A staple for Punjabi brides, in particular, the jingly kaleera has again found relevance after several Bollywood brides sported customised kaleere at their own weddings. Actress Alia Bhatt’s had her husband Ranbir Kapoor’s favourite symbol 8, actress Kiara Advani’s had a tribute to her husband’s dog Oscar who passed away last year, and actress Katrina Kaif’s had a reference to a cartoon character. If we dig deeper beyond this quirky new makeover, the kaleere have deep patriarchal roots. The modern-day bride, however, is often spotted choosing to ditch the old and give the kaleere a new lease of life, through their attempts to make it personalised, different, and stylish.
From Patriarchal Tradition To Trend: Bridal Kaleere Make A Fashionable Return
The modern-day bride is choosing to give the kaleere a new lease of life, through their attempts to make it personalised, different, and stylish.
- Rupsha Bhadra
- Editorial
- Updated - 2023-09-15, 12:26 IST
This is the Fashion Reset series, where we trace fashion centrepieces of the subcontinent to their patriarchal roots. We study how these have evolved through cinema and culture, and eventually found a new lease of life through the lens of fashion.
For the uninitiated, the kaleere are wrist accessories, worn by most North-Indian brides and are most culturally significant for the Punjabi community. It usually has an umbrella-shaped dome, accompanied by long danglers hanging from it. 
Being chunky and bulky, the kaleere haven’t evolved as an everyday styling accessory, but remain quite popular in a bridal trousseau. The modern bride is sure of making the kaleere a customised part of her wedding, which is significantly different from how they looked or felt earlier.
Read: The Allure of Alta: A Symbol of Prosperity, Reimagined As A Fashion Accessory
“Modern brides are moving towards pastels, less chunky, personalised, delicate-looking accessories,” said a representative from Papa Don’t Preach, a designer brand endorsed often by celebrities, that specialises in making embroidered kaleere. “Brides are very meticulous while planning their weddings. Each piece of accessory complements their garments, so even something like a kaleera, which is usually only worn once, has to depend on colours, outfits, themes, and decor,” the representative added.
The Kaleere Ceremony
Traditional kaleere are blingy, chunky, long and heavy. They were golden in colour and clang and clamour together.
Some say that the kaleere signify good wishes and blessings for the bride, while others say that the metal signifies wealth.
“On the day of the wedding, the morning ritual is the haldi. During this, the kaleere is tied by unmarried sisters or brothers or friends. They are said to be bringing good luck and blessings to the bride,” said Gitanshi Arora Sapra, a lawyer in Delhi, who tied the knot in 2022. “Traditionally in our Punjabi culture, the bride doesn't shop for kaleere, but it's bought by unmarried friends and sisters. The bride can't see it before the wedding.”
The bride afterwards tries to break her kaleere on top of the heads of her unmarried sisters and friends who all would be in a sitting position, by jingling and banging them together. If any piece of the jewellery falls on them, they’re said to be next in line to get married.
The kaleere could only be removed once the bride came back to her maternal house. Most brides store them to show the accessory to future generations. Some Punjabi brides even leave a set or two at a temple, to seek blessings from the almighty.
The 'Shy-bride' Accessory
The origins of the kaleere, according to sayings, go back to a time when these would be made out of coconut shells, and the danglers would contain fox nuts, and other non-perishable snacks for her. The bride would wear them during her journey to the in-laws’ house, so that if she got hungry, she could pluck and munch on nuts from her kaleere.
It was expected that a bride be shy, so much so that even asking for food from her husband or in-laws was frowned upon. Quintessential bridal shyness was enforced upon her, as speaking up for a basic necessity would seem like troubling her new ‘family’. 
The kaleere were also often seen as a symbol of prosperity that the new bride would bring with her to her new family.
The patriarchal connotations surrounding this accessory are evident in the role and demeanour that society prescribed to a bride.
Kaleere Get a Makeover
The modern bride has shifted focus from rituals and traditional customs to personal customisations and comfort. The trend has been visible through the rise of bridal sneakers, lightweight lehengas, minimalist makeup, and now, embroidered kaleere.
Papa Don’t Preach, the brand making customised embroidered kaleere explains how personalisations have been the focus in their work.
“Adding a personal touch goes a long way - we can do anything from customised initials, important dates, elements that are close to the couples, and much more. Our main focus is to create something meaningful that can be passed on as an heirloom from one generation to the other,” they said. 
They added, “We offer customisations with names, dates, and even names of pets. Celestial motifs are very much part of our brand aesthetic, so we try to incorporate that to symbolise starry-eyed lovers or the poetic catharsis of the moon. Apart from this, we’re also using more iridescent pearl droplets, glass stones, and vintage colettes.”
Kaleere have undergone a full overhaul when it comes to the materials it has been made from. Earlier, metal was the most commonly used material. From seashells to flowers to the original coconuts, brides are choosing unique materials for their kaleere.
There’s seashell kaleere and even delicate floral kaleere.
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Some are even reverting to roots, by choosing coconut shell kaleere in their weddings.
From Alia Bhatt to Priyanka Chopra, Bolly Brides Choose "Love Story" Kaleere
Leading the customisation wave, it has been Bolly brides who’ve taken kaleere to the next level. One thing in prime focus in their eye-grabbing, overtly hyped celebrity weddings is the accessories.
The one to start it was actress Priyanka Chopra, who got her kaleere customised by designer Mrinalini Chandra. The designer had once said this led to the trend of “love-story kaleere”.
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Mrinalini, since then, has become quite a favourite among B-town. She went on to design kaleere for Alia Bhatt and Katrina Kaif, among others.
Speaking to Pinkvilla about her customised range, she described, "Katrina was very interesting because she wanted messages engraved on coins. In fact, her kaleere took almost a month to make because the messages were from people. Katrina and Vicky were so private about their story nobody knew anything.”
She also designed ornate, delicate kaleere for actress Athiya Shetty. Mrinalini shared a closer look at the ornaments in a post on Instagram and wrote, “These kaliras symbolise everything meaningful a relationship can encompass. Love, respect, joy, calm and peace. Written in Sanskrit these wedding vows are for eternity. Over 50 tiny handcrafted sunflowers dancing around sunshine, manifesting the joyous union of the happy couple Athiya Shetty and K L Rahul.” (sic)
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Through The Fashion Lens
The accessory has shed its Punjabi-only identity, as brides across North India sport the kaleere as a bridal fashion accessory, even if it is not culturally relevant.
“Back in 2014, when my sister got married, only Punjabis used to wear kaleere but now everyone wears it for fashion. Brides are even shopping for them!” said Gitanshi, the lawyer bride we interviewed, adding, “One of my Himachali friends got a jasmine flower kaleere, even though kaleere aren’t traditionally part of her culture, as she felt it added to her bridal attire.”
The jingly accessory has even been spotted on ramps and photoshoots. These took the ornament and gave it a spin, beyond its typical wedding look stereotype.
Designer Mrinalini Chandra used them on the ramp, during Lakme Fashion Week, back in 2014. The model was seen wearing a red plain georgette saree, accentuated by eclectic jewellery, which included a pair of long golden kaleere. 
Actress Sonam Kapoor had worn kaleere from Raabta by Rahul during a photoshoot, as showcased on the brand’s website. A brand designed by jewellery designer, Rahul Popli, they were also the ones to design actress Deepika Padukone’s wedding kaleere.
However, unlike sindoor, alta, or several other bridal adornments, the kaleera hasn’t become a part of regular fashion yet. Owing to being tied to the wrist and heavy, it seems improbable that it’ll ever become a part of regular, wearable fashion.
The kaleere, which was once a symbol of a shy bride, is now being revolutionised by brides. Even choosing to embrace it just so it adds to her bridal look, despite it not being a part of her own traditions, is a statement in itself. From having non-perishable snacks she could nibble on, the modern bride is now often choosing to sport kaleere far removed from their original avatar. They’re replacing the food, a symbol of subjugation, with things that hold significance for her and champion her own self. Coupled with their use in fashion occasionally, kaleere have gotten a feminist makeover we perhaps never saw coming.
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