Fascinating Indian Jewelry Bridges East and West

Published by The Sun-Sentinel Thursday March 10, 1988 FOCUS ON LIVING By Stephanie Krulik

It is a country whose glorious colors of sunset meet the teal blue evening sky. It is a vast area of contrast, where the majestic Himalayas of the North give way to alluvial plains and huge plateaus. It is a country of ancient customs, crafts and jewel, whose artisans use gold and silver to enhance intricate embroideries and bright silken fabrics. India has always been a fascination to Western civilizations. When you meet her, the fascination becomes apparent. Sudha Pennathur is lovely. She has come to Neiman-Marcus, the Galleria, to show her outstanding collection, available throughout the month of March. She is dressed in a brightly colored silk sari that depicts the region of New Delhi, in which she was born. This soft spoken, highly articulate, exceptionally educated lady, is providing an artistic bridge between the people of India and the United States. Armed with two M.B.A.'s, and after spending 20 years in this country as a top female executive in some of the most prestigious companies like, Carter Hawley Hale, Carson Pirie Scott & Co., Laurel Burch Designs, she left her six figure position as manager of women's merchandise division of Levi Strauss, she says, "because of a lack of love for the corporate world, a loss of touch with reality by becoming so political, and a disillusionment of being a high paid executive woman." Pennathur has created a line of jewelry and artifacts inspired by the art and culture of ancient India. "Art is something we feel inside of us. Some of us expose it in spite of ourselves, and others don't," says Pennathur. As president of the House of Pennathur, her company, "Designs by Sudha", encompasses handcrafted, handmade jewelry, handbags, scarves, artifacts and home furnishings. She creates antique jewelry for Western women and works with 25 craftsmen in Katmandu, Jaipur, Bombay and New Delhi, as she designs jewelry reproductions from the 13th to 19th century India. It is for "women who like bulky, intricate pieces, not too ethnic, but interesting enough to make a statement," she says. Her one of-a-kind museum quality pure silver jewelry always contains one antique piece. Pieces like a National Award Winning necklace that features a huge winged American Eagle with stones of amethyst and garnet. Some of the jewelry comes from a man's 500 gram (1.5 pound) silver square rope belts that she makes into necklaces. "The older the piece, the more clear and streamlined it is. That's what makes it timeless. That's why it has survived," she says. Pennathur uses only natural stones of peridot, red and blue onyx, topaz and aquamarine. Her favorite, the lapis, is the proudest of all stones. Ideas for some of the black onyx and antique amber pieces come from old Persian carpets. Many of the pieces have a story. Like Neiman-Marcus collectable pieces with India's national bird, the Peacock, that represents trinity; flowers, for Mother Earth, and lions, to protect the earth. One dynamic necklace features old melon balls, and like the pumpkin, means fruit of the earth. Her earrings are antique designs of sun's rays, the planets, moon, Mother Earth. New, contemporary, very dramatic pieces are droplets with antique fish, an Indian sign of good hope. Antique bracelets and rings are made from Bidri, the art of inlaying silver and gold wires in grooves etched on the surface of gunmetal. The Bidri technique is used in Pennathur's antique boxes topped with crushed semi-precious stones of lapis and garnet in geometrics she designs. Her perfume boxes have triple-tier openings. Her antique collection focuses on three themes: Royal India, with influences of British wealth and opulence, in velvets and gold work embedded with semi-precious stones. Festive India is colorful. Melas, or fairs, are depicted by the Shamianas, or bright wedding tent. Pennathur has created table clothes, tote bags, caftans, scarves in vibrant, lively colorations. Tribal India is folk art. Handcrafted pieces known as Dokhra, a lost wax process dating back to 2000 B.C. Bronze is poured into a mold, filled with wax, and when the wax is broken, the bronze statue remains. They are crude, massive pieces that are whimsical in nature. Says Pennathur, "Anything whimsical is timeless because you are not using an exact theme." She travels to India at least four times a year to work with her artisans. Bringing the artifacts to the States is the only way they get recognition. To them, "Life and art is very much a day-to-day routine. They don't distinguish between art and work," says Pennathur. She says she doesn't want to loose her identity. Pennathur has spent as much of her life in India as she has in the United States. She finds this a wonderful way to expose artisans, as she comments, "In many ways, I'm still very Indian and yet my behavior is American. The only way I can live with myself is to bridge the two: I take the best of the U.S. back to India and bring the best of India here." 