Portraits of people and places: Jeweller Srinivasan.

A street outside jeweller Srinivasan's home.

The land that time forgot

Unique and regional

fruits, textiles, and yes, jewellery
A fruit called nungu
Portrait of a young girl
There are other castes here too

Devars, Kallars, Goundars, and Brahmins

The land of the Chettiars

There are jewellers aplenty in Karaikudi.

Each specializes in one aspect of the craft. 

Each loves working on certain ornaments. 

Each jeweller has a certain energy.  A vibe if you will.

Srinivasan

is my name
Jeweller Srinivasan stands outside his workshop in Chettinad

How to spell this jewel?

Kalatheer, Kaluthuru, Kazhuthu Uru, Kalathooru

What is its meaning?

The word means: neck ornament

Parts of a Kazhuthu Uru

  • Lakshmi ethanam

  • Thaali

  • Sari-mani (connecting beads)

  • Vazhai (banana tree considered auspicious is engraved)

  • Kuchi (means stick)

  • Kadai-mani (end-bead)

  • Uru (the part from which the name kazhuthu uru comes)

  • Thumbu

  • Pillai thumbu

How are the parts of the jewel made?

Prominent Chettiars:

Alagappa Chettiar, founder of Alagappa University, Karaikudi and A.C. College, Chennai, now named Anna University.
A. M. M. Murugappa Chettiar, founder of Murugappa Group.
Annamalai Chettiar, founder of Annamalai University, Chidambaram and Founder of Chettinad group of Companies.
Avichi Meiyappa Chettiar, founder of AVM Productions
M. A. Muthiah Chettiar, first Mayor of Chennai.
M. Ct. M. Chidambaram Chettyar, founder of Indian Overseas Bank.
Raj Chetty, economist at Harvard University, a MacArthur Fellow and recipient of the John Bates Clark Medal