A Thousand FLOWERS

At Dior's pre-autumn 2023 show in Mumbai, the maison frames fashion as a a global undertaking.

- CARMEN SIN

In the run-up to Dior’s pre-autumn 2023 show in Mumbai, some anxiety was reasonable. It had been almost two decades since a major show was staged in India and worries about flippant interpretations, mercenary opportunism (India’s level of disposable income jumped more than 24 percent between 2019 and 2022) and general indelicacy were well-founded. But on the last night of March, under the auspices of a gibbous moon, Dior put on a show so earnest, so achingly beautiful, that even the most hard-shelled sceptic would have been moved.

Against the backdrop of the Gateway of India archway, the house delivered 99 ravishing looks and a monumental show. The runway was lined on both sides by columns of diya (lamps), arranged in the gentle crests of lapping waves and flanked by long carpets of intricately coloured flowers. A 14m-tall toran—a piece of cloth hung on doorways to welcome visitors—framed the proceedings. Its mirrored sequins, sewn into the fabric using the ancient shisha embroidery technique, winked under the spotlight, refracting the glare into something kinder and older.