Entrepreneurship and Social Change: A blended approach by Kavach Mask

According to a WHO survey, air pollution is a major contributor to human deaths with more than 4.2 million deaths every year. WHO reported that poor air quality is one of the world's largest indirect health risks.

Approximately 90 per cent of the world's population as of date is breathing air harmful for their bodily functions. Breathing fresh air is a basic human need. An average human takes 20,000 breaths a day; let that sink in. Approximately 20,000 breaths of polluted air are being taken in by an average human being on a daily basis.

That's how Kavach Mask was started, with a vision to provide daily protection from harmful air pollution in the most stylish way possible. Kavach Mask is an innovative and state-of-the-art concept by Rupam Patel. 'Kavach' literally means armour which means its primary function is protection.

However, this new Kavach is an impeccable blend of fashion and protection. After thorough due diligence, the design of Kavach Anti-Viral +Anti-Pollution Masks and full-face covering scarves were made keeping in mind the comfort of the urban population that spends much more time in transit or outdoors and also the fashion trends amongst the youth.

Rupam Patel who descends from California, USA is currently based in Ahmedabad and is an extraordinary entrepreneur who comes with a vision to promote social change through entrepreneurship. Her quest for contributing to the development of the underprivileged communities in India inspired her to create "The Tee Shop" and an NGO named "Aashi Foundation" in 2015.

They manufacture their own products and believe in giving employment opportunities to underprivileged communities across Ahmedabad, Gujarat. Furthermore, she has also been consistent over the period in other social activities for the betterment of society.

Taking a step further, Rupam started a 'Kavach Mask' brand with a vision to create a movement and to protect people from viral infections through pollution. Breathing good quality air is a basic human need and this is what encouraged Rupam to launch Kavach mask and scarfs in March 2019.

Rupam says, "A lot of times we can see people wearing stoles, handkerchiefs or other forms of face-covering which do not provide them with complete protection against pollutants, bacteria and viruses. If they wear a face mask then they rely on a locally purchased face mask that is uncertified. Well, this is not the case with Kavach Mask, as we have been tested and certified by certified testing labs (SITRA & ITS) which confirm that our masks & scarves provide protection against 98 per cent of bacteria, fungi and virus in the air."

Rupam further adds, "What makes Kavach Mask more exceptional is our innovative Mask+Scarf+Top product. This product is the backbone of our brand and the reason Kavach was born. Every day on the street, we see women with their face covered with dupatta/stoles to protect their head, face, and skin against airborne pollutants and UV rays. Dupatta/Stole they use is mostly cotton cloth pieces that are locally manufactured and therefore they cannot provide them complete protection against pollution and harmful pathogens lying in the atmosphere.

Also, this dupatta/stole looks very old fashioned, plus it takes up space in the purse and takes time to wear. To solve this dilemma, we created 'Kavach - Mask' which is a 3 in 1 product, and provided multiple solutions to the pollution problem through just one product."

'Kavach - Mask + Scarf + Top' is an integration of fashion and protection. Most importantly, it helps against pollution by preventing from inhaling bad quality air through its unique built-in pocket for a detached PM 2.5 filter. This PM 2.5 filter has 5 layers which include activated carbon and nonwoven melt is blown filter cloth.

Consequently, this filter effectively protects you against harmful airborne particles and the dreaded air pollution. Secondly, the length of the fabric extends over the neck to below shoulder blades, giving an all-around adequate coverage and protection from Harmful UV B rays, gusting winds, dust and pollution.

The fabric used in making this product is non-allergenic and can be worn for long durations with ease. This scarf is a perfect headgear while riding on two-wheelers in the scorching Indian summers. Most importantly, it can easily be converted into a cape top, neck scarf or to style your top so that it does not occupy any space in the handbag and neither you have to worry about forgetting it somewhere.

This is how Kavach and the Tee Shop, the brainchildren of Rupam Patel are a mixture of both fashion trends and social responsibility fulfilment through entrepreneurship.

For more details, visit

https://theteeshop.in/

This story is provided by SRV Media. will not be responsible in any way for the content of this article. (/SRV Media)

( With inputs from ANI )