Where all it began
Passion for bringing meaningful changes through art and creativity brought two old friends together to create House of Alkara – an abbreviation of Aleena and Karishma. The journey started with Aleena’s contemporary artwork and artistic endeavors that took wings when Karishma, a fashion entrepreneur, manufactured the first enamel jewelry based on the hummingbird artwork. Their true calling in crafting a brand that believes in promoting art itself and the community of artists, artisans, and weavers was the genesis of House of Alkara.
A DREAMER &
AN ENTREPRENEUR
A dreamer at heart and an entrepreneur by instinct, Aleena’s journey in art started at the Cambridge Art Association (CAA) in Massachusetts where she became a member of their vibrant Visual Art community and learned contemporary art forms. A few years later, a chance opportunity to attend an acrylic art workshop while vacationing in Jamaica changed everything forever. The vibrancy of tropical colors brought back memories of her passion for art and creativity. Travelling to the palaces of Rajasthan, to the exotic places across the globe further inspired her to open her “The hummingbird” art studio in 2021. Experimenting in various form of fluid art techniques Aleena created artworks that were later used as design inspiration for her range of jewelry, apparel and accessories. As a founder of House of Alkara, Aleena’s design philosophy is to communicate with the artisan’s, weavers and customers equally using her products as an expression of her emotions and experiences.
PASSION FOR DESIGN
& NUMBERS
From the storied by-lanes of Rajasthan, to the glittering streets of Old Delhi, Karishma traces her family’s roots to the sub-continent’s major textile hubs. Trained as an investment banker and passionate about numbers, Karishma’s love for textiles and design overrode all else after visiting arts and crafts shows all over the world. With a deep commitment to making a difference to how artisans are valued, to how to preserve the sub continent’s vanishing artistic traditions, Karishma as co-founder hopes to make House of Alkara a beacon for socially conscious design houses.