Manpriya Bath proudly counts late Princess Diana and Hilary Clinton as two of her esteemed clients. Apart, of course, from the constellation of strong independent women all over the world who have been donning her exquisite creations for the last 25 years. Her precious jewellery label, Manpriya B, selling from a studio in London, features one-off pieces that bear her design leitmotif—subtle, confident and beautiful.
She may be a well-known boutique jeweller today, but her design journey began in Delhi back in the 90s when as a young girl, she watched the skilled karigars in her mother’s workshop crafting intricate jewellery using traditional techniques.
“Even before I knew it, I was sitting at my mother’s knee sharing her love for precious stones and design. My mother had converted one of the garages in our home into a jewellery workshop where we closely watched the artisans at work and learned to appreciate their techniques. Besides, I travelled with her as she sought out coloured stones and diamonds in India and Europe. It is from her that I inculcated the knack to choose the best stones for each piece,” recalls Manpriya.
The early initiation into the field propelled her to pursue gemology at the Indian Gemological Institute, Delhi and then later, when she moved to London, she completed jewellery design and diamond grading course from The Gemological Institute of America. Initially, Manpriya set up a studio called Monpri, in the tony Santushti complex, Delhi, which was extremely successful, but by 2017, she decided that since London had been her home for many years, she would focus more on her London clientele and grow the business in the UK as Manpriya B.
Though her designs are innovative and avant garde, Manpriya is heavily influenced by vintage and classic pieces, where she reworks classics using intricate techniques. Colours and shapes of the stones she uses form the crux of her creations. “The label has earned a reputation in bespoke, one-off jewellery crafted with slice diamonds and coloured stones. The quality of the gems and the craftsmanship is paramount to my brand. If a design is repeated it will be different depending on size and shape of the stone,” she elaborates.
While Manpriya likes using diamonds as highlighters for her collections, in her Diva Slice line, diamonds were the main stones. Explains Manpriya, “I have always loved working with slice diamonds for their organic shapes and patterns. I only ever use those that fulfil my exacting standards for size, colour and clarity. After selecting the stones, I build each collection around a theme which might be inspired by a period in history (the motifs of Rajputana royalty for Fleurs de L’Inde), a style of antiques (Georgian Girandole candelabras for the Girandole Earrings), the beauty of the natural world around me (the fluidity and depth of colour in the polished rare Glam Rocks stones). I often use traditional methods in the production of a modern collection. For example, each piece in Fleur de L’Inde is produced using the ancient kundan method of layering gems in gold foils.”
The inspirations for her work arrive from architecture, antiquity, textiles and the decorative arts suggesting shapes, colours and a combination of both. When not working, the designer enjoys visiting museums and galleries in order to feed her curiosity. As for what she’s working on right now? “I am developing pieces made from single exceptional slice diamonds that can take the wearer from day to night, and statement high glamour pieces for evening wear.”
Single slice diamonds are paired with black onyx to create a stylish contrast or surrounded by smaller slices as highlighters to create impact. Larger slices are grouped together to create her signature girandole collection or paired with mother of pearl to produce beautiful pieces full of subtlety and light. Launching later this year will be the latest additions to her Glam Rocks collection. Glam Rocks are coloured stones of rare size and quality, tumbled and polished to produce gleaming, tactile organic shapes that are unique to each piece. A new selection of statement earrings will be introduced. A gorgeous array of tumbled stones are set against contrasting gems and diamonds; purple amethyst with iolites, blue topaz with white sapphires, green amethysts with peridots and lavender quartz with purple amethysts and pink sapphires.