Kajal Naina on her Jewellery label and the Mangalsutra Wave in Nepal

Kajal Naina

A Nepali by birth, Kajal Naina is a name people instantly recognise in Nepal. Since famous actress Priyanka Karki's wedding, Kajal became a name to reckon with and someone who would set trends in Gorkhaland. By creating an unconventional wedding present, ‘The Mangalsutra' for the Nepali actress, Kajal also proved that she's a non-conformist as she introduced an Indian trend in Nepal which was never before part of Nepalese weddings. From creating bespoke ornaments to chic jewellery options, she proved to the world how minimalism is classy and less is always more.

We connected with Kajal Naina, the Founder and CEO of Kajal Naina Fine Jewellery, to discuss the journey of Mangalsutra in Nepal and its classy transformation and how it feels to create meaningful pieces that can be worn for life and passed on to the next generation.

1. How did India's Mangalsutra Culture Traverse the border and create a Noise in Nepal? Explain the trend?

When considering India and Nepal, they are not only bridged by geography but by cultural tradition as well. Let's take martial traditions for example; Mangalsutras and Lehanga's originated and came from India but slowly started getting adopted in Nepal because of their deep meaning and beauty. The acceptance of Mangalsutra was initially slow but over the years the culture has started to evolve and now recently it has become a norm to wear it.

Thinking in the direction of THE MAYA STORY: Popular Actress Priyanka Karki reached out to Kajal Naina to get a Mangalsutra designed especially for her wedding. She wanted a mangalsutra that was elegant, modern but still proudly flaunted Nepali culture. And thus, the Maya mangalsutra was born. People loved what we designed - A Mangalsutra - made with a Moon to depict the romance between 2 souls and a Shining Star symbolizing powerful feminine energy, a reminder to keep shining bright. And the moment people saw her wearing it, they fell in love with it. Due to many requests, I went on to design a full Mangalsutra collection.

2. What makes the KN mangalsutra unique? Is there an upcoming collection you'd want to discuss, and what distinguishes it from the existing pieces?

Yes, I am working on something very exciting which is almost ready. I wanted to follow up on my previous collection with a new collection.

When I started designing my first Mangalsutra collection, I wanted to bring in the balance of tradition, story, and style that any woman could appreciate in her daily life. My sole aim was to empower the woman who wears it and make her happy. And I think now I can safely say that I have been quite successfully fulfilling that desire and this is what strengthens my belief that I should keep creating jewellery and listening to my heart.

3. What kind of jewelry designs do you prefer? Where does the design inspiration come from?

For everyday wear, I prefer something simple and elegant while simultaneously giving a stylish and sophisticated nod to my style.

I feel like a storyteller and my jewellery is often inspired by my surroundings - people, nature, culture, the sky, and stars - so these beautiful, meaningful pieces tell their own stories. And whether a customer chooses a piece that is inspired by nature, celestially- inspired or one traditionally symbolic - even a simple initial earring or birthstone piece - they're often a reminder of something special.

4. Is your jewellery design influenced by travelling to many countries? Did it help you to discover the jewellery industry there?

Yes. Life in different countries definitely taught me a lot! For example, it's amazing to have lived in Japan to see how wonderful they find simplicity and have a comparison of life in India and your love of intricacy. I should also mention that India is really close to my heart as I spent a number of my formative years there. Anyway, the two cultures are distinctly separate, these ideals of beauty have no place in each other's lands. However, having walked through the stories and atmosphere of both countries, I was able to pull pieces from both countries and engage them in a way they couldn't otherwise coexist!

We have seen KN successfully establish an international platform that has been the foundation for a few of the recent jewellery trends. Furthermore, when designing each piece we strive to think of the end customer and balance tradition, story, and style.

5. How are you going to offer KN Mangalsutras to the Indian people who have many go-to mangalsutra brands? Is there a special strategy to tap the Indian audiences?

We don't have any special strategy as yet but I think it's enough to keep working from the heart. Nothing too big. I like to take things one step at a time. The success of KN as Mangalsutra's go-to brand in such a short time speaks volumes about how women appreciated our offering.

KN as a jewellery house is constantly absorbing, evolving, and growing with time. Not just for mangalsutra, even our Aum collection or Vajra collection for example. I think the strength of KN is that we understand people and the change in trends. It's not easy but with all that hard work I believe success is inevitable.