After Italian high-fashion brand Prada displayed the Kohlapuri chappals on its runway models’ feet, causing a furore back home for wilfully lacking the mention of their Indian origins, Dior has jumped on the cultural appropriation bandwagon with the showcasing of the unique Indian embroidery style, ‘mukaish’, but without accrediting its origins.
The work was showcased in designer Jonathan Anderson’s debut collection for the luxury label in Paris on June 27, 2025, that saw A-listers like Robert Pattinson, Rihanna, and Daniel Craig in attendance. Anderson is the sole creative director of womenswear and menswear at Christian Dior.
But, what really caught the attention of fashion enthusiasts was a gold and ivory coat with a houndstooth design that cost a whopping USD 200,000 and took 12 embroiders 34 days to complete, enthralling viewers at the show.
Interestingly, fashion commentator and content creator, Hanan Besnovic, was the one who drew people’s attention to the background of the special ‘mukaish’ embroidery, via his post on his Instagram handle, @ideservecouture.
“34 days to create a 200k Dior coat? Well here is a little more context to Dior's 200k coat!” he wrote.
Pointing out the embroidery’s background, he wrote: “Why is it a 200k dollar coat? Well, there’s a little more context to it. The coat is from the debut collection of Jonathan Anderson for Dior, but the procedure used to make this coat is not easy. First of all, the embroidery that you see on this coat is made by using the traditional ‘mukaish’ technique. This is a traditional Indian hand embroidery technique.”
Most Indians are well aware of the special embroidery style, owning at least one Indian outfit that’s regal and rich, the craftsmanship having been a part of the Indian tapestry since generations.
‘Mukaish’, an intricate embroidery style, finds its roots in India’s Lucknow and involves the use of metal strands that are twisted into a pattern to form a design.
The age-old embroidery technique has only a few artisans practising it today, using it mostly in festive and bridal wear sarees and dupattas. It is often used as a way to highlight chikankari work, another famous embroidery style from Lucknow. But, while the chikankari style has travelled the world, ‘mukaish’, also known as ‘fardi ka kaam’ has remained confined to Lucknow’s back lanes.
It also didn’t fail to catch people’s attention that Dior had wilfully ignored mentioning the embroidery’s origins and background and failed to accredit Indian artisans whose talent should have been acknowledged.
The Dior debacle follows Prada’s Kolhapuri row, which gained attention on social media for skipping any mention of the footwear’s Indian origins. It ultimately led the fashion house to announce that their leather sandals were “inspired by the Indian handcrafted footwear from the Maharashtra and Karnataka region”.
With the world discovering another ancient, but dying craft from India, ‘mukaish’ started trending on social media and details of its technique began to be shared, giving it the love and attention that it deserves.
Follow us
