Travel Diaries with Shalini Kasliwal of The Gem Palace

Shalini Kasliwal is the ninth generation to work in the family business / ©Lodovico Colli de Felizzano

No trip to Jaipur, India would be complete without visiting the historic Gem Palace. Generations of travelers, royalty and celebrities have come to ogle traditional Indian jewelry, sensational diamonds and significant stones. Now, siblings Samir and Shalini Kasliwal, the ninth generation to work in the family business, run the company in India and in the US.

While the half-Italian, half-Indian beauty calls New York City home, she spends a significant amount of time in Jaipur and in Italy, where she grew up. The duality of her childhood affects her in many ways, and she has a distinctive style in Jaipur.

The region is known for beautiful block prints, and Shalini can’t get enough of them — she created her own line of dresses, Shalia, that features traditional block prints and modern, Indian-inspired silhouettes. She loves to shop at Anokhi, which sells typical Indian clothes, as well as some of Jaipur’s coolest concept stores: Teatro Dhora and her brother’s store, Parampara.

The Gem Palace

And of course, she wears stunning jewels as often as possible. “I love to stack bracelets, but when I’m here, I love to wear important jewelry like a choker. I love huge earrings, especially diamonds. I don’t get to wear that type of jewelry all the time. Certain pieces of jewelry you can’t wear anywhere else.”