Santpal was born in August of 1960 in Rangoon, Burma. In 1964, due to the political upheaval in Burma, leading to socialism, a 4-year-old Santpal along with his family had to migrate to Bangkok.
He completed his schooling in The British and American schools in Thailand, graduating from International School Bangkok in 1978. Santpal’s interest in Gemstones was quite evident from an early age and hence he decided to complete the Graduate Gemologist programs at two of the most prestigious institutions, the Gemological Institute of America (1978-1979) and the German Gemological Institute (1982-1983) for a better understanding of the Industry. After graduation, he started working and learning the ropes of gemstone trading under his father, Mr. Joginder Sinchawla, one of the pioneers of the Gemstone Industry in Thailand. A business he mastered quickly and which remains his passion today. He also completed the Owner President Program at Harvard Business School in the year 2010.
He started to give back to the Gemstone Industry from an early age itself; serving on the boards of ICA in the capacity of Vice President for 3 consecutive terms and currently serves as an Advisor to the Board. He has served on the board of TGJTA for 12 years and is currently on the Advisory Board of TGJTA. He also served on the CIBJO board for a period of 2 years.
Santpal Sinchawla has been an avid philatelist for more than 40 years. He started collecting stamps at the age of 10, inspired by his mother’s passion for stamps. His stamp collections include mainly stamps from India, Burma, and Thailand; the three countries form a special journey of his ancestors from India to Burma and finally to Thailand. He takes great interest in the philatelic activities of Bangkok and is a board member of the Philatelic Association of Thailand. He is also a proud member of the Royal Philatelic Society London and the American Philatelic Society. He was awarded the Grand Prix International at Nanning China in 2016 for his collection ‘India used in Burma’. He has won several gold and large gold medals for this collection. He is also a renowned collector of Antique Maps of South East Asia and Antique Books.