It took Rahul Mishra 10,000 hours to make Isha Ambani’s Met Gala look. He reveals why
Isha Ambani’s gown took 10,000 hours to make. (Source: Rahul Mishra Couture)
A regular at the Met Gala, Isha Ambani attended fashion’s biggest night this year too and as always stole the spotlight and how!
In keeping with the theme for this year — Our Garden of Time — Isha was spotted wearing a hand-embroidered couture sari gown by designer Rahul Mishra, marking his debut at the much-awaited event.
In a conversation with indianexpress.com, Rahul Mishra talked about nature having a strong influence on his work, adding “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 surfaces on this gown. Just in the way some trees would take decades to flower and bear fruit while others may bloom within weeks, I feel that this look becomes a culmination of our entire body of work. Hence titled ‘River of Life’, it represents the philosophy of time acting as a medium that carries with itself constant change and evolution.”
While talking about designing the look for Isha, Rahul said, “To design this look for Isha has been the most distinct assignment. She is India’s strongest force in the business of fashion and is regarded as a prominent figure globally. With her remarkable personality, we feel that she uniquely exudes a sense of strength and agency from within her kindness and warmth. It was important for us to embody these values in the design and highlight Isha’s immense pride in her tradition and roots.”
Rahul mishra, isha ambani
The magnificent look was intricately hand-embroidered at Rahul Mishra’s ateliers across several Indian villages, supporting hundreds of local craftspeople and weavers. (Source: Rahul Mishra Couture)
Styled by Anaita Shroff Adajania, the outfit depicts “nature’s glorious and bountiful lifecycle…which took over 10,000 hours to complete,” as shared by the stylist on her Instagram.
She added that the look “embraces sustainability, ” incorporating elements from the designer’s past collections. “Delicate samples of flowers, butterflies, and dragonflies were meticulously integrated from the archives into the design, via distinct applique and embroidery techniques, such as fareesha, zardozi, nakshi, and dabka, as well as French knots,” Anaita shared.
Continuing, Anaita informed that the elements, together, “carry a powerful narrative about the state of the planet and offer a message of hope and rebirth. The magnificent look was intricately hand-embroidered at Rahul Mishra’s ateliers across several Indian villages, supporting hundreds of local craftspeople and weavers.”
That’s not all, Isha completed her look with a clutch that featured nakashi and miniature painting — ancient Indian art forms; while her jewellery, which included traditional lotus haathpochas, parrot earrings and flower choker, added the perfect finishing touches. “Our goal, as always, was to take India to the world,” she concluded.
Last year, Isha wore a black draped gown inspired by the sari from designer Prabal Gurung’s atelier. The outfit featured pearls and an attached long flowy train. “One of fashion’s most prolific contributors, Karl Lagerfeld was paid homage to last night with the idea of a simple, powerful, line. Our vision for Isha’s look last night drew from Karl’s favourite colour palette with a smattering of pearls in a draped silhouette inspired by the sari from Prabal Gurung’s atelier,” stylist Priyanka Kapadia Badani wrote on Instagram.
The 32-year-old styled her outfit with diamond jewels by Lorraine Schwartz, including a choker, a layered neckpiece, a custom handpiece, earrings, a ring, and a Chanel bag. “You can’t think of Karl without a touch of humour, we dug into Isha’s Chanel archives and found the perfect companion for the look in a mini bag from the 2012 Paris Bombay collection,” Badani shared. She had completed the look with softly blow-dried hair, sleek eyeliner, blushed cheeks, and mauve lip colour.
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