Chitira Katha means Picture Stories. I my opinion the most impressive stories are often those which come with pictures. Inspired by the mythological picture story books of India, I present Chitira katha – a collection of necklaces and rings that could be a starting point for many a story telling session. Each piece narrates a story from Ramayana, Krishna and shiva puranas concluding with stories about Indian art and culture. These are not just jewelry pieces but stories of India that I hold close to my heart.
Almost all festivals or functions in India, begin with the taking of names of Gods and Goddesses regardless of the religion.Calling out to the gods, is believed to create an auspicious start. In Hinduism, Lord Ganesha, is the God of beginnings and I pay obeisance to him with this first piece from Chithira Katha
Ganesha cord necklace – Three different paintings of ganesh with his moushika (Rat) set in resin in round antique bezels on a hand made silk cord in orange and rust. Length excl pendant -18.5″ , pendant drop – 1.25-1.5″
Planetary Ganjifa cord necklace – Unique necklace with images of three benevolent graha or planets – Guru, sukra and Budd to bless you with all good things in life. These images are adapted from Rare ganjifa cards and are is unique due to the fact that the planets are seen riding their respective vahanas or vehicles. Set in resin in round shiny silver bezels these pendants are arranged on a hand made slik cord in maroon and beige. Length excl pendant -18.5″ , pendant drop – 1.5″
TriDevi cord necklace – Feminine Shakti displayed through the images of Durga, Lakshmi and saraswati set in resin in round shiny silver bezels. The pendants are glitter with water effect and drop beautifully from a hand made silk cord in pink, orange and brown. Length excl pendant -18.5″ , pendant drop – 1.25 -1.5″
Trimurthi cord necklace – Images of the Holy Trinity – Brahma, Vishnu and shiva – the creaor, protector and destroyer set in resin in round and tear drop shaped shiny silver bezels on a hand made silk cord in green and beige. Length excl pendant -18.5″ , pendant drop – 1.25-1.5″
As you would have noticed all four are handmade cord necklaces made with artificial silk (viscose) thread and further decorated with a thicker polyester cord. These pieces were inspired by the “dollar pendants” sold outside temple. These Dollars (pronounced Dallar) usually have a metal base with an image of a God or goddess in the center covered with glass or resin and could be purposed for a few rupees(or a quarter). These were immensely popular when I was kid and people would wear them on a black cord or a metal chain around their necks as a talisman for good luck or protection. They slowly dropped out of the scene as a lot of people considered them to be cheap or tacky.
While looking for ideas for this collection, Chithira Katha, I thought, why not bring the dallars back by making them more contemporary and desirable; so here they are. The first piece is sold, but the other three are available for sale.
I hope to showcase all pieces of this collection and the next one, soon, piece by piece 🙂
I hope you find it interesting
Cheers
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