Gaurav Gupta Draws On Vedic Philosophy For Fall 2023

For his second haute couture show in Paris, Gaurav Gupta designed a Fall 2023 collection inspired by the Hiranyagarbha, the source of the creation of the universe under Vedic philosophy. In an Instagram video posted ahead of the runway debut, Gupta shared that, "according to the most ancient Indian scriptures, the Vedas, this is where everything started. It's the beginning of everything, the starting point, the golden light. That very purity of creation is what really excites me."

Gupta previously told Fashionista that he sees himself as a conceptual mind, with his first haute couture collection based on the concept of zero and numerology. For Fall 2023, the graceful nature of the Hiranyagarbha translates into each look through curves and flourishes, and more literally through the golden thread used throughout. 

The collection stays true to the aesthetic Gupta has established over the years — sculptural, voluminous, dramatic — while mirroring qualities of the cosmos, like draping and contours that conjure images of the rings around a planet or embellishments that resemble galactic dust.

The color palette is restrained, limited to ivory, eggshell, deep brown, lime and a lush green. Accessories are equally sparse. The focus is on the clothes, and the clothes only. During a couture season filled with clothes is made for the everyday, this collection stands out from the rest, each look a work of art that forces whoever wears it to be part of the performance.