The Indo-American accessories label, Isharya, founded by sisters-in-law Gauri and Radhika Tandon, has garnered quite a fan following in Hollywood with fashionable leading ladies like Eva Longoria Parker, Lucy Liu and Drew Barrymore, who have been spotted wearing Isharya’s trademark chandelier earrings and statement cuffs.
“It’s a sign of how well our designs have crossed over. It’s not just famous women who’re buying them; a lot of regular people buy them too,” says Radhika.
“Indian jewellery will never go out of fashion, of course,” says Gauri, “Indian women are increasingly looking at jewellery as fashion accessories and not just investment. Isharya combines Indian traditions with western aesthetics, which makes it perfect for the contemporary Indian woman’s needs. Whether she chooses to wear a sari or a dress, the jewellery will complement her look.”
For sometime, the jewellery will only retail at Bungalow 8 in Mumbai, although the Tandons are hoping to retail in other Indian cities soon. With Radhika handling the business in California and Gauri working from Mumbai, Isharya was founded in December 2004.
For the launch at Bungalow 8, the duo have brought four of their lines — the popular Druzy collection, using natural druzy agate and set in statement bib necklaces; the Enamel collection which uses Indian Enamel; the Coin collection, which is inspired by the coin jewellery of Rajasthan’s Banjaracommunity; and the Floating Brocade collection which is inspired by traditional gota embroidery.
Isharya manages to stand out in a market where India-inspired jewellery is also being created by high profile names like Amrapali and Padma Lakshmi. The brand retails out of spaces like Henri Bendel’s, Harvey Nichols and Harrods, has been featured in Vogue and Harper’s Bazaar and was even seen on the New York Fashion Week Spring 2010 runway, where it was presented along with designer Pamella Roland’s outfits. The brand`s pieces also feature in the popular American sitcom, Gossip Girls. Gauri attributes their success to the fact that they’ve never been blinded by the need to outdo their competitors. “We make what we would love to wear. We’re not the type to see what others are doing and then imitate those trends. We like to set our own trends and benchmarks.”
