The Essence of Opulence

What is luxury? Three of India’s prominent luxury connoisseurs decode what makes the cut and what doesn’t

- SMITA TRIPATHI

THE OXFORD DICTIONARY

defines luxury as “a thing that is expensive and pleasant but not essential”. But what does it mean to those who have been living in the lap of luxury? From entrepreneurs to heads of multi-million dollar businesses to erstwhile royalty, luxury means different things to different people.

“Luxury to me is all about defining myself. Even before you speak, the first impression is made depending upon how you carry yourself, and that is very important to me. Yes, it should be comfortable, but to be honest, sometimes I can give up on the comfort if it is fashionable,” laughs philanthropist Sudha Reddy, wife of Hyderabad-based billionaire P.V. Krishna Reddy, Managing Director of the privately held Megha Engineering and Infrastructures Ltd. “Of course, the ultimate luxury is the happiness inside you; only then will the external things beautify,” she adds.

In the first week of May, as Reddy walked the red carpet at the Met Gala, fashion’s biggest event, in New York, global media took notice. Dressed in a white gown designed by Indian couturier Tarun Tahiliani, Reddy was wearing a 180-carat diamond necklace. At an event where most of the jewellery being worn by celebrities is sponsored, Reddy’s necklace, rumoured to be worth $10 million, was from her personal collection.

“It has four big heart-shaped diamonds, and it took me five-six years to collect them. They reflect my husband, my two sons, and myself,” says the 45-year-old, who has an exceptional collection of jewellery, including an anklet by US-based luxury jewellery brand Harry Winston, a 20-carat heart-shaped diamond ring, and a cluster of Colombian emeralds that she has been collecting over the past few years.

Her Met Gala necklace was designed by ace designer Farah Khan Ali, who says Reddy takes a keen interest in the design of her clothes and jewellery. That’s probably because of her degree from the National Institute of Fashion Design.