Fashion

Basra pearls were once stitched into royal canopies. Today, jewellers struggle to find a single strand

My grandmother had a string of Basra pearls that felt inseparable from her. When I picture her, I almost always see the strand at her neck, getting tangled up in the folds of her dupatta. As a child, I found the pearls curious because they did not look like the ones I saw on television or in jewellery advertisements. They were slightly misshapen, didn’t match, yet they had a gleam that would keep you looking.

I did not know then that they were heirloom Basra pearls from Hyderabad being worn by a woman far removed from her homeland. Years later, I would learn that this is how Basra pearls often survive now, through old family pieces and antique jewellery.

Their history stretches far beyond the family cupboard. In 1865, Maharaja Khande Rao Gaekwad of Baroda commissioned an object that sounds almost mythical now: a canopy embroidered with approximately 950,000 Basra pearls. Christie’s describes the surviving Baroda Pearl Canopy as one of two extant pieces from a five-part suite, purportedly intended for the tomb of Prophet Muhammad in Medina. Its pearls were worked with emeralds, sapphires, rubies and coloured glass beads in elaborate floral arabesques, creating one of the most extraordinary surviving examples of Indian royal craftsmanship.

By the mid-19th century, the pearl trade between the Arabian Gulf and India was at its height, with some of the finest natural pearls sold through the Iraqi port city, Basra, to Indian merchants and royal patrons. In Hyderabad, they entered another jewellery tradition, appearing in Nizami satladas, including the much-cited seven-strand necklace of 465 pearls set with diamonds, rubies and emeralds. In Mahrashtrian traditions you will spot them on naths and tanmani necklaces.

So what exactly are Basra pearls, why are they so rare and how can collectors tell whether they are authentic? We asked the experts at Shree Raj Jewellers, Raniwala 1881 and Raj Mahtani Couture Jewels.

What are Basra pearls and how are they different from cultured pearls?

Unlike cultured pearls, which are produced through controlled cultivation, Basra pearls form naturally in oysters. That distinction changes how they look and how they are valued. One may curve slightly, another may catch the light faster, another may sit a little apart in tone. For collectors, these variations are proof that the pearl was formed naturally rather and not by human intervention.

Raj Mahtani of Raj Mahtani Couture Jewels says one of the biggest misconceptions is that “value and price comes from perfection.” With Basra pearls, he says, collectors and connoisseurs are drawn to “natural pearls with their organic and subtle glow, and artisanal quality.”

An Indian visitor looks at the jewellery displayed at the ‘Jewels of India: The Nizam’s Jewellery Collection’ exhibition at the National Museum in New Delhi on February 19, 2019. – One of the largest diamonds in the world, the Jacob diamond weighing 184.75 carats, along with 173 precious jewellery items from the collection of the Nizam of Hyderabad collection, are on display at the Indian National Museum from February 19 to May 5. (Photo by Prakash SINGH / ) (Photo credit should read PRAKASH SINGH/ via )PRAKASH SINGH/

Fashion

15 lip balms so pigmented, you wont miss your lipstick

You never really grow out of lip balm. It simply stops being the waxy, fruity tube you kept in your school bag and becomes something a little more sophisticated; part skincare, part makeup and part emotional support object. As adults, we may own lipsticks with intimidating names and ladylike packaging and no matter how much I love a satin bullet, there are many days when I find myself craving the ease of a balm instead. What we really want is simpler: colour that wakes up the face, comfort that lasts and a formula that makes bare lips feel cared for.

Tinted lip balms understands this perfectly. There are buttery balms for the chronically dry-lipped, jelly formulas for the gloss loyalists, ceramide-rich treatments for barrier repair, pH-adaptive sticks for the beauty chemistry curious and soft-matte options for anyone who prefers their colour blurred rather than lacquered. They are low-maintenance without looking lazy, nourishing without feeling medicinal and pigmented enough to make lipstick feel slightly redundant.

We looked beyond the first pretty swipe. Each formula was considered for colour payoff, slip, comfort, stickiness, how evenly it faded, how often it needed reapplying and whether it could survive the real-life obstacle course of coffee, conversation, commute and air-conditioning. These 15 lip balms will make you feel polished, hydrated and put together, without requiring the full glam production.

Guerlain KissKiss Shine Bloom

Get the comfort of a balm without sacrificing glamour with 95% naturally derived 24-hour hydrating floral care. The shade range spans 20 flower-inspired colours from delicate beige-pinks to corals, reds and brick tones. It gives lips that fresh, expensive-looking sheen without the heaviness of a classic lipstick.

Fashion

Horoscope Today: May 20, 2026

You may feel a bit emotional today or let’s say that a heightened sense of emotions may have been your normal for the past sometime. Aquarius, could this be because you actually do really feel a lot? But seldom share your thoughts and emotions when it truly matters. The same roads will not lead you to a different outcome, Cancer. And you are figuring it out one step at a time. The past 7 years or so may have felt like a big blur and yet, in fleeting moments, the clarity you expected has arrived. Communication is key for you, Taurus. Make it effective and healthy and it only gets better. Now show up for yourself, for those you love and for all that matters to you. Own your personal power not through arrogance or force but through that quiet knowing that you are capable and you can make things happen. You deserve the best of what you can imagine for yourself and your loved ones so get cracking on those dreams now, Aries.

Read on for what the stars have in store for you and make sure you check out your sun, moon and rising signs for the complete picture.

You are protected. Whatever you are experiencing currently, Aries, be it on the health front, the personal front, relationships, finances etc, there is a strong energy of protection around you right now. With all this cosmic glow-up in your sign, you better make the most of it in all the big and tiny ways. You deserve the best of what you can imagine for yourself and your loved ones so get cracking on those dreams now.

Cosmic tip: The timing is perfect for you.

Communication is key for you, Taurus. Make it effective and healthy and it only gets better. Now show up for yourself, for those you love and for all that matters to you. Own your personal power not through arrogance or force but through that quiet knowing that you are capable and you can make things happen. When you feel lost or confused, ask your guides, angels, the cosmos — whatever your belief system — to step in and assist. Breakthroughs will find you.

Cosmic tip: When you ask the cosmos for help, wait to notice how it is helping you.

Your personal and love life pertaining questions may have got you thinking hard and long — sometimes in existential ways and some other times from the gaze and purview of self-worthiness. Gemini, whatever your train of thought, you have cracked the code — the underlying thread is you accepting and unfolding your truest self. Things have happened lately that help you recognise and put together pieces of yourself and your life like never before. Life is beginning to make sense and wonderfully at that.

Fashion

Pisces Horoscope Today: May 20, 2026

Stop. Right now. Pisces, there is a time to act and then there is a time for you to allow the cosmos to intervene. This is the latter. There are helpers in the divine realms that are offering and extending support and guidance. Listen to your gut and your thoughts. You know you feel a certain sense of repulsion or your energy feels like it is closing in when certain things come to the fore. Those decisions and routes are not for you even if you feel there is no other way out currently. Trust the nudge and follow through. The cosmos is guiding your every step.

Cosmic tip: Pause. Reject anything that feels off.

All the Indian stars at Cannes 2026—from Alia Bhatt to Diana Penty

Indian representation at Cannes 2026 reached a significant high across both cinema and culture. Payal Kapadia served as the president of the jury for the 65th edition of Critics’ Week, marking a major moment for Indian cinema on the global stage. Emerging filmmaker Mehar Malhotra’s Shadows of the Moonless Nights becomes the only Indian film selected for the La Cinef school films competition; meanwhile, Amma Ariyan (1986) from Kerala was set to premiere at the festival.

Ahead, we detail some of the best sartorial appearances at Cannes 2026 so far.

Alia Bhatt

Alia Bhatt delivered some of the festival’s biggest fashion moments at the Cannes Film Festival 2026. Her arrival look featured a custom ensemble by That Antiquepiece, hand-painted by Basuri Chokshi. She paired the look with heart-shaped yellow diamond studs from Chopard, mules by Manolo Blahnik, and a bag by Meera Mahadevia, finishing the ensemble with soft glam makeup and a side-parted French-twist bun.

For the opening ceremony, Bhatt chose a custom coral-pink couture gown by Tamara Ralph in silk crêpe, detailed with sheer silk voile chiffon drapes around the arms. The look was accessorised with a statement necklace by Amrapali Jewels featuring 168.27 carats of rare pink coral centred around a 5.53-carat Golconda diamond, paired with square-cut Chopard earrings and an Asscher-cut diamond ring.

Fashion

9 standout saris from Janhvi Kapoors closet

The sari has become a recurring choice in Janhvi Kapoor’s wardrobe, not as a one-note style, however, but a flexible language. She moves between archival heirlooms, sheer drapes, regional weaves and experimental couture. From hand-embroidered Manish Malhotra pieces to custom Di Petsa that rework the silhouette, her sari outings span moods, moments and contexts.

In a powder-blue periwinkle sari by Manish Malhotra, Kapoor swaps traditional structure for a more body-skimming drape, featuring sheer layering, a plunging blouse and elongated cape-like drapes falling from the shoulders. At the back, an open-back blouse and trailing fringe hems add dramatic impact to the sari’s silhouette. Styled by Meagan Concessio, the sari is paired with sapphire-toned floral earrings, a gemstone bracelet and a statement ring. Kapoor paired it with a sleek ponytail and glazed makeup.