Couturier Gaurav Gupta has been on an upward swing in the past oneand-half years through various interesting fashion collaborations globally. The first quarter of this year has been phenomenal for the label in more ways than one. Starting with dressing up Alok VaidMenon for the India tour in the month of January and having a presence at the Grammys to a maiden show of the label at this year’s Paris Haute Couture Week and opening a new store in Mumbai last week, the label is on a roll. Always ahead of his time and the brand stepping on its 18th year, it has been a series of visionary moves for the Indian designer while being very close to his Indian roots. Like his designs, every new move is a spectacular one mapping the journey of this Indian label into global domains. In an exclusive interview with The Telegraph, the designer takes us through some of the stepping stones starting this year and elaborates on his latest inspiration ‘Shunya’.
(l-r) Alok VaidMenon in Gaurav Gupta. Picture: Krisha Sandesh, Cardi B at the Grammys ’23, Megan Thee Stallion at The Oscars ’22
Your label is blooming in a very successful 18th year. How does it feel?
It feels beautiful. And I feel content. The expansion plans of the brand are falling into place in a very organic manner and I am glad that we have a very strong working family system in the organisation. Everyone specialises in what they are good at and things flow smoothly as a result. It’s a really magical 18th year of the brand where the brand has seen some really iconic moments like Cardi B, Lizzo, Sharon Stone (wearing his creations). And it’s not just the global expansion per se but also a strong focus on sales and distribution channels like we are now retailing at websites like Neiman Marcus and Moda Operandi. We have also launched a new store this month. We are very excited for things to get even bigger this year.
Starting from last year’s Oscars and Cannes to this year’s Grammys, the label is making quite a noise while travelling the world. Is your vision for the label undergoing any change due to this or how are you visioning the label shaping up in the coming years?
It’s been a plan in the making for over 20 years. We wanted to have a very sustainable global expansion plan where we are ready with a strong brand presence in India. We feel very fortunate that we have the right catalysts and partners working with us, like Hema Bose (Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion collaboration), who make such iconic moments happen. As things are progressing, yes, the brand takes many more channels with retail expansion and other projects, which the brand will be doing.
Adding to the association of international celebrities with your label since last year was your maiden show at Paris Haute Couture Week this year. What has that experience been like?
It has been exhilarating. It’s truly been magical. I am aware of the power of great design and fashion through iconic moments like Megan Thee Stallion for the Oscars, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan at Cannes, Cardi B at Grammys and other iconic culturalists we have dressed over the last year and a half — it’s been a magical experience being able to showcase at Paris Haute Couture Week on calendar. We wanted to make it a sustained activity and continue the magic hereon, and I feel this is where the true potential of the brand is shaping up.
L-Paris Haute Couture Week ’23
You showcased your collection Shunya inspired by the concept of zero. What was the genesis of this idea and the journey with it?
Being from India, what has always fascinated me is the ancient depth of knowledge and culture of this country. I wanted a very subliminal concept as a base concept for the collection. When Shunya was discovered, it expanded our mindscape, not just in arithmetic but in time and dimensions and in very different tangents. The scape of the mind and possibilities became infinite. I wanted to celebrate that discovery of zero. And have my own interpretations of it. I let my mind flow in different directions conceptually. Hence, there are different segments in the collection. The first is with zero and infinity shapes made in our sculptural techniques in handwoven Indian tissue. Fluid wind-like sculptures which are swirling around the body give a feeling of infinity. For me, a very special moment was a black-andwhite girl walking hand-in-hand in a conjoined infinity dress. For me, togetherness is infinity. The collection then went into elemental concepts of volcanic embroideries on nude bodies and the kundalini snake dresses going into almost like an Egyptian black-and-gold feeling. I have always been mesmerised by the ancient Egyptian civilisations, the discovery of time and metaphysics.
Spectacle and art were invariably at the heart of this collection. Your label has always been about spectacular drama and the international fashion weeks have embraced this drama and spectacle aspects of fashion hugely this year. Could you elaborate on the visionary moves you made for your label in this 18-year journey...
It’s been a natural progression from my time at Central Saint Martins itself after which our label was born. It has been great to have my brother, Saurabh, join me in this journey as my business partner. He is the company director and the backbone of our brand. We strategically opened five stores over the years, starting from DLF Emporio in 2010. Since then, we have added many stores and flagships in the country. The brand has a very strong retail presence now. Now any bride and groom in the country want to wear a Gaurav Gupta for their wedding festivities apart from couture clients based internationally. What has been interesting is making a conceptual brand into a commercially successful brand and finding that right balance and driving culture with it has been the most exciting part of the journey. I think the turning point in these 18 years has been the opening of the iconic stores, which have been awarded at the world architecture awards. Also, some philanthropic work that we have done with King Charles’s foundation. Some key collections like the light fall collection of 2013 in the couture week, or 2015 finale collection of Lakme Fashion Week to the recent Lakme (Fashion Week) finale we did with cushion plastic and all the collaborations we have done with the global stylists and the iconic personalities. And of course, Paris Couture Week has been a dream come true and I am personally overwhelmed with the congratulations and the overwhelming response that we have received from the media and buyers.
The collection features the label’s signature design detailing on a striking colour palette highlighting elemental motifs. Did you want to give out a special message through the collection with its focus on the elemental aspect?
When you are between zero and infinity and your mind and spirit are open, it is like deep diving into a conceptual art process and I literally just let myself flow. I did not bind myself with any restrictions, and then kept revisiting the concepts and sketches, and at the same time, followed my instincts through and through. I started the process with a lot of random thoughts and sketches. The electric blue came to me and it was reflective of a futuristic time period to me, as a colour. And we wanted to keep it pure as a segment in the collection. And the kundalini dresses were natural — when you go into zero, you tend to go towards the kundalin.
Shunya is an example of how despite making your label internationally relevant you never leave behind your Indian roots. Is that a conscious thought process behind any collection you are creating?
It was a very natural process. Our inspiration for our first showcase at Paris Haute Couture Week was Shunya. Shunya is a Sanskrit word which literally translates to zero. When zero was discovered in India by Aryabhatta centuries ago, the human mindscape was expanded infinitely. The possibilities between zero and infinity have inspired the collection. I delved into the subliminal concepts — signs, astrology, astronomy and metaphysics with ancient Indian sculptures — used them as my inspiration.
The new Gaurav Gupta store in Mumbai’s Kala Ghoda
This year started with a bang for you and was quite striking for us as well to see Alok Vaid-Menon looking gorgeous in a GG gown. How did that collaboration happen?
I have been following Alok VaidMenon for some time and I think they are a very strong cultural voice not just for the LGBTQ community but otherwise as well. I met them at a gala in Paris during the Paris Fashion Week last year, and that’s where we connected and they called me and asked me if we could collaborate for their show in Delhi and we picked the right, elegant sculpted gown for them. The grape colour was their choice, which worked very beautifully.
Alok has been a face and voice of de-gendering fashion for a long time now. What is your idea of the concept as a designer?
Well, our label always believes in diversity and we were the first ones from India as a couture brand to showcase real-life gay couples and non-binary people in our clothes in our fashion films and shows, and even in our Paris show we had a trans model. Diversity comes naturally to us and it’s part of our DNA. Alok is a beautiful soul and does beautiful activities, a beautiful changemaker. Their personality and their voice are naturally a match for the brand.