When God sat down to create women, he must have dropped a pinch or two of sparkling pixie dust in the caldron. This is probably why women shine, and also have an innate fancy for all that shines! Don’t you think so?

Well, it pleases me to believe so, and it pleased me much more when I met Jaipur-based jewelry designer, Rajul Bhandari.

Something that’s peculiarly interesting about her is the fact that she landed into the field of jewelry designing in a vehicle named destiny.
Okay okay! I won’t spill any more beans. I will just redirect you to our conversation. Read.

Me: Rumor has it that your designs are majestic. What secret weapon have you got?

Rajul: *Chuckles* If creativity counts, I would accredit it as my secret weapon.

Me: It does, it does! Tell me more…

Rajul: I have always been excessively drawn towards two things – sports and creativity. Due to the latter, despite being a good commerce student, I vouched for interior designing.

Me: Wait what!? Interior designing?

And I wondered to myself: Have I come to the right house?

Rajul: *Grinning at my bewilderment* Yes. I am an interior designer by qualification. The story of where I started from to where I landed is quite funny.

I could never practice interior designing because, a) it is an on-the-field kind of work, and b) I got married soon after I completed the interior designing course; I had to take care of my family.

Rajul: … But I guess creativity finds its expression in one way or the other. One fine day, I found myself sketching a jewelry piece, and my folks appreciated it very much. It was my mom and my husband who encouraged me to give the design a shot; and as a baby bird learning to fly, they pushed me off the edge…

Intrigued and fascinated at the same time, I listened attentively.

Rajul: … and it turned out that I could fly. *Smiles* Maybe, jewelry designing was destined to happen!

Having adorned some of her designs myself, I can attest to the fact that she flew, and is still flying. Metaphorically, that is.

Me: So you’ve never pursued a proper course in jewelry designing?

Rajul: Nope.

Me: Whoa! I could have never guessed that. How did you manage to deal with the technicalities and high inventory costs that this field entails?

Rajul: In this context, the famous adage Practice is the best of all instructors goes well with my life. Years of practice, and dealings with the karigars, have been giving me the technical know-how of the field. As far as the costs are concerned, that doesn’t pose much of a problem because I don’t operate full-fledged. I don’t have a showroom with a wide array of designs hanging on the walls; I work from home, and I work for select clients. This may seem surprising, but a lot of people including my relatives and my neighbors do not even know that I am into this profession.

And with that, she brought out the Sherlock Holmes version of me.

Me: Why is that so? You create such amazing designs; you have a good team of karigars, your work has brought you much fame! Why would you not tell the world about it? Aakhir kyun?

Rajul: *Grins* Because I don’t want to neglect my household in the process of setting up a full-grown jewelry venture. I have an 11-year-old son, and he needs me more than anything. He’s into sports – a national level swimmer; all the medals that you see here are his glory. I don’t want my work to take me away from him, and that is why I devote only the first half of the day to my jewelry work.

Hmmm. Seems legit. Sherlock, you can go back and hibernate now.

Me: I’ve also heard that your husband is into manufacturing of boxes for corporates. Your professions are poles apart!

Rajul: As a matter of fact, our professions complement each other very well. He produces boxes for the jewelry pieces I design. And I design many of the fancy boxes that he makes.

Me: Aaah! That’s great!

Meanwhile, I thought to myself: Rab ne bana di Jodi!

Me: Let’s talk about your favorites now, shall we? Your fav jewels to work with?

Rajul: Diamonds, jadau, and their fusion. I also like to do pearls and precious stones.

And I thought: Why you no do gold? Gold is old, eh?  

Me: Favorite jewelry pieces to design?

Rajul: Necklaces – the grand ones. And long danglers.

Me: Favorite creation? The one that was difficult for you to let go off?

Rajul: Sometime back I was doing a bridal set. It was a fusion of rubies, diamonds, and polki. I was overly attached to this one; maybe because a bride was going to wear it for her wedding day, the fact that it was going to be so special for someone. But, somehow the karigar distorted it, and that brought tears to my eyes. I fixed that one with my hands. And it turned out beautiful and elegant in the end. The bride and both her families loved it!

Me: So, did you make one like that for yourself?

Rajul: No, not for me or anyone in the city, for that matter. I don’t repeat the designs within the same city to preserve their uniqueness.

Rajul: … and other than that, there’s this pair of long diamond earrings that I made for myself. I love it. Let me show you why…

Rajul: This has detachable parts. So, you can wear it in multiple ways. And you know what the best part is? It gives an entirely different look each time.

Me: This is one gorgeous thing! But I’m also sure this comes with nice big holes in one’s pockets. *Facepalm*

Rajul: *Chuckles* Grand jewelry pieces can be made from a small budget also. It depends on how creatively you choose your jewels and how you mix and match them with other ones. Here’s an example.

Me: Oooh! With all that being said and heard, the only thing I am wondering right now is the degree of trust involved in the entire process of creating jewelry.

Rajul: Absolutely! The whole field stands on that factor. You can see a trust chain forming. The customer has to trust the designer; the designer has to trust the supplier and vice versa.

Oh! I completely forgot to tell you about the second thing that Rajul is drawn towards – sports! Fact: Not a day goes by that she skips her swimming or badminton sessions.

Me: So, where is destiny taking you next? What’s the next big thing?

Rajul: I dream of exporting internationally, and I plan on making that dream come true.

And there it was… the sparkle in women that I was talking about at the beginning of this article! It reflected in Rajul’s eyes, and it sure was shinier than any diamond.

Me: Any message that you would like to give to the women of Jaipur?

Rajul: Wear jewelry that makes you happy. Do something that you love. Don’t settle for less. Don’t give up on your passions. You never know where they may take you.

That’s Rajul Bhandari for you all… a woman oscillating between family, work, and sports, without letting her strong-willed head go dizzy.

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