Jaipur's a long way away to travel from to get your bridal jewellery made. Be that as it may, Maneesha was determined to order with us and finally did, last autumn. We're overwhelmed at the appreci...

Jaipur's a long way away to travel from to get your bridal jewellery made. Be that as it may, Maneesha was determined to order with us and finally did, last autumn. We're overwhelmed at the appreciation garnered by our kind of handmade precious jewellery when, all around, the world's gone tawdry. It's also a great fillip for Bengal to know her jewel-craft is being celebrated by the diverse peoples of distant lands both within and outside of the country. Last week, we handed over the ornaments to Maneesha who came to Calcutta expressly to take delivery of her hand-chased guinea-gold parure consisting of the Moushumi Rose Choker (of 30th May, 2018), a matched Choor, and these Kanbalas. The gems were done away with on all the goyna, as specified, and the earrings designed and wrought specially to match the choker which originally came with a pair of Dhakai pashas.

The classic form of the Kanbala is retained to complement the choker and you'll see the generous wreath of twining roses clearly matched to the neck ornament. A contrasting polished jhumka with its large ball clapper (also polished) is placed below the ball-karai border of the rose-vine panel and balances the powerful pierced naksha with its overt simplicity. This is done to ensure the Kanbala may more readily be paired with other gold sets and also to confirm its stature as an independent jewel by the loss of its naksha specificity. Note the hanging pendant in the centre of the kanbala that doubles up as the pasha and is an indulgent katai rendering of the Ratanjot flower which, here, might allude to the couple being a gem of a pair whose love stars seem perfectly aligned with each other so that, as in a fairy tale, they'll live happily ever after. Imparted a light Bangla polish that gives it its distinctive reddish hue, this Kanbala, in all its handcrafted purity, is a happy herald for authentic fine Bengal jewellery to fittingly take its place among the great heritage craft traditions of India.

We thank, with all our heart, Maneesha who trusted her feelings that she'd find the true and beautiful Bengal in gold with us and came all the way from Jaipur to realise her dream of making a set of pure Bengali wedding ornaments that will, no doubt, in time become a family heirloom. To honour her, we've christened the Kanbala by her name.