The Titan Nebula Jalsa: A Micro-Painted Flying Tourbillon Made in India

When a watchmaker builds millions of pieces a year, it’s easy to think of them as a volume player, not a vanguard of haute horlogerie. Titan, the Indian giant producing over 15 million watches annually under the vast USD 150 billion Tata Group umbrella, is proving otherwise.

The Titan Nebula Jalsa, its latest creation, will not only be a contender at the next Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève, it’s a statement: that world-class artisanal watchmaking can be designed, crafted, and finished entirely in India. And if you think Titan hired Swiss watchmakers, you’d be mistaken—this gravity-defying feat of haute horlogerie is made entirely in India, by Indian hands.

The Nebula line, Titan’s 18k gold flagship, is no stranger to ambition. In late 2024, to mark its 40th anniversary, Titan unveiled the “40 Years of Joy” tourbillon, a four-piece limited edition whose in-house flying tourbillon formed the brand’s initial “T”, doubling as a small-seconds indicator.

That debut was India’s first tourbillon. But the Jalsa is an altogether richer and more intricate proposition—technically evolved, visually transporting, and culturally rooted.

Limited to just ten pieces, the Titan Nebula Jalsa wears its singularity on its caseback, engraved with the word “unique.” This is not marketing flourish but fact: each dial is a one-off miniature painting executed by the legendary Padma Shri Shakir Ali.

In celebration of the 225th anniversary of Jaipur’s Hawa Mahal, the iconic “Palace of Winds”, Ali’s work depicts Maharaja Sawai Pratap Singh’s royal procession passing before the palace he commissioned.

The art is painted not on brass or enamel but on thin slices of marble, each dial consuming 120 to 130 hours of focused labor. Ali uses a single squirrel-hair brush and natural pigments ground from gemstones, a method centuries old, applied here to one of Swiss watchmaking’s most beloved complications.

The 43.5 mm case, rendered in 18k rose gold, has openworked lugs and a middle ring carved from red agate, a volcanic gemstone India has used in jewelry since the 11th century. The same material is inlaid into the bridges of the 7TH2 movement—an evolution of Titan’s original 7TH1 caliber—now with central hours and minutes rather than an off-center display. The hand-wound 7TH2 comprises 144 components, beats at a frequency of 3 Hz (21,600 vph), and packs a 48-hour power reserve.

One of the watch’s most charming details is on the minute hand: its counterweight is a cyclops lens. At the top of every hour, it frames the flying tourbillon’s sleek architecture, inviting the wearer to pause and admire Titan’s home-grown mechanical artistry.

Offered at INR 4,050,000 (around USD 46,000), the Jalsa is both an exclusive collector’s piece and a clear signpost of Titan’s upward trajectory.

“With Jalsa, we mark a decisive step in Titan’s ambition to build a premium segment within our watchmaking portfolio,” says Kalpana Rangamani, Titan’s Chief Marketing & Sales Officer. “This piece is a reflection of our vision—to bring India’s deep cultural heritage into conversation with the standards of haute horlogerie.”

In Jalsa, that conversation feels natural and unforced: miniature painting meets micromechanics, gemstone heritage meets precision engineering, and Indian artistry meets Swiss standards. And if you happen to be a fan of ultra-thin timepieces, check out Titan’s Edge collection, which has been showcasing slim designs for over two decades.