The corridor leading to Nirav Modi’s office, nestled in a former mill in Mumbai’s Lower Parel area, is lined with works by Indian masters F.N. Souza, Raja Ravi Varma, S.H. Raza and M.F. Husain. His plush-but-understated office has coffee-table books on art, fashion and jewellery; portraits of his wife and children; Subodh Gupta’s ‘Basket of Gold Cow Dung Cakes’ sculpture on the floor, and a giant fish tank on the wall. It’s been five years since Modi decided to switch from trading in precious stones to creating exquisite art with them.
The luxury jeweller’s love affair with design began in 2008 when a friend asked him to create a pair of earrings. He refused for almost six months before finally giving in. “The joy on her face when she saw the earrings was enough to convince me that designing something special for someone was more gratifying than just selling diamonds,” he says, smiling at the memory.
Modi was born into the diamond business (his father was a diamond trader in Antwerp) but grew up wanting to be a music conductor. “Dozens of people playing different instruments all follow this one guy dressed in tails and holding the baton. I thought it was amazing. That’s who I wanted to be when I grew up,” he says.
As we talk, Modi pours me several cups of pale green Sencha tea out of a beautiful blue enamel teapot. “This Sencha is from Kyoto. A very precise amount of tea leaves is steeped in water that’s between 80 degrees Celsius and 90 degrees Celsius for less than a minute. I like my tea to be perfect.”
It’s this level of fastidiousness that’s helped the Nirav Modi brand make a mark on the global stage. An intricately designed necklace was featured on the cover of auction house Christie’s Hong Kong catalogue, a first for an Indian jeweller. The latticework necklace with pink Argyle diamonds and a rare 12.29-carat Golconda diamond at the centre fetched an unprecedented Rs. 16.29 crore.
When inspiration strikes, Modi communicates his ideas to his designers (he cannot draw). And anything can inspire the jeweller. His daughter wearing a nondescript hairband resulted in the 1,600-diamond Embrace bangle. It took his craftsmen almost two years to put the bangle together to Modi’s satisfaction.
A pair of bangles from Modi’s Embrace collection.
Whether a flower or a constellation, Modi’s ideas are translated into sketches which, once approved, are recreated in wax models. Not all designs see the light of day. “Everything has to be perfect. There are some tenets that are sacrosanct. We are very selective about the diamond quality. Our designs use minimal metal so that the stones shine. Each piece has to be fluid and have a level of detailing that is beyond imagination.” Modi is a perfectionist for whom no detail is too small.
Music wasn’t the only influence in young Modi’s life. “Growing up in Europe meant I was exposed to classical music, museums and architecture very early in life. My mother is an interior designer. Whenever we went on vacation, the first place we would be dragged to were museums.” He might not have been happy about spending so much time in museums but today he is glad he was exposed to art and beauty so early.
Lotus, one of the eight collections launched by Modi’s eponymous luxury jewellery brand, was inspired by Monet’s ‘Water Lilies’. “In my teens, I visited the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. The works of impressionists like Degas and Monet mesmerised me.” Two decades later, during a family holiday in Paris, Modi visited Giverny, Monet’s home and inspiration for the Water Lilies series. “Giverny was magical… like we had walked into Monet’s painting.” Modi swapped the lilies with the lotus (“for the Indian connection”) and created his inspired collection.
With stores in Mumbai, New Delhi, New York, and two in Hong Kong, Modi is now all set to open in London and Macau.
In August, the billionaire (he is ranked 1,067 in the Forbes’ list of world billionaires for 2016 and 46th in India) was invited to the Paris Biennale, another first for an Indian jewellery brand. Earlier this year, his flawless jewels made their Oscar debut when Kate Winslet wore his exquisite Luminance bracelet and matching earrings and a two-carat Celestial ring for Hollywood’s biggest evening.
Modi was 19 when he decided he wanted to work with diamonds. And at 45, he is ready to realise his dream of “being among the top five luxury jewellery brands in the world.”
Karishma Upadhyay is a film journalist who loves to travel and is obsessed with baking, Kanye West and fantasy fiction.
