Functional and ubiquitous in Indian kitchens, stainless steel would hardly be called a precious metal worthy of the Met Gala. But on the biggest night in fashion, amidst a sea of diamonds and Swarovski crystals, a shiny mask fashioned out of spoons, dabbas and karchis hit the red carpet. Styled by Rhea Kapoor, Ananya Birla arrived wearing Robert Wun couture with a custom piece by celebrated Indian artist Subodh Gupta, a nod to the Costume Institute’s theme, “Fashion is Art”.
The Hong Kong-born couturier crafted a silk-wool-cotton blazer cut with a plunging neckline and a flared peplum hem. Underneath, a powder blue wool-silk shirt introduced a workwear reference nodding to the Birla industrial legacy.
The pleated ballroom skirt, made in gun-metal glass organza, brought volume and light play. Mesh gloves linked the skirt and blazer, keeping the upper and lower halves within the same visual field.
The strongest intervention came at the face. Gupta’s mask was made from stainless steel and acrylic, using traditional Indian utensils as its starting point. Birla describes it as “a helmet and a disguise at once”, an object that obscures identity while creating force. “While it looks like a skull, it’s made of something quite ordinary that’s been put together and made extraordinary.”
Photographed by Rafael Pavarotti
Kapoor was interested in contemporary Indian sculpture precisely because it is not always the first association people make with Indian art on a global fashion carpet. “When I started thinking about sculpture, I obviously thought about the different shades of Indian art, but contemporary sculpture is what really stood out for me,” she says.
The stylist points to the way everyday materials such as cotton and jute helped create one of India’s early industrial empires. “The shirt and the jacket are inspired by workwear,” Kapoor says, linking the choice to Gupta’s interest in every day objects and the working individual.
