About

About The Brand

Launched in 2008, VALLIYAN is a retro-futuristic jewellery brand by Nitya Arora that has paved the way for new-age jewellery that is rooted in India.

Since its inception, VALLIYAN has challenged the status quo, prompting women to explore jewellery outside of the traditional norms they are typically exposed to. By adopting modern techniques and refreshing materials like laser-cut acrylic, enamel, semi-precious stones. Unexpected shapes and colours, natural metals, VALLIYAN is truly for the new generation — a gender agnostic, unapologetic expression of self.

VALLIYAN made its first public appearance at multi-brand designer store Bombay Electric, where pieces sold out within a week. In 2009, VALLIYAN was presented to a large-scale audience at Lakme Fashion Week’s Spring Summer show, after which the entire collection was spotted in Sonam Kapoor’s cult film Aisha, the most fashion-forward film of the time.

VALLIYAN was eventually discovered by fashion editors through trunk shows and pop ups, leading Nitya to win The Grazia Young Designer Award in 2012 and The Elle Graduates Award in 2013. The brand then went on to become the first standalone accessory show at Wills Lifestyle Fashion Week in Delhi.

When counterfeiting started to prevail, a brick and mortar store was a thoughtful avenue to build personal experiences and connection with clients. In 2012, VALLIYAN’s first seasonal retail store opened at KU resort in Goa’s understated Morjim neighbourhood, situated right next to Marbella Beach, Club Fresh, La Plage and Jade Jagger at the time. With KU resort’s Balinese aesthetic, the store was a natural extension of the brand. In 2013, VALLIYAN’s first permanent
store launched in Mumbai, collaborating with Masaba at the corner shop in Kala Ghoda, as an ode to the designer’s love affair with Bombay’s art district.

In the last 16 years, VALLIYAN has adorned the necks of the world’s biggest pop-culture icons and celebrities from Paris Hilton to Kim Kardashian West, Nicki Minaj, Katy Perry, Freida Pinto, Sonam Kapoor, Sridevi, Aishwarya Rai, Deepika Padukone, Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Sobitha Dhulipala and many more.

In January 2024, VALLIYAN returned to Kala Ghoda with a re-imagined, experiential space at Mumbai’s iconic Rhythm House. The space, inspired by the island city, is an amalgamation of both nature’s calming details and the city’s urban elements. Designed by interior-architect Shashank Ahuja in collaboration with Nitya Arora, the store promises to transport you to VALLIYAN’s alternate universe, where you can immerse yourself and leave your woes behind.

About The Designer

Nitya Arora is the founder and creative director at VALLIYAN, best described as a multi-hyphenate and a true artist dabbling in fashion, jewellery, retail curation, conceptual direction, styling. With a successful design career spanning over 17 years, Nitya has created significant impact in pioneering modern jewellery and its perception in India.

It all began when Nitya started her career at the end of high school. Referring to architecture as her first love, she explored options for architecture school only to realise that learning on the job would be the best form of education. Drawing inspiration from Bombay, the city she was raised in, and reading The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand, she found herself veering towards experiences in that direction. Her first internship at 16, with architecture firm Atelier Ashiesh Shah, set the tone for the years ahead.

A year later, Nitya worked with New York-based jewellery designer Anita Vaswani, who specialised in silver and semi-precious stones, prompting an opportunity to learn jewellery design in-depth. Juggling her love for fashion and jewellery, Nitya joined Kunal Rawal for over two years, where she worked on Being Human’s projects and a graphic t-shirt collection.

On absorbing the pulse of the industry early on and where it was headed, in 2008, Nitya launched VALLIYAN. The idea of starting VALLIYAN was to spotlight Indian design to a global audience. As the homegrown landscape was taking off for new talent, Nitya was at the helm. A self-taught designer with no formal training, Nitya explored innovation with contemporary shapes and styles, rooted to Indian elements. There were no brands in the market with an aesthetic that combined kundan and neon beads or laser-cut acrylic pieces, allowing Nitya to have a first mover advantage. The absence of formal training worked to her advantage as she used techniques and ideologies from real-life experiences and experimentation to build a lasting design aesthetic.


Through the years, Nitya has become a notable voice in the fashion landscape, consulting for several brands and magazines. She’s played muse for couturiers like Gaurav Gupta, Abu Jani Sandeep Khosla and designers like Nikhil Thampi, Bodice and Raw Mango, becoming an icon for body confidence in the country with her digital avatar and alter ego, The Golden Girl, on instagram. In 2021 Nitya launched a clothing label called MALAI, offering breezy pieces that blur the lines between work, home and holiday wear. Her recent projects include the curation of The Galleries at 32nd, a first of its kind retail destination showcasing new-age fashion pioneers including Almost Gods, Yam, Cord, Khara Kapas, Ituvana. She also led the curation of The Vault by 32nd, an eclectic underground market featuring consumer darlings like Eeshan Kashyap, Shivan Narresh, Claymen, Tanzire, Floral Pursuit, Simply NAM, FAE Beauty and more.


Nitya currently lives in Mumbai, India.