The Rebel Queen

This collection explores the beauty, treasures and strength of Maharani Jindan Kaur (MJK) as queen regent of the Sikh Empire after her son became ruler at the tender age of 5.

It seeks to reclaim beauty and strength through the display of understated luxury as a nod to the treasures that once belonged to her kingdom and which, after two Anglo-Sikh wars, were brutally ceased by the British.

She was known for her beauty, political acumen and fierce resistance to British colonial rule. The British considered MJK a real threat to their position and so she was imprisoned in Chunar Fort (from where she later escaped) and her young son was sent to live with a Christian family to be raised with Christian belief system, he was later brought to England as aristocracy and became a favourite of Queen Victoria.

The famous Koh-i-Noor diamond (which currently sits in the Tower of London) was ceased by the British and designed to form part of the British Crown Jewels as it is today. MJK was a key part of the resistance to the British government's annexation of the Punjab but her story has often been untold. In the current climate where immigration is a source of great debate it helps to remember how some of the global communities and diversification in the West today began. This collection seeks to serve as that reminder as well as an effort to reclaim a lost moment in time.