AMRAPALI

“I’m happy to say that we have reinvented ourselves,” says Tarang Arora, 35, Creative Director and CEO of Amrapali Jewels, started in 1978. If timeless is one way to describe Amrapali’s aesthetic, international is another. Starting with Hollywood A- listers Angelina Jolie, Halle Berry, Sandra Bullock and Megan Fox, the House of Amrapali boasts a remarkable following.

Amrapali was begun by Rajiv Arora and Rajesh Ajmera. They started trading in handicrafts. A year and a half into the business, they heard about the great demand for garnets, a stone cut in Jaipur. They decided to explore it and discovered the world of jewellery. By 1981/ 82, they had started selling avant garde designs with a chunky, bold aesthetic, which began with silver and has, over the years, moved on to fine jewellery too. “our designs reflect Indian craftsmanship,” says Arora.

Indian sensibility with a western appeal helped them get global fame, in 2002, when they were invited to Selfridges for a special promotion – “23 and a- half days of Bollywood”. The contract was only for 23 days, but 15 years on they are still at Selfridges. In 2011, theirs became the first Indian brand to be invited to Harrods to be part of its fine jewellery room.