Maria Grazia Chiuri has chosen Mumbai to present her new proposals full of nods to local craftsmanship and traditions.

The mythical Gateway of India in Mumbai was the setting chosen by the creative director of the French brand, Maria Grazia Chiuri, to unveil Dior’s Fall 2023 collection. Maria Grazia Chiuri had the objective and the proposal to find a new ingenious way to talk about feelings and emotions that can connect us with a country and its culture, to explain the collaboration, working relationships and bonds of friendship that she had with Karishma Swali, director of the Chanakya workshops and the Chanakya School of Crafts in Mumbai. A place of exchange, study and emancipation for many women, a laboratory for exploring different types of savoir-faire that the creative director of Dior’s women’s lines has long celebrated, thus highlighting the visionary spirit of the designer-founder.

“It was through this relationship with Chanakya that I was able to learn a lot about the artisanal embroidery techniques, which are still found in every region of India, and Chanakya Atelier’s unique ability to bring them into dialogue with the fashion industry. “, said Chiuri.

Since its founding, Dior has been fascinated and influenced by the cut and tailoring of garments from around the world. “In 1954, for example, Monsieur Dior drew on a detailed study of sari draping. And evolving a process begun with Greek peplums, MariaGraziaChiuri also explored the inherent draping and architecture of the sari for the newly presented Dior Fall 2023, revisiting pleats and asymmetries to wrap the female form with dresses that extend sinuously from the shoulder and skirts with a wraparound effect and distinctive bow detail at the hip.”

Held at the iconic and luminous Taj Mahal Palace hotel, this historic venue became a riot of color and style as models paraded down the runway to showcase the collection. The runway, brimming with traditional Indian floral designs, fusion rhythms from live musicians, while Indian art and craftsmanship took center stage in creative director Maria Grazia Chiuri’s collection.

The runway show included silk dresses, evening coats and sari-inspired skirts that referenced traditional Indian silhouettes. The runway show opened with a variety of neutral colors, subtly transitioning to forest green before giving way to an explosion of bright colors and prints. Most of the models wore pearl necklaces around their necks.

“Personally, I wanted to celebrate and showcase the incredible knowledge that India offers to the international fashion world in the field of embroidery, the mastery of the artisans who continue to work in this craft and the commitment of Chanakya’s founders to preserve the history and culture of India. The embroidery is portrayed by each embroidery technique,” said Chiuri via her Instagram account.

Dior’s Pre Fall 2023 runway show was a star-studded evening:

International luxury house Christian Dior’s India-inspired pre-fall 2023 runway show, not only featured Bollywood celebrities, but international stars also graced the event in style, dressed to the nines, as Cara Delevingne, Karlie Kloss, Simone Ashley, Maisie Williams, Ananya Panday, among others.

MAISIE WILLIAMS

Game of Thrones actress Maisie Williams wore a ruffled red dress with puffed sleeves. She opted for a pair of black strappy heels and a matching black clutch.

KARLIE KLOSS

On the other hand, model Karlie Kloss, went all black with this dress and off-the-shoulder jacket from the Dior Cruise 2023 collection.