Delhi-based designer Gaurav Gupta got his Oscars moment on Monday, March 28, when rapper Megan Thee Stallion attended the 94th Academy awards in a bespoke Gaurav Gupta Couture gown.
The silver-blue outfit inspired by a fantastical marine creature had a fitted bodice, plunging neckline and a body-hugging fit that opened up into a ruffled train of "fins".
The look was styled by Eric Archibald, who got in touch with Gupta's PR representative in Los Angeles just ten days before the event.
"Eric wanted something extremely out of the ordinary to make a proper statement for Megan Thee Stallion's Oscar debut," said the designer. "We did a few sketches, and there was a bit of back and forth before we zeroed in on the look and made the garment in just five days."
"All our teams worked extra hard, somebody flew to LA with the garment, the fitting was done, and it all worked out. It's a magical moment since it was the first time the Gaurav Gupta brand was on the Oscars red carpet.
Gupta is known for his signature sculpting and statement couture, and that is what Archibald and Stallion were looking for when they approached him.
"Megan wanted something to celebrate art in fashion. She is so exotic--her eyes, hair and the way she carries herself--and almost otherworldly; I imagined her as this fantasy underwater creature."
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Gupta calls his creation the "biomorphic, fantasy gown" and believes this is the start of "many good things to come."
The good times are well underway. Last week, rapper Cardi B chose to wear Gupta's "Amorphous Shapeshifter Sculptural Outfit" for her latest music video—the remix of "No Love."
Cardi B is picturised in an endless field of roses while the dress moves and shifts shape with her.
"The whole form is like infinity loops, amorphous and translucent with very dramatic sculpted shoulders and trails. It's a beautiful collaboration, our conceptual signature style worn by Cardi B, one of the most iconic artists," said Gupta.
"The music video is about the elements of nature, so our larger-than-life structural outfit flows with Cardi like air. We had a very tight deadline, so we crafted two dummies made to her size at the atelier and constructed the garment to mould her body perfectly. We chose a nude-ish colour to complement her skin tone, and she shines in it," said Gupta.
On March 19, singer, actor, author and producer Jennifer Hudson made an appearance at the Producer's Guild Awards 2022 in a Gaurav Gupta Couture "The Melting Gold Gown." The floor-length, sculpted dress in metallic gold had a dramatic cape and exaggerated volume sleeves.
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