Mumbai based jewellery designerMrinalini Chandra might be deep in conversation with you,
but that does not stop her from coming up with the type of earrings that would
best suit the shape of your face and what other accessories would go along with
your outfit. Her mind is brimming with ideas, right from the coffee mugs
stacked in the form of a pyramid to the next line of fine jewellery. Mrinalini
was in Goa for a pop up bazaar to showcase her latest collection, which she designed
especially for Goa. “We have done a silver line collection called ‘Meer’ that
is inspired by poetry. Meer is my favourite Urdu poet. Every time I come to
Goa, I feel very poetic and inspired by the place and its greenery. We spent
almost a month and a half making this special collection for Goa. We usually
don’t do out-of-city previews because the jewellery is delicate but looking at
the response, I am feeling good about it,” says the young jewellery designer.
Trained in Fashion Luxury at the Creative
Academy, Milan, Italy and NIFT, New Delhi, Mrinalini worked at Tanishq (New
Delhi) and MontBlanc (Germany) before launching her own label, Mrinalini
Chandra Artisan Atelier in India. “I completed my education in 2013 and applied
for Lakme Fashion Week; 2014 was my first show. I met my husband, Aditya B
Singh, just after that show. My first collection was titled ‘Please have a
seat’. I have done three Lakme Fashion Weeks, all solo shows with my last show
in 2015. Since then, I have only been doing previews. I took a break in 2016
because I got married and in 2017, I launched my flower line followed by the
collaboration with Candy Crush Saga,” says Mrinalini.
Speaking about how she works on her
designs, she explains that she lets her conceptualisation flow freely and does
not obstruct it in the pursuit of practicality. “I am a very spontaneous person
when it comes to design inspiration. I am not very strict when it comes to
ideation. When it comes to really realising the product that is when I sit and
design. You should learn to compress only when you are finding technical
difficulties, till then, the design should be not influenced by anything.”
One such idea was to create a line solely
on chairs. “Chairs was a design that I thought could go in any direction. Lakme
is an open contest so you create pieces and send them to them. I made three
pieces and it was my first chance. Normally, you don’t get through in the first
attempt as people have been sending in their entries for three-four years.
Lakme really liked my designs and they gave me a solo show, which doesn’t
happen because you have to collaborate with a designer. They gave me a really
good slot and saw something in the product. Recently, I worked on the ‘Spooked’
collection that was based on ghosts and I couldn’t believe that we were sold
out in one day. It is a little out-of-the-box but people are willing to try it,
which feels very encouraging.”
Originally from Lucknow, Mrinalini is currently based in
Andheri, Mumbai, while her main workshop is still in Lucknow, where her parents
and younger brother live. I have to evolve to retain what I have attained. It
takes three months from conceptualisation to the final product. Lot of
jewellery is made from recycled metal. I try limit casting as the process generates
a lot of plastic waste. We do handmades and I have also done 3-D printing,
which is the latest technology. My heart lies in the craft; I enjoy that. When
things are more settled, I would love to have my own workshop in the house and
that’s why I call the label Mrinalini Chandra Artisan Atelier, which means
craftsmen workshop,” she states.
When the makers of Candy Crush Saga were scouting for the best
talent in jewellery designing in India, they picked Mrinalini to design their
line, which came as a huge surprise. “We were approached by Kings, the makers
of Candy Crush Saga; they asked us to do a collection. We had video meetings
with the team of Candy Crush in USA and it was really good to interact with
people who have made such a successful game. It was a challenging collection as
it is a much loved game. It is a two-year collaboration and till then I can
make the jewellery collection. It’s only made for India as abroad people don’t
wear so many colours. They have collaborations with different designers in
other countries.”
While studying in Milan, she was exposed to a different
perceptive. “Here, gold works on Indian skin, there yellow gold is an absolute
no. They like only white gold or rose gold or another material, like bug chunky
stones. To give my country an edgy look, that perspective helps. I can combine
their aesthetic look to create something that is traditional but new. I do a
lot of custom jewellery and my clients come with their lehenga and ask me to do
jewellery which can go with it. I love that challenge and the clients are also
willing to take a chance, so it’s a superb fun experience for both of us.”
Sonam Kapoor picked out the peacock Kaleeras, which were part of
Mrinalini’s collection, for her Mehendi and the jewellery piece became on
overnight internet sensation. “Sonam was getting married and looking out for
Kaleeras. I sent her some designs. She has been wearing a lot of our jewellery
and I never thought that it would match up somebody’s liking that they will
wear your piece for their wedding. Sonam has worn us nearly 15 times,” she
says, about working with Bollywood actor.
To
conclude, Mrinalini gives a glimpse of how she works with a team of only five
members. “I don’t have a PR company and I can only make my product strong. I
have a very small company but we had great opportunities. Everything we do is
done by the team of five members. It is not a mass label and the product is
very tight. Everything is under my control and only then can I deliver that
kind of quality. The clientele is quiet niche and I do very selective things. I
do capsule lines that are small previews of collections after every three
months, which work very well because people are getting variety and design.
Some collections demand more versions.
