How Black Eagle Binders is Revolutionising Gender-Affirming Fashion in India

In February this year, when Nishita Vasanth couldn't find a proper binder in India despite the country's robust textile industry, she decided to create her own solution. What began as a personal quest has transformed into Black Eagle Binders, a comprehensive brand dedicated to gender-affirming products for the queer community.

"I was thinking about top surgery, and one of my friends asked, 'Dude, why don't you bind? Why don't you bind for six months, one year, see how that feels? If it feels good, then you can go for top surgery," Vasanth recalls. The advice seemed sound, but sourcing a binder proved ridiculously difficult. After spending Rs. 7,000-8,000 on ill-fitting imports from the US with no exchange policy, Vasanth realised the market gap was too significant to ignore.

Vasanth says that she expected and wanted the process to be basic and not difficult. This frustration birthed Black Eagle Binders, built on two fundamental principles: affordability and accessibility. "Queer people, especially AFABs [assigned female at birth], are quite broke, so the price point is very important to us," Vasanth notes pragmatically. "It needs to be accessible to people not just from the metros—we want it accessible to anybody in India: tier-two, tier-three, non-English speaking queers."

The brand's expansion beyond binders came through community consultation. After discussions with trans organisations in Kolkata and Bengaluru, Vasanth learned that the community needed packers—silicone prosthetics that create a bulge. Simultaneously, trans women approached her about tucking underwear, which serves the opposite function. "These products are quite basic, and we have not had access to them for decades," she observes, highlighting a glaring market failure in a country with a substantial queer population.

Innovation Through Community

Black Eagle Binders doesn't reinvent the wheel—it perfects it for Indian conditions. The company's design process is refreshingly straightforward and community-centric. "There are great products out there across the world," Vasanth explains. "We bring in binders or packers from the US, UK, China, Croatia—different varieties—and distribute them to the community for feedback."

This iterative approach has proved crucial for localisation. Indian body types and the subcontinent's hot, humid climate required specific adaptations. "The sizing is very different for our Indian bodies," Vasanth notes. "We had to do a couple of iterations before we brought out the swim binder; otherwise, people weren't able to breathe, but now it's more airy, more breathable."

Currently sourcing materials from various countries, Black Eagle Binders plans to shift all manufacturing to India by January 2026. "We want to move everything to India because pricing just isn't working out with customs and transport," Vasanth explains. The transition will significantly reduce costs—a saving that will be passed directly to consumers.

The emotional impact of their products provides powerful validation for this approach. "I've seen people start crying after they wear the binder," Vasanth shares, her voice reflecting the weight of these moments. "It's really what motivates us." The company has also discovered an unexpected customer base: cisgender women purchasing binders for swimming and sports, which made them launch their swim binders, whilst packers and tucking underwear are primarily accessed by drag artists and trans individuals.

Navigating Stigma Is An Uphill Battle

The challenges facing Black Eagle Binders extend far beyond typical start-up hurdles. Economic constraints significantly impact the company's ability to offer lower prices. "The way I can keep costs low is if I can place big orders to manufacturers, and that needs capital," Vasanth explains. "If I buy ten packs of underwear versus 1,000, the cost comes down from ₹600 to ₹60."

However, the most devastating challenge has been institutional stigma. In a shocking incident, 220 packers imported from China were destroyed by Indian customs, despite extensive documentation. "We went with queer lawyers, queer organisation letters, a psychiatric letter saying this is not a sex toy—this is gender-affirming," Vasanth recounts. "The psychiatrist's letter said it reduces cases of depression and anxiety. We've done everything, written RTIs, but 220 pieces are being burnt."

The customs officer's response encapsulates the ignorance surrounding queer needs: "She said, 'I understand women who have cancer need that [referring to silicone breast prosthetics], but I haven't seen so many transgenders—why do you need 200?'" This institutional blindness extends to potential investors who question market size. "Investors are like, 'There aren't so many queers,'" Vasanth sighs. "One of our team members worked for the largest binder company in the world, and they sell 70,000-80,000 binders annually just in the US. Our population is five times that."

Beyond Products to Policy

Black Eagle Binders' ambitions extend beyond commerce to activism and social change. The company plans to challenge customs regulations with community support and organisations like ALF (Alternative Law Forum). "If we fight that, our trans men can start accessing packers, STPs [stand-to-pee devices]—all extremely important for the trans men community," Vasanth explains.

Equally important is addressing internal shame within queer communities. Vasanth has observed that while trans women openly discuss tucking, "with trans men, the packer and packer brief are laden with guilt and shame." Collaborating with Sappho from Kolkata, Black Eagle Binders aims to reshape these narratives. "We want to start talking about how it's okay—these are just products to make you feel good. There's no shame associated with it."

"These products are as important as bras and underwear for straight people," Vasanth emphasises. In a country where queer rights remain contentious, Black Eagle Binders represents something revolutionary: the radical act of making essential dignity accessible, affordable, and unapologetically normal.

As the brand prepares to move all manufacturing to India, its mission remains clear: making gender-affirming products accessible, affordable, and free of shame. Or, as Nishita put it simply, “We want to just be a go-to place for queer and trans people.”