Meet the father-son duo from Tamil Nadu who built a Rs 100-crore business out of waste plastic bottles

There is no dearth of entrepreneurs in India. Indian entrepreneurs have excelled in almost all fields and there is no stopping them. Amidst the growing threat of plastic, there is growing concern about plastic pollution around the world. Not only people but governments are also looking for ways to reduce plastic pollution. In the midst of this crisis, a father-son duo from Tamil Nadu found an opportunity in a pile of garbage and turned it into gold.

Who is this father-son duo?

The father-son duo is K Shankar and Senthil Shankar from Tamil Nadu. K Shankar used to work abroad and after spending a good three decades outside India, he returned to India with a vision to tackle the menace of plastic. In 2008, K Shankar founded Shree Renga Polymers. The company today is a leader in pet bottle recycling and sustainable textiles in India with an annual turnover of Rs 100 crore. Located in the serene town of Karur, which is well known for its home textile industries, the company uses German technology to power its production lines.

K Shankar is an IIT-ian with global work experience in various countries and C-level work experience with MNCs. He was given the “Best Entrepreneur of the Year” award 2018 from the Government of Tamil Nadu and also served as the President of CII, Karur and as the President of Native Lead, Karur.

His son Senthil Shankar is the next generation entrepreneur. Senthil Shankar pursued mechanical engineering at Vellore Institute of Technology and executive education program at the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad. He worked with TCS for three years before joining his father’s business. He is also an angel investor in several startups.

what do they do?

Mr. Renga Polymers uses PET bottles to recycle them and make sustainable textiles out of them. They are constructed of dope dyed dyes and special recycled polyester fibers. They reuse waste bottles of soft drinks, water and cooking oil. Apart from the polymers business, the father-son duo also runs Ecoline, a sustainable fashion clothing brand, where PET bottles are recycled to make sustainable clothing such as jackets, blazers, T-shirts and trousers.

Their work was strongly endorsed in February 2023 when Prime Minister Narendra Modi wore the company’s blue suede jacket in Parliament. Prime Minister Modi again wore the ecoline jacket at the G7 Summit in Hiroshima, Japan. Recently, EcoLne also presented a unique mandarin colored jacket made from recycled PET bottles to Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. The jacket was presented to Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath by Dr. Arun Kumar Saxena, Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Government of Uttar Pradesh.

Prime Minister Modi wore a blue jacket on several occasions, indicating his commitment to a sustainable ecosystem.