Aarika is a handcrafted jewelry brand born out of my love for jewelry making in the year 2009. It’s not just another brand in the market. It’s a love for the artform. We specialize in hand-woven neckpieces in jute, an eco-friendly medium, interlaced with handcrafted temple motifs, keeping the urban sensitivities in mind.
I believe that a piece of jewelry should not just adorn the body but capture the spirit of the wearer. Each and every work of ours is unique, handmade with pride, in our workshop in Chennai, by a team of skillful women artisans.

Tough times create strong Women! Strong Women create good times. I am sure you have come across this quote, though I have tweaked it a bit and made it women centric, because I come from a lineage of very strong-willed, inspiring and creative women with a never give up attitude for life! My maternal grandmom ran a school teaching vocational courses to girls, at a time when blackouts during war were still a reality! My paternal grandmom was very skilled and could knit, crochet, do exquisite embroidery, stitch beautiful clothes and cook like a dream. She single-handedly raised a family of 5 using her creative skills. My earliest memories of my grandmother are of helping her on the sewing machine while she stitched beautiful clothes for us. The reason I mention them here is to pay a small tribute to their contribution in giving me a creative mindset and skills without which I would not have achieved what I did.

MY LOVING PARENTS

I could cook a meal for my family at the tender age of 12 and always hated it when my mom and grandmom grilled me thus! I did not realize then, that they were actually training me for life, with the same never give up attitude! It helped me tackle a lot of curve balls, life threw my way! My mother always encouraged my creative side and independent thought process. She is the wind beneath my wings. I used to make craft projects with scrap and collected them relentlessly. It came as a shock to my in-laws when I brought along my collected treasures (box of trash according to them) after marriage. Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would make a career out of it. Leaving behind a robust corporate career that lasted 9 years, I took a leap of faith and started my jewelry brand Aarika.

An auto-immune disorder to my credit (just 3 months into my marriage) that ravaged my body but not my spirit. I started small!! I mention the ailment as a credit here because it taught me lessons, I otherwise would not have learnt. Like they say, ” Rock bottom has built more champions than privilege ever did! ” The training I had received from my family helped me sustain. My mom, sister and my husband are my pillars of support. They always encouraged me to fight and move ahead. My sister is my biggest inspiration in life!! From fighting with the parents to become the first flight attendant in the family, to running a very successful clothing brand, she has always been my role model.

I graduated from making jewelry in a small room at home to have a 5 women team making works of wearable art in my workshop. They are retailed the world over on some of the best online portals today! I have come a long way! Brings me immense happiness and pride every-day when I open the doors of my workspace.

MY TRYST WITH JEWELRY MAKING

I am a student for life and have always been fascinated with learning new forms of art and craft. I enrolled for a week-long workshop on jewelry designing, the advertisement for which I came across by chance and fell in love with the art form! It gave me a sense of fulfilment that I never felt before! I found my calling! I went on to complete my diploma in jewelry designing after that!

I started making small pieces of jewelry to gift friends and moved on to retail at some very popular brick and mortar stores in Chennai. I can still feel the joy I felt on the day when I was accepted at a prominent store in a plush location in Chennai to stock my brand. There has been no looking back ever-since!