After Prada Kolhapuri drama, Dior faces backlash over ₹1.67 crore mukaish coat with zero credit to India
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Yep, we're talking about Dior. And this one's got fashion fans (and a whole lot of Indians) side-eyeing the runway.
Here's what went down: Jonathan Anderson, the newly appointed creative director for both womenswear and menswear at Christian Dior, made his grand debut on June 27, 2025, at Paris Fashion Week. The show was packed with A-listers like Rihanna, Robert Pattinson, and Daniel Craig, and naturally, it went viral.
But while the buzz was strong, something else caught everyone's attention, a stunning gold and ivory coat with a sharp houndstooth pattern.
Sounds luxe, right? Well, it was. It also came with a hefty $200,000 or INR₹1.67 crore INR price tag.
Now here's where it gets interesting (and annoying). Fashion content creator Hanan Besnovic, known for his deep-dives on the Instagram page @ideservecouture, did a little digging.
In a video post, he pointed out that the eye-catching embroidery on that coat? Yeah, it wasn't just some fancy European handiwork. It was made using mukaish, a traditional Indian embroidery technique from Lucknow, known for its intricate metalwork.
Twelve artisans reportedly worked for 34 days to finish this one coat. That's over a month of meticulous craftsmanship. And yet, wait for it, not a single mention of India or the artisans involved.
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No nod to Lucknow. No appreciation for the cultural history behind the technique. Just a pretty coat with a jaw-dropping price tag.
This all sounds a bit too familiar, right?
Just days ago, Prada found itself in hot water after showing off sandals that were clearly Kolhapuris, but failed to mention anything about their Indian origins. Only after major backlash did they awkwardly add that their design was 'inspired by Indian handcrafted footwear.'
Inspired, sure.
Now, Dior is taking heat for doing the exact same thing, only this time, with mukaish, a dying art form from India that deserves far more love than it gets.
So, what even is Mukaish?
Mukaish is a type of metal embroidery that goes back centuries in Lucknow. It's made by inserting tiny twisted metal wires, silver or gold, into fabric to create delicate patterns. There are two main styles: kamdani, where the whole pattern is filled with metal thread, and mukaish (aka fardi ka kaam), where small dots are twisted in to form dainty motifs, usually floral or geometric.
Traditionally, mukaish was used to embellish chikankari pieces like sarees and dupattas. But while chikankari became globally loved, mukaish stayed tucked away in the narrow bylanes of Lucknow, kept alive by only a handful of skilled artisans.
Now suddenly, it's on the Dior runway, but without the backstory, without the acknowledgement, and without crediting the very people who made it possible.
And yes, the houndstooth twist on the traditional technique is super unique, and it is stunning.
But it doesn't sit right when a legacy craft from India is used to elevate a Western label's prestige and price point, yet the roots of the craft aren't even mentioned.
This is exactly the kind of cultural erasure people are tired of calling out. At a time when conversations about appreciation vs. appropriation are louder than ever, it feels like major fashion houses still haven't quite gotten the memo. Drawing inspiration from another culture is not the issue, it's the silence around where that inspiration comes from that rubs people the wrong way.
A model presents a look at the Dior spring 2026 fashion show in Milan in June 2025. (Simbarashe Cha/The New York Times)
Here's hoping Dior makes it right. Because let's be honest, if 12 Indian artisans spent over a month hand-embroidering a $200,000 or ₹1.67 crore INR coat, the very least they deserve is to be named.
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