She has just about tumbled out of bed after a late night to make time for our 9 am rendezvous. Sleepy eyes and all, Nupur Tron still exudes enough joie de vivre to light up the whole room. The Paris-based jewellery designer is back in Delhi after a three-day houseboat holiday on Nagin Lake in Srinagar and is excited to be in the motherland.

Clad in a black lycra mini dress with a self-designed short jacket, the sultry 31-year-old looks effortlessly chic. As we settle down to talk in her Imperial Hotel suite, I discover she has lived most of her life between cultures. She was just 15 when she left India for a holiday in New York. “I felt like a kid in a candy shop and decided I didn’t ever want to leave.” Having her father’s family there helped. And so she stayed.

After graduating from FIT, Tron was off to study haute couture in Paris. A career in fashion was the obvious next step. But though Tron started her own fashion label — which retailed at stores like Saks Fifth Avenue, Fred Segal, Bloomingdales, Barneys and Galleries Lafayette — she grew weary of designing collections round the clock. Serendipity led her to foray into jewellery. “My mother-in-law was wearing a beautiful necklace I had given her when the owner of Le Bon Marche, Paris, who was playing golf with her, happened to see it. She loved it and wanted to showcase it in Bon Marche. I started retailing there from November 2005. Today, I’m second in sales,” says the gem lover.

Originally from Rajasthan herself, Tron transforms old Rajasthani jewellery by interpreting it in a simple, occidental way to complement the modern woman. “Anybody can wear it. The pieces don’t look obviously Indian. But the colours are quintessentially Rajputana.” Sourcing stones from Jaipur and Brazil, she uses diamonds, sapphires, emeralds, rubies as well as semi-precious gems like tourmalines, amethyst, smoky topaz and aquamarine. “It balances out as I do prêt a porter as well as big signature heritage pieces for haute couture. So there’s something for everybody.”

The accent is strongly on quality and uniqueness. Designing for discerning, young cosmopolitan women like her self, Tron says her collections stand out from others because she follows her instincts instead of fashion trends.” My personality comes through in my jewellery. It’s positive, optimistic and makes people feel good. People say when they wear my jewellery, they feel like they’re wearing a bit of me. I think that’s the best compliment.”

She has learnt a thing or two about understatement from the French thanks to her Parisian customers at Bon Marche. “Unlike India where we love to show off, France is very discrete as a society. I do just two collections in a year. The pieces embody heritage with a modern touch. Anyone from a young girl to an elderly woman could wear them because they are timeless.” Her favourite is a magnificent tourmaline necklace versatile enough to be worn with a cocktail dress, a sari or even an evening ball gown. Another is a stunning ring in Alessandra amethyst that changes colour from day to night.

Creating and designing out of her suburban studio in Nuit, Tron gets the pieces made by an Indian jeweller in Udaipur. She finds Paris absolutely inspirational. “Wherever you look, you see art and museums and so many expositions. I could be sitting in a café and be inspired by an old woman sipping her tea, wearing a very beautiful brooch from the Victorian times.” Interestingly, her husband’s 97-year-old grandmother is the face of her current collection. “Mamusha, as we call her fondly, is a very strong woman who has seen two world wars. She got the highest honour from the French government and has been an ambassadress. She’s my kind of woman.”

Tron, who wants to initiate business with luxury stores like Villa Moda and Harvey Nicks in the coming days, plans to open a gallery in Paris. “It will be a very artistic gallery where jewellery is not just what you wear but art pieces you can gift from one generation to another. That’s what I love about jewellery — you can transform stones into something immortal.” The designer also aspires to be a platform for Indian artists and designers to showcase their work in France. She wants to do her homework before making forays into the Indian market and is contemplating a trunk show soon. “The women I design for is independent, liberal, creative and distinctive. India is filled with such women. I just have to meet them.”

Though Preity Zinta is a dear friend and wears her creations a lot, Bollywood is “way too commercial” for the designer. “It’s not my market but I feel sad when I see Indians going so crazy about foreign brands. Everybody’s into the latest LV, Gucci or Prada. But there’s so much art in our own country. It would be beautiful to see a Bollywood actress in a gorgeous sari and jewellery by an Indian designer. Hollywood supports its fashion industry. I hope Bollywood does, too,” she says passionately.

Vibrant like her jewellery, Tron is married to Frederic Tron, a financial and real estate professional. Their romance is the stuff of movie scripts. “It was my last day in Paris. I was chatting about India with some girlfriends at Carousel du Louvre. Frederic, my husband, was sitting just behind us and joined in the conversation. We got talking and were the last ones to leave. I felt I just knew him. It was not important who he was.” Next morning she flew back to New York. They exchanged a few e-mails, nothing more. The following spring, Nupur was back in Paris. “My friend just called him and handed me the phone. He was in south of France and took the first flight to come and see me. We fell in love and were engaged within just two months!”

Happily for her, Frederic shares her love for India and supports her dreams aspirations. Even her desire to send their unborn children to study at Gurukul, Kangri. “Culture and heritage are so important. Frederic loves India for its warmth and hospitality and fits right in. We call each other darlingji!”