The Hindu Business Line : A royal comeback

Thewa can be enhanced with pearls, gold, and even diamonds and other precious stones. The price ranges from Rs 2,500 to Rs 80,000 per piece or set depending on the enhancement.

Sir Thomas Roe, an ambassador to the court of Mughal Emperor Jehangir, couldn't stop admiring the array of stunning jewellery that the royals adorned when the emperor left Ajmer in Rajasthan for Delhi.

Kundan and Thewa, traditional jewellery of the Rajasthani royals, have today made a tremendous comeback at the social dos of the rich and the famous. "This kind of work is to be passed down from one generation to another... ," says Bela Rastogi, a Mumbai-based jewellery designer.

Kundan and thewa work are a true blend of Mughal design and Rajasthani craftsmanship. Kundan artisans specialise in the setting of precious stones into gold as well as gold enamelling. Jaipur and, to some extent, Alwar emerged as centres of enamelling in the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries. Maharaja Man Singh who had cordial relations with Emperor Akbar introduced enamelling. The thewa art was started by the Soni family of Marwar, which did not share the trade secret outside the family; the methodology of making this jewellery has hence virtually remained unchanged. The kundan art

Kundan is quintessentially an Indian technique and a speciality of Rajasthan. Here, uncut and unpolished diamonds are set in a core of lac, natural resin, and not in solid gold. The pieces are first shaped by specialised craftsmen and soldered together if the shape is complicated, and left in separate hollow halves. Holes are cut for the stones, engraving is done and the pieces are enamelled. Lac is then placed in the back, and kundan (highly-refined 24-carat gold) is then used to cover the lac and the precious stone is pushed into the kundan.

More than one craftsman is involved in the making of this type of jewellery. The chiterias make the design, the ghaarias the engraving, the meenakars are the enamellers and the sunar is the goldsmith who applies kundan.

Thewa's intricate patterns

Thewa's unique glass, which is treated by a special process to get the glittering effect, highlights the intricate gold work. A thewa piece could even take about a month to complete. The motifs used on jewellery reflect the culture, heritage and the tales of romance and valour of Rajasthan.The four gold sheets (thewa ki patti), each intended for a thewa unit, are fixed to a lac-resin compound spread on a board. Following the design inscribed in line on the gold, an openwork pattern is pierced through the sheets using fine cutting chisels (tankla). The designs may be a hunting scene, a dancing peacock, a gazing deer, a delicate climbing plant with equally delicate flowers and leaves, a woman dressed up in a typical Rajasthani attire, Krishna with gopikas and so on.

Shimmering again

Over the years, this traditional jewellery lost out in popularity to contemporary designer jewellery. Roopa Vohra, a Mumbai-based jewellery designer, who introduced thewa jewellery among the glitterati thus helping its revival, admits that she too wasn't aware of this craft till she came across a "Pankhi" in a book while returning to India from a trip. "I decided to visit Rajasthan, learn more about this craft and popularise it," explains Roopa, who has now been in the thewa jewellery business for the past six years.

Though only four or five colours of glass were used traditionally, Roopa, who studied the art of glass making from Cyprus, uses different colours of glass. "If we can match our footwear to our clothes, we should be able to do the same with our jewellery too," she says.

Today, thewa jewellery is not only popular in other Indian cities, but also among NRIs in the US, UK, Singapore, and Dubai.

Roopa has even redesigned motifs used on the gold filigree work in thewa to suit the needs of Muslim women who don't like to wear motifs such as animals, human forms or birds in their jewellery. So, she has incorporated geometric designs that look delicate and contemporary.

The pricing

Thewa can be enhanced with pearls, gold, and even diamonds and other precious stones, depending on the buyer's choice. The price ranges from Rs 2,500 to Rs 80,000 per piece or set depending on the enhancement.

Kundan is slightly heavier on the purse, as it uses pure gold, uncut diamonds and precious stones.

For example, a pair of earrings could cost anything between Rs 6,000 and Rs 50,000 depending upon the size, the quantity of gold and diamonds used. Bangles range from Rs 50,000 to Rs 4 lakh a pair and an entire set ranges from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 10 lakh.

(Picture courtesy: Roopa Vohra)