India’s rich tradition of intricate jewelry

Defining Ethical Fashion
With the launch of Aulerth, the world gets to experience India’s rich tradition of intricate jewelry, guilt-free. Vivek Ramabhadran’s brand introduces us to a world of man-made precious stones and recycled precious metals to champion the ethos of mindful materialism. 

Over the last decade, fashion connoisseurs have demanded a revolution, choosing labels that make sustainability the heart of hearts. Jewelry, however, gets little of this attention. From intentionally opaque gemstone sourcing to highly pollutant mercury dumping in the extraction and processing of gold, the fine jewelry industry that relies on the miracle of nature for its inspiration and value is ironically its greatest offender.

Did you know, a single 9 gm 22 kt gold ring generates over 20T of toxic waste, including cyanide and mercury pollution? Overall, mining for gold alone generates nearly 150 million T of carbon emissions, and nearly 6 bn T of toxic waste, besides significant ecological damage. And, all this is amplified by the rampant ecological destruction in mining for diamonds and gemstones. The concept of Aulerth was born to address this problem. The brand presents a conscious, guilt-free version of our indulgence in fine jewelry.

In 2022, Vivek Ramabahadran’s brand, Aulerth, has partnered with India’s top designers to create the country’s first ethical jewelry brand for weddings and evening occasions. For its launch, Aulerth has collaborated with Tribe Amrapali, Suneet Varma and JJ Valaya to bring forth exquisite lines of jewelleries for the modern Indian woman. In the coming months, many more couturiers’ jewelry lines are set to be launched.

Aulerth, the world’s first of its kind platform, presents jewelry that is couture-inspired and consciously made. Partnering with leading designers who define fashion, Aulerth showcases the best of Indian aesthetics to a global audience. In its launch collections, JJ Valaya, Suneet Varma and Tribe Amrapali swap the metals and gemstones in their jewelleries for sustainable alternatives—metals recycled from industrial scrap, and largely man-made (vs. mined) stones. The designers’ signature style shine through in these meticulously-crafted pieces that exemplify mindful materialism guaranteed by lifetime warranty services. Every season, Aulerth will partner with leading Indian designers to introduce the world to India’s rich aesthetic while adding sustainability to India’s rich craft treasures.

Says Vivek Ramabhadran, founder of Aulerth, “Aulerth is on a continuous pursuit to bridge the seemingly disparate worlds of being couture-inspired, and consciously made–with an underlying foundation of bringing more responsibility and mindfulness to the end-to-end process spanning design, production, merchandising and packaging.” Ramabhadran, a self-confessed outsider to the world of design brought a renewed glitter to Swarovski (as Vice President and Managing Director for South Asia — spanning Middle East, India, South-east Asia), and now uses that same approach to fill a desperate need in the world of jewelry. Vivek’s greatest strength lies in bringing objective analyses to the world of design, a way of thinking honed over a successful stint at McKinsey, serving consumer goods clients across the emerging markets of the Middle East and Africa. Additionally, Vivek has a Bachelor’s degree from IIT Madras, a Masters in Manufacturing from the University of Texas-Austin, and an MBA from INSEAD.

For Suneet Varma, this collection draws inspiration from the timeless beauty of Mughal architecture. Bursts of pastels in pale pinks, minty greens and white stones find space between more traditional pieces in rich decadent palettes. Remembrances of the Taj Mahal’s minar and spectacular appeal of inlay work, frescos, and meenakari from Mughal-inspired art forms transport you to a different era and yet are grounded in Aulerth’s ethical promise.

JJ Valaya’s jewelry line embodies the essence of – The Royal Nomad with a penchant for Art Deco. The couturier translates his design sensibilities from the celebrated ‘Rumeli’ line to Aulerth’s jewelry collection. Carved gemstones are set in exquisite metal frameworks with zircon details, intricate enamelling bejewelled with a bandish work of rose pearls and tumbles, elevated by textured metals. This curation of conscious jewelry draws inspiration from the Ottoman Empire bringing together a symbiotic melange of floral nuances and Aztec strokes.

Tribe Amrapali lends their love and deep understanding of classic Indian jadau and chitai work to every piece. The stones have been takkar and prong-set featuring meenakari and Kundan work with enamelling, delicate beadwork, oxidation, and gold plating, painting 2022 in the flamboyance of Indian cultures and traditions.

Aulerth is set to launch this February. In its launch offering, the digital platform will be showcasing three exclusive collections from Tribe Amrapali, Suneet Varma and JJ Valaya, to begin with, followed by many more designer-crafted lines to be launched in the coming months. The jewelry will be available on Aulerth’s website – www.aulerth.com