Different Fasts
Anand pulled on our door and walked in.
His eyes scanned the counters.
He looked at our salesgirl and reached into his left shirt pocket.
Out came a quarter-page newspaper cutting.
"I want this."
It wasn't too complicated.
A simple pendant in gold.
Very light in weight.
"Sorry, we don't have this one. We can make it on order."
"Really? But I want it today."
She looked at the advertisement again.
Then pointed him back to it, "It's best to buy it there."
Most people think the opposite of slow is fast.
After years of making bespoke jewellery, I'm not so sure.
Chandan came to us with his own specific idea.
A pendant with the initials 'CV'.
For his wife's birthday.
A design printed from a desk top printer.
Fixed budget. Required before a guaranteed date.
He could opt to make it anywhere, but he chose us.
Anju brought in a diamond necklace.
Her daughter's wedding. The jeweler she trusted had thrown her a surprise by changing the design. She'd never want to give her anything she wouldn't ever wear. "Remake this. But we want it on the 15th."
Just 10 days. Not a challenge if we get a well-integrated team on task.
Our design. Been made once, but the next one ought to be faster.
Neha lost her favorite engagement ring 2 years back. On their wedding anniversary, she told her husband to make the same ring, as she missed it so much. They had purchased it from us, and they came in with hopes that we would make exactly the same design. We took sometime, figured out which artisan had made it. On delivery, it felt just the way they expected it.
We took up a job to make a pendant with Sharan's 12 carat Emerald.
When he came to take its delivery, he couldn't take his eyes off its sheen.
He sat there for 4 or 5 minutes, and said, “I went to Mahaveer. He’s my childhood friend. You know why he refused to make this? Even he was not sure if his artisan would be able to set the massive stone securely."
The design wasn’t important.
The time to deliver either.
All he wanted was care, precision and belonging to the story.
Dimple brought me her own earrings.
"Split the 24 diamonds equally. And make 2 other pairs of earrings for both my daughters."
Same design for both.
Equal metal weight for both.
All she wanted was fairness and reliance.
Different fasts come to play here.
For Anand, the fast of saying 'No'. Not every race is worth entering.
Chandan's 'CV' pendant needed the fast of the craftsperson who spends most of his time studying, measuring, and sharpening before even touching the metal.
Anju's necklace required bringing in the fast of a well-integrated team. Designers, manufacturers, setters and polishers moving in step, without dropping the baton.
For Neha's engagement ring, We brought in the fast of returning to the original. Following footprints instead of drawing a new map.
Sharan's 12ct Emerald ring demanded the fast of the well-maintained craft. The kind that isn't learning on the customer's stone.
Dimple's order required the fast of twinning. Twenty-four diamonds. Two daughters. No favourites.
And then, of course, there's the slow of:
"Let's see what happens."
"We've always done it this way."
"Good enough."
The three most expensive words in any workshop.
