Basra Pearls

Pearls……As you know Hyderabad is famously and rightly known as the “City of Pearls”, and the city has a number of reputed pearl dealers/jewellers who deal in pearls. Any talk about traditional Hyderabadi jewellery is just not complete without a mention of the famous BASRA pearls, and for those of you who always wondered how the name Basra originated….. jewellery that was made with Basra Pearls means that the pearls originated from the pearl banks of the Persian Gulf that were found on the Arabian side of the Gulf, particularly off the coast of Bahrain, Kuwait, Abu Dhabi, Oman, and off the coast of Lavan-Kish island group on the Persian side of the Gulf. A hundred years ago Basra was a regional center for the marketing of Persian Gulf pearls; hence all pearls produced in the Persian Gulf irrespective of their country of origin came to be known as Basra pearls.

So, if you have any jewellery that was handed down from your parents/grand parents and that was made with Basra pearls….HOLD ON TO THEM, because they are the real deal and were made with the real natural pearls, the supply of which STOPPED about 50 years ago ( ever since oil was found in the gulf region, making the oil industry much more lucrative than pearls.). Given below are two really beautiful necklaces made with graduated Basra pearls, the first one has rather round and perfect pearls making it a unique piece.
 

Another traditional Hyderabadi pearl jewellery item is the Sath Lara ( Seven Strands ) shown below. The Saath Lara can be quite an over powering piece when made with larger pearls and I personally prefer them much simpler with smaller pearls or with lesser strands such as teen lara or the panch lara .

Here are some designs for Sath Lara.....click on the pics for more detail.





 

I am also including a link to an excellent article that talks about Hyderabadi pearls and the pearl trade.

http://www.saudiaramcoworld.com/issue/199805/city.of.pearls.htm



Shriya Saran's Necklace

Shriya seems to like this traditional necklace that elevates her beauty and makes a big impact on the overall look. She wore it on two different occasions and looked gorgeous at both the events.

At Filmfare south awards..                                           At the Toronto festival an year ago...

Tusshe - Hyderabadi traditional Jewellery

Today I am going to blog about jewellery since jewellery is an intrinsic part of the overall fashion sense. Specifically, I will talk about traditional old Hyderabadi Jewellery and I think traditional jewellery never really goes out of fashion. I am going to be showing you some pieces that my aunt ( a lady with a very refined taste and of course, lots of money ;-)  was kind enough to share and allow me to photograph. The first item that I really adore is a variation of the choker and is called a Tusshe or Laccha. I am showing two variations and I have seen some that are much more grander than the ones below, but I personally like these, because they are simple, classy and elegant…..very Hyderabadi!

Tusshe originated some hundreds of years ago from the Nizam's choker called Laccha. It is put together by tightly tying several similar pieces of Jewellery, usually zigzag in shape, with a thread in between. Tusshe is usually made with gold and can go very well when worn on sarees with zaree on them.

Lacchas.....

Antique Tusshe - More than hundred years old

Note : This is one of the many posts that I will write about jewellery from and around the Hyderabad area. Also, if you happen to have any traditional Hyderabad jewellery, PLEASE send me a pic along with any history about the piece so that I can put it on the blog for the world to appreciate... because every piece of  jewellery has an interesting story to tell !! .

1 gram jewellery - Art Karat

With the gold prices sky rocketing everyday, more and more are opting for traditional looking 1 gram jewellery that is well made and looks artistic. They are now available anywhere and everywhere in Hyderabad. Most of the star hotels hold exhibits to sell 1 gram jewellery from Mumbai, Delhi, Rajasthan etc. Kalanjanli, Kalaniketan, Chandana Bros. etc sell these at reasonalble prices but if you are looking for even lower prices, you could go to begum bazar and sometimes, some people make and sell these from their own homes. There are also people who can create a replica of the jewellery that you like.

Art Karat sells some good designs of these jewellery on the web and they hold exhibits every once in a while.

Here are some of the good 1 gram gold designs

Hyderabad Traditional Jewellery - Bindi - PART1

A cut diamond necklace with pearl droppings is a very traditional "hyderabadi" ornament that is usually passed along through the generations. There is an old hyderabadi saying that one never owns one's jewelery, but  rather rents/enjoys it to wear in their lifetime and  then passes it along to the next generation !!

My personal feeling is old/traditional jewellery enhances and embellishes one's beauty in a very subtle way the is not possible with contemporary jewellery.

Here is a traditional bindi set from my aunt, I will be blogging about other traditional jewellery pieces later on. If you have any traditional hyderabadi jewellery that you would like to share on the blog please feel free to email me.

Veronica Manchu - Kundan Jewelry

Kundan Jewelry is gaining popularity especially as a bridal wear in receptions and engagements. Instead of wearing a few different traditional jewelry items, you can wear a one big kundan set. Some of the kundan pieces look really nice but personally, I am not a fan of really huge pieces that you can not use again.

Here is Veronica Manchu during her wedding