Meera Chandra’s ‘Mannu’ is breathing new life into Simple Earth, Turning it into colourful jewellery
Text Credits: Rochelle D’Souza Image Credits: Mannu
A few years ago Meera accompanied her mother to a fashion boutique in Kochi and while her mother looked at fabrics and embroidery, she was drawn towards jewellery and accessories. There was a pair of ‘jimmikki kammal’ in particular that she liked and like most kids, she tugged at the mother’s skirt and demanded that she buy them for her. As most things are in designer boutiques, the earrings were rather expensive, and Meera’s mother chided her and said that she can just as easily make her own that is equally beautiful, if not more. Thus began her experimentation with jewellery making.
“I brought terracotta clay the very next day and watched innumerable tutorials on how to shape and form clay on YouTube. After a great deal of experimentation I gradually learned and created an aesthetic for myself. Later, when I got into architecture school, I began to experiment with shapes and forms.” says Meera Chandran, the 21-year-old student of Architecture at KMEA College who moonlights as a jewellery designer and runs her brand ‘Mannu’.
‘Mannu’ means earth, and while it is one of the simplest elements and the most easily available, it is also the most versatile. Meera isn’t quite sure why she decided to use clay as her medium of choice, but all she knew was that she has always been drawn towards it. “Something about the element that allows you to meld and mould it struck a chord with me.”
“I don’t really remember when it was that I began what can only be described as my love affair with all things handmade. I guess it all began with the intrinsic traits I inherited from my mother, who is a very talented artist. I’ve been toying with clay ever since I was in school. I joined Architecture College a couple years ago but deep down I am still to all thing art and particularly to the avenues of handmade fashion. I’ve always moved towards aesthetics that reflect traditional art and our cultural traditions, and in earthen jewellery I found both.”
We were very keen to know of the creative process of a student of Architecture who simultaneously manages to run her own brand. Meera says she keeps it simple. “The only idea I have in mind when I set about creating my pieces is ‘What can I do differently with these fingers of mine, every single time’. I firmly believe in adding my own uniqueness, a dash of culture and a generous helping of love to each and every piece that I make. My process begins with an idea that I first scribble on a paper and then mould the terracotta. It is then dried and set in several stages. Meanwhile I take the time to choose the colours and try them out on my sketch before painting them on. The final art is dried, polished and packed. I also do customized products, and the process for that is a bit more tedious as it most often requires research and a lot of trial and error.” she says.
Meera says that she has no particular target audience and that she gets quite a few orders from male customers who ask for jewellery, both customised and otherwise, for their mothers, wives, sisters and girlfriends. Her entrepreneurial journey began during a college exhibition at KMEA where her group of friends helped her exhibit and rake in customers. These days she relies on social media to reach out to potential clients. “Social media is my present medium of choice, particularly Instagram. It’s quite astonishing to know what a huge digital marketing tool Instagram is. Facebook, although still relevant, seems to be a thing of the past. I find a great deal of new customers via Instagram. But when all is said and done, I still believe that a satisfied customers is the best kind of publicity.”
Meera says that the biggest challenges she’d faced so far about running the brand was her lack of time while juggling between college and her business. “Time is the biggest problem I face at the moment, and this stands true not just from the perspective of a student entrepreneur but also any person juggling a full time career or a family while setting up their business – but irrespective of how tied up or tired you are, you always make time for the things you love. It means even more when you’re doing something you love. A set schedule will help you do all the things you want to do and right now that’s how I’m managing my time. I occasionally take breaks from college to do my work and vice versa. It’s just a matter of finding your flow and going with it.” says Meera.
When asked what her future plans for Mannu were, Meera says that there’s a brick and mortar store in the books. “I would love to start my own store someday. At the moment, my goals are small, like creating a webpage which would have a dedicated section for clients who wish to have customizations where they could mix and match their ideas for me to create.”
