential had won New Leaf a rent-free Kiosk space at Inorbit Mall for 9 months! Our happiness knew no bounds. It was a day which will remain carved with stone in New Leaf’s history.
Remembering that day, our founder quotes “I will never forget that day. I was crying with happiness, dancing with joy and hugging the life out of my team! It was the most ecstatic moment of my life.” Her family, beamed with happiness and her parents couldn’t wait to share their daughter’s achievement with the whole world. That night, she fell asleep with a content smile on her face- after all she was going to live her dream!
THE LIPPAN ART JOURNEY — A NEW CHAPTER BEGINS
With the stability and confidence that followed the Inorbit Mall kiosk, New Leaf entered a phase of creative freedom and fearless experimentation. Anjali now had the space to explore something that had always fascinated her deeply — India’s traditional art and craft heritage.
During her travels and constant research into indigenous crafts, she came across Lippan Art, a centuries-old mud and mirror craft from the Kutch region of Gujarat, traditionally created on village walls. The intricate patterns, the delicate placement of mirrors and the patience behind every curve left a lasting impression on her.
What began as admiration soon turned into a thought.
What if this beautiful wall art could move beyond walls?
What if tradition could walk with the modern woman?
And thus began one of the most defining journeys of New Leaf.
TRANSFORMING WALL ART INTO WEARABLE ART
Translating a fragile, stationary wall craft into a functional accessory was no easy task. It took months of research, experimentation and countless trials with artisans to understand materials, durability and techniques that could preserve the soul of Lippan Art while adapting it for everyday use.
Every mirror had to be secured with precision.
Every design had to be light enough to carry, yet strong enough to last.
Every bag had to balance tradition with contemporary aesthetics.
What finally emerged was something truly special — handcrafted Lippan Art bags, where centuries-old craftsmanship met modern design.
Each piece took nearly 15 hours of meticulous handwork, crafted slowly, patiently and lovingly.
New Leaf had now found its signature.
WHEN ART FOUND ITS AUDIENCE
The launch of the Lippan Art collection marked a turning point.
What started as a small experimental collection soon began receiving overwhelming love — from exhibitions, from social media, from customers who had never seen Indian wall art transformed into bags before.
The uniqueness of the concept — art you can carry — resonated instantly.
Word spread.
Customers from different cities began placing orders.
Brides started choosing Lippan Art bags as wedding favours.
Corporate houses discovered them as meaningful gifting options.
And soon, enquiries began arriving from across borders.
New Leaf’s creations quietly travelled to countries far beyond India, carrying with them stories of Indian craftsmanship, mirror by mirror, bag by bag.
A GLOBAL REACH, ROOTED IN TRADITION
As international orders and collaborations grew, New Leaf entered a new phase — one where Indian traditional art was no longer confined to exhibitions or walls, but was now being admired, gifted and carried across the world.
From customised wedding collections to bespoke corporate gifting and international shipments, Lippan Art became the bridge that connected New Leaf to a global audience.
What began as a dream to create unique bags had now transformed into a mission —
to take Indian art to the world, in a form that people could truly live with.
A JOURNEY THAT REDEFINED THE BRAND
The Lippan Art collection did more than expand the brand.
It gave New Leaf a soul, a signature and a purpose.
It strengthened relationships with artisans.
It opened doors to B2B and bespoke collaborations.
It positioned New Leaf not just as a fashion label — but as a storyteller of Indian heritage.
And most importantly, it reaffirmed Anjali’s belief that dreams, when nurtured with passion and patience, have the power to travel far beyond imagination.
AND THE JOURNEY CONTINUES…
Today, New Leaf stands where once there was only a dream.
From a young designer with a vision to a brand carrying Indian art across the world, this journey has been nothing short of magical. Yet, this is not the end — it is only a new beginning.
With every collection, we continue to explore new crafts, empower artisans and create timeless pieces that tell stories of tradition and modern design.
With gratitude in our hearts and dreams in our eyes,
the New Leaf journey continues — one handcrafted story at a time. 🌿✨
Happy Fact - This story has been beautifully summarized by Anjali’s childhood friends Aastha and Arohi :)
