AN INDIAN SPLASH AT MET GALA 2024
(NOTE: This article was originally published in the India Today Spice issue dated May 2024)
If fashion is religion, then the Met Gala is surely your Mecca. Held on the first Monday of May, fashion's biggest night sees celebrities, designers and stylists all wowing for attention on the red carpet. Officially, it is the Metropolitan Museum of Art Costume Institute benefit, a black-tie extravaganza meant to raise money for the museum's fashion wing. But unofficially, it is the party of the yearâthe ultimate celebrity power cocktail of famous names from fashion, film, politics, tech, sports and social media. Entry is by invitation only and this year around 400 lucky people were the chosen ones. However, it is not just about the price, which was US$75,000 per person this year with brands purchasing tables for US$350,000, but more to do with achievement and news worthiness. So, that's what makes walking the Met Gala red carpet a truly big deal for both the celebrity and the designer whose outfit is being flaunted.
This year there was more representation from India than in the past. Bollywood actress Alia Bhatt, who made her Met Gala debut last year, appeared on the red carpet in a custom-designed mint-green saree by the country's leading fashion designer Sabyasachi Mukherjee. The theme for 2024 was inspired by and named after the 1962 short story, 'The Garden of Time', penned by J.G Ballard. The story revolves around an aristocratic couple living in a walled estate with a magical garden, while an encroaching mob threatens to end their peaceful existence, and the actress's delicate ensembleâwhich featured a 23-foot-long train detailed with florals hand-embroidered using silk floss, beads, sequins, semi-precious stones and fringed with glass beadsâwas on point. As if that was not enough, the hand-crafted blouse was studded with emeralds, Basra pearls, tourmalines and multi coloured sapphires. Â Â
Mukherjee, who created an iconic golden saree for industrialist-philanthropist Natasha Poonawalla for the Met Gala in 2022, focussed on craft, that he considers an 'embodiment of human touch, tradition and diversity that will safeguard culture from the passage of time' to create this custom look for Bhatt. Handcrafted at his ateliers across the country by a team of 163 people including artisans, dyers, embroiders and craftsmen, the saree took over 1,965 hours to create.
Mukherjee himself also walked the red carpet becoming the first Indian designer ever to do so. While he dressed in an embroidered cotton duster coat from his 2024 resort collection, it was his lavish adornment of several necklaces from his High Jewellery collection, crafted in tourmalines, pearls, emeralds and diamondsâlike the maharajas of yoreâthat grabbed attention.
Sterling Debut
Another designer whose label debuted at the Met this year was Rahul Mishra. Designed for Isha Ambani, the saree gown referred to as the 'River of Life' took over 10,000 man hours at Mishra's ateliers across several Indian villages, supporting hundreds of local embroiderers and weavers. "It is well known that in the past decade, my experiences with nature have had a strong influence on my work. We have cultivated this look in the way a gardener would a garden. Motifs and embroidery swatches from our entire journey since 2013 were brought out to be reinterpreted and collated to form the surface on this gown," says Mishra. "This garden was further inhabited by three dimensional birds, moths, butterflies, sea creatures and more through various kinds of appliqué techniques. On a light shimmery base, the embellishments included intricate thread embroidery, which is supplemented with materials such as rhinestones, sequins, bugle beads, zari, kundan and more, and explores various ancient Indian techniques of embroidery including fareesha, zardozi, nakshi, dabka and French knots among others," he explains.
Unfortunately, Ambani was unable to attend the Met Gala but Mishra's creations still did. Celebrity stylist Law Roach selected a sculpted double-breasted jacket embellished with three-dimensional Rousseau-esque vegetal forms and glimmering flared trousersâall in ivory white, from AFEW, Mishra's prêt-à -porter brand.
Besides Mishra, creations by courtiers Gaurav Gupta and Tarun Tahiliani also made their debut this year. Indian origin American actor Mindy Kaling wore Gaurav Gupta's 'The Melting Flower of Time' gown on the red carpet. "Designing for the Met Gala involves a meticulous process that begins with understanding the theme of the event. We [then] delve into conceptualising how to seamlessly blend that theme into a design that not only embodies the wearer's persona but also maintains the ethos of the brand. It's about infusing futuristic concepts to create a garment that becomes a profound statement of artistic expression," says Gupta. Kaling's gown featured a central bud surrounded by delicate petals, each intricately designed to create the illusion of falling from a fully bloomed flower. "These petals symbolised the fleeting nature of beauty," smiles Gupta.
Gupta who has dressed global celebrities such as Beyoncé, Shakira and Cardi B, says "Looking ahead, I would love to dress culturalists and visionaries for the Met Gala, individuals who embody a spirit of fearless experimentation and self-expression."
Continuing with visions in white, veteran fashion designer, Tarun Tahiliani designed an elaborate ivory silk gown for Hyderabad-based business woman and philanthropist, Sudha Reddy. Hand-crafted by over 80 artisans with thousands of French knots, Indian couching embroidery, Swarovski crystals and silk thread-work, the gown took over 4,500 man hours to create. According to the designer, it is a metaphor for India as a sleeping beauty that is reawakening, representing the amalgamation of the zeitgeist of India's current epoch of timeless craft, unparalleled creativity and technological ingenuity. Almost everything that the Met Gala stands for!
2024-06-15T19:49:40Z dg43tfdfdgfd