“People don’t realise it, but every sheet of paper they use could be saving a tree or cutting one down. We chose the former,” says Naren Raj, co-founder of ‘Rescript’.

In Bengaluru, where tech giants dominate skylines and startups arise in every corner, two childhood friends are scripting a very different kind of success story, one rooted not in code or capital, but in discarded paper, environmental values, and a shared vision for sustainable change.

Their story began in a forgotten spare room, cluttered with old furniture, and has now grown into a nationwide brand that is reshaping the way India looks at paper.

“We were interested in becoming entrepreneurs, and our interest always lay in the sustainability sector. We took time in trying to figure out what we exactly wanted,” reflects Ashutosh Ananth, the other founder.

From that humble beginning, Rescript has gone on to recycle over 500 tonnes of waste paper, save more than 9,200 trees, preserve 18.4 million litres of water, and prevent over 4,31,480 kilograms of carbon emissions.

Their impact is not only determined by the metrics, but it is also about the conscious shift they are enabling in everyday behaviour, where a sheet of paper becomes a small but significant act of environmental responsibility.

From nursery school buddies to venturing into the sustainable world

Naren and Ashutosh’s friendship dates back to nursery school. Their friendship grew through their years at St Joseph’s and solidified during their BBA studies at Christ University. Even then, they talked about starting something together.

After graduating in 2016, life took them briefly down separate paths. Naren joined Ernst & Young but quit within two months. “I just did not see myself in the corporate world, I needed to build something from scratch,” he tells The Better India. Ashutosh, meanwhile, worked with relatives in a family-run company for two and a half years before parting ways.

The two continued to meet and explore ideas. Their turning point came in 2019, when a mentor introduced them to a Delhi-based manufacturer producing plantable stationery, items embedded with seeds that could grow into plants after use.

“We thought it was brilliant, stationery that lives on even after it is used. It gave us our first sense of what a sustainability business could look like,” Ashutosh recalls.

They travelled to Delhi, met the supplier, secured a feasible costing, and returned to Bengaluru with samples in hand. With the help of a few corporate connections, they pitched the idea to EY, which placed a sizeable order for Women’s Day. It was their first bulk order and a big win in their entrepreneurial journey.

“After entering this sector, we realised companies wanted to make better........

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