What began as a simple love for jewelry taught one female entrepreneur that what works in Europe does not work in India, as she travelled the path of creating wearable pieces of art with an empowering message.

Among the beautiful images of jewelry and inspirational thoughts, Eina Ahluwalia’s instagram account is peppered with hard-hitting statements. The words “love has no boundaries, maps do…” accompanies a photo of necklaces indicating the word ‘love’ in Hindi, Urdu, Arabic, and Hebrew. There is a photo of women in white – Indian widows – typically forbidden from enjoying color, playing with brightly colored powders during the spring Holi festival.

Another image depicting a pair of brooches shaped liked badges of honor, are slightly gorier: “with words that redefine gender in India – ‘potential rapist’ and ‘meat’” says the accompanying description.

The hashtag ‘#jewelryactivist’ accompanies many of Ahluwalia’s posts. It is probably the best way of summing up what she does today.

Conceptual jewelry artist Eina Ahluwalia’s ‘Love, Respect, Protect’ brooch.

Despite holding an MBA degree and a solid corporate role, Calcutta-based conceptual jewelry artist and founder of self-named brand Eina Ahluwaliamade a defining decision in 2003 to leave her salaried job behind and enter the entrepreneurial world through jewelry.

Initially working part-time as a consultant for an international jewelry exporter she attended trade shows around the world.

“It helped me see what was happening, what each market was like and what kind of aesthetics each market really wants,” says Ahluwalia, “it was quite different to how we work in India.”