The traditions
Eight states. Many traditions. One connection.
Northeast India is home to more than two hundred communities, each with its own way of adorning the body. These notes are where our designs begin — a starting point for curiosity, not the whole story.
Assam
Capital · Dispur
Assamese jewellery is known for its delicacy — Jonbiri crescent pendants, Gamkharu bracelets and Thuria ear studs, traditionally worked in gold or gold-washed silver by artisans around Jorhat. Our Assam pieces borrow those silhouettes, the bell metal of Sarthebari, and the Kopou orchid worn in the hair at Bohag Bihu.
Arunachal Pradesh
Capital · Itanagar
With more than twenty major tribes, Arunachal Pradesh holds one of the richest bead cultures in India — heavy multi-strand necklaces, cane-and-bead bracelets, and the silver of the Monpa highlands. Our pieces draw on the sun and moon of the Donyi-Polo faith and the layered strands worn across the valleys.
Manipur
Capital · Imphal
In the Imphal valley, jewellery is worn alongside the phanek and innaphi, and craft sits close to ritual. Brass and silver are engraved with fine linework, while slim crimson-and-black strands carry the colours of the hills. Our Manipur designs centre on engraved cuffs, coiled loops and threaded necklaces.
Meghalaya
Capital · Shillong
Among the Khasi, long strands of red coral and gold beads are heirlooms, kept within the family line of a matrilineal society. Our Meghalaya collection pairs coral-red with gold-toned beads and the mossy olive of the rain-washed hills around Shillong.
Mizoram
Capital · Aizawl
Mizo jewellery favours bold beads — amber, black and deep red — strung to sit against the striped puan. Our Mizoram pieces use graphic spirals, seed-flower bracelets and barrel beads that echo the woven patterns of the hills around Aizawl.
Nagaland
Capital · Kohima
Naga jewellery is unmistakable: layered necklaces of red, yellow and black glass and carnelian beads, brass and conch, and the motif of the great hornbill — the bird that gives Nagaland’s December festival its name. Every tribe has its own combinations; our pieces are made in that spirit rather than copying any one.
Sikkim
Capital · Gangtok
Lepcha, Bhutia and Nepali traditions meet in Sikkim, where amber, coral and turquoise are set against gold and silver, and amulet boxes are worn close to the heart. Our Sikkim pieces use warm amber tones and dark jet beads inspired by mountain jewellery.
Tripura
Capital · Agartala
Tripura’s nineteen tribes have long worn silver — most famously the coin necklaces of Reang women, layered over strands of beads. The state is also known for its cane and bamboo craft, which we bring into lightweight woven earrings and hair pins.
“We don’t own these traditions. We’re simply trying to carry a little of their beauty a little further.”
— From the first page of the Samavaya sketchbook
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