Can a nose pin, hair ornaments and earrings be combined to make a stunning contemporary piece? It can, in Ashwini Oza’s designs at Arnav. Ashwini reasons how every piece of jewellery is a work of art provided it is crafted and worn with that mindset. Their latest collection for the heritage line for the festive season bear testimony to that.
The old and the new blend aesthetically in the pieces which are handcrafted with passion. Bugdi, jade billa and what not meet to create magic in her distinctive designs.
In a neckpiece, Arnav’s founder has blended an old Maharastrian nath with earrings from Kerala and jhumkas. “There is a lot of emphasis on the old now. People are going back to old weaves, old designs, antique furniture. Earlier people didn’t wear religious motifs much,” says Ashwini showing us a neckpiece with a motif of Balaji.
She draws inspirations from a host of traditions - temple jewellery, naqqash, meenakari, kundan etc and combines it with new sensibilities. “People are dressing up differently so they need pieces which are relevant today. A piece which can be worn with a sari, a dress or a pair of trousers is what they want,” explains the designer who started Arnav Design Studio in 2001.
Transforming heirlooms
Arnav also gets orders to transform the heirloom pieces into something contemporary. “A customer brought to us two pair of earrings worn by her mother and mother-in-law and we turned it around into a side pendant or mohapu. People come to us with stones and ask us to make something special out of it. It is, however, a niche market. Not everybody understands the difference between a handcrafted piece and machine work,” says Ashwini adding that it is difficult to explain the significance of their pieces to people whose main concern is the weight of jewellery. “These pieces may not appeal to those who want a neck piece in certain amount of gold. Their concern is weight and solid gold. You have to attach value to the work done in hand and the creativity.” Gold is quirkily merged with coloured stones and even sea shells in some of the designs Ashwini shows us. Elsewhere, she draws from the ikat weave. “Someone gave me two old bangles and I made hoops for her. Now, that customer wears it all the time. There was a lot of emotion invested in old jewellery pieces, in how it was bought and worn. It is missing now.”
Stellar pieces
The Heritage collection which comes out with stellar pieces on festivals and the wedding season has two lines. While one comprises pieces combining old pieces of jewellery sourced from different areas, individuals etc. the other features works which are brand new but made to look antique using different techniques of which dye stamping is a major one.
“Nature has always been an important part of our designs. You look at old books and catalogues and you will see how leaves, peacock, fish, paisley motifs were always considered auspicious and these patterns continue to dominate these designs,” states Ashwini who works with dedicated kaarigars in two workshops in the city. At times, the work is outsourced as well.
While gold is still most preferred, silver has also caught on in the last 10 years according to Ashwini. “You can experiment a lot more and it is easier to buy. Even today when it comes to buying gold, the whole family has to get involved. With silver it is easy and it looks very attractive too.”
(Arnav Design Studio, 9th Main, 2nd Jayanagar, Opp Govt Nursing Home)