At the Met Gala 2024, Isha Ambani mesmerized attendees with her timeless beauty draped in a bespoke sari gown designed by couturier Rahul Mishra. Conceived by renowned celebrity fashion stylist Anaita Shroff Adajania in collaboration with Rahul Mishra, this hand-embroidered ensemble perfectly captured the essence of the event’s official dress code, ‘The Garden of Time.’
Ahead of her appearance at the Costume Institute exhibition titled ‘Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion’ at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, Anaita shared a glimpse of Isha’s nature-inspired elegant look on her Instagram account.
Celebrating India’s rich heritage of crafts and artisans, this masterpiece marked Rahul Mishra’s debut at the prestigious Met Gala. Anaita, who has styled celebrities like Alia Bhatt and Natasha Poonawalla for the Met Gala in the past, took to Instagram to unveil the intricacies behind Isha Ambani’s iconic attire.
Describing the ensemble, Anaita expressed, “Our garden of time. Isha is wearing a bespoke hand-embroidered couture sari gown from Indian designer Rahul Mishra. For this year’s Met Gala theme of ‘The Garden of Time,’ Rahul and I aimed to depict nature’s glorious and bountiful lifecycle in this custom look for Isha, which took over 10,000 hours to complete.”
Embracing sustainability, the gown incorporated intricate elements from Rahul’s past collections. Delicate motifs of flowers, butterflies, and dragonflies were meticulously integrated from the archives using distinct appliqué and embroidery techniques such as fareesha, zardozi, nakshi, and dabka, along with French knots. Anaita emphasized, “Together, all of these elements 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.”
Complementing her gown, Isha carried a clutch crafted by Swadesh using ancient Indian art forms of Nakashi and Miniature painting. The exquisite Jade clutch featured an Indian Miniature painting by Jaipur artisan Hari Narain Marotia, depicting India’s national bird, the Mayura, with intricate detail and expression.
Adding to her impeccable style were traditional jewelry pieces including lotus hand bracelets, parrot earrings, and a flower choker designed by Viren Bhagat. Isha’s hair and makeup were elegantly done by Yianni Tsaptori and Tanvi Chemburkar.
Anaita concluded, “Our goal, as always, was to showcase the essence of India to the world.”
