Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, TILDA SWINTON AND MORE BEST RED CARPET LOOKS OF 2005

AISH, AMALA, AMY, TILDA SWINTON AND MORE BEST RED CARPET LOOKS OF 2005, FROM CANNES TO THE MET GALA 2025

Cannes Film Festival 78th, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan wearing Manish Malhotra

She’s Back in a Saree! Aishwarya Rai Bachchan Brings the Saree Back to Cannes After Years

At the 78th Cannes Film Festival, the undisputed icon of the Cannes red carpet, the beautiful Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, makes a striking return in a visual statement that honours Indian handloom- a meditation in ivory, rose gold, and silver: a handwoven Kadwa ivory Banarasi handloom saree from Manish Malhotra. 

The Kadwa brocade technique stands as a true testament to the unmatched skill of Indian weavers. Originating from the famed looms of Varanasi, this intricate method involves crafting each motif separately, often using multiple shuttles and supplementary threads. The saree features handwoven brocade motifs and hand-embroidered zari detailing in real chandi (silver), further extending the sanctity of the fabric. Draped alongside is a sheer white tissue handwoven dupatta, edged with real gold and silver zardozi embroidery. The ensemble marks a deliberate departure from conventional red-carpet codes, reintroducing the saree not as nostalgia, but as contemporary couture. A bold assertion from the brand, rewriting what Indian ceremonial dress can signify on the global stage.

​Paired with heirloom Manish Malhotra high jewellery featuring, over 500 carats of Mozambique rubies and uncut diamonds in 18k gold and the rennaissance of ruby statement rings this look foregrounds textile as language, and craftsmanship as power. 

On the storied steps of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, under the gaze of the global fashion world, Manish Malhotra couture looks testify why he is widely regarded as the torchbearer of Indian couture (and the man himself also made a quiet yet resonant debut at the 2025 Met Gala).
This year’s theme, “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style,” paid tribute to the cultural evolution of Black Dandyism- a narrative shaped by defiance, dignity, and aesthetic power. In response, Malhotra offered a creations that adorned several best dresses red carpet icons like the Empress of Indian Fashion herself, stunning Natasha Poonawalla. Her persona reigns supreme at The Met Gala 2025 in a custom Manish Malhotra Ensemble, draped in an exquisite fusion of armor, artistry, and ancestry. A vision of dandyism woven with the heritage and legacy of Indian Gara embroidery.  
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Her interpretation of the 2005 year theme, reframed through the language of Indian couture, honors her Parsi ancestry while affirming her place as a modern-day cultural force. 
At the core: a sculpted fishtail skirt reengineered from two vintage Gara saris, one a century-old relic from Manish Malhotra’s archives recreated, its surface an exquisite tapestry of hand-embroidered silken threads echoing generations of craftsmanship. Anchoring the look is a corset-cummerbund paired with a vintage French lace bralette edged in scalloped pearls capturing the essence of dandyism, where restraint meets regality in meticulously tailored form. Draped above it all: a sharply tailored black Gara jacket with bold shoulders, lined in imperial purple, a hue long associated with power, mysticism, and nobility, and embroidered in the sacred ektaar technique, where one continuous thread carries an unbroken narrative.
 
At the collar, a sculptural lace cravat by Atelier Biser delivers the final note of theatricality. Styled by Anaita Shroff Adajania this is couture with conviction.
 
Long regarded as one of India’s most influential designers, Malhotra approached even personal Met Gala debut not as a spectacle, but as a continuation of a deeply rooted creative path- one shaped by instinct, memory, and an enduring reverence for textile traditions. His ensemble, a sculptural sherwani layered with a sharply tailored blazer and a floor-sweeping cape, drew inspiration from the 19th-century Inverness Dandy-
a figure emblematic of both refinement and rebellion, manishmalhotra.in.

Tilda SWINTON, CHANEL Ambassador, wore a salmon cotton shirt with a burdungy light shantung skirt, look 17, from the CHANEL Spring-Summer 2026 collection on December 4th for the closing ceremony of the film festival. These sophisticated bicolour looks mark a departure from her classical CHANEL black and white outfits that she wore for the red carpet to Venice Film Festival and Berlinale 2025, and the British Vogue describes her new Chanel styling so, Tilda Is Once Again The Best-Dressed Person At A Film Festival. 

Earlier this year at the 75th Berlin International Film Festival the Scottish actress Tilda Swinton received the Honorary Golden Bear for her lifetime achievements, during the Opening Ceremony at the Berlinale Palast on February 13, 2025, where she also striking haute couture by Chanel.
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Amal Clooney graced the Lido di Venezia for the 82nd annual film festival. The Lebanese-British barrister wore a vintage fuchsia taffeta to movie premier after stunning on a boat in her butter yellow dress by Balmain.

Actress Amy Jackson attended the 20th Rome Film Festival in October 2025 to promote the new Rai TV series "Sandokan," where she stars alongside Ed Westwick; she walked the red carpet for the show, wore Giorgio Armani and celebrated the premiere of the series at the festival. 
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