When Alia Bhatt married Ranbir Kapoor in 2022, it wasn’t just Bollywood’s latest big-ticket affair – it was the age-old tale of the perennial bachelor finally settling down. It was the sort of wedding that made every fan sit up and wonder, “Wait, is this our royal family now?” Until of course, the Ambani wedding happened. But like many of us “normal” people who pay extortionate amounts of money for our wedding joras, the Student of the Year actor decided her wedding outfits deserved more than one trip to the spotlight.
Alia’s journey to sustainable fashion might make some wonder if she’s subtly nudging the rest of us to rethink our own wardrobes. Let’s be honesthow many of us have that one outfit we can’t bear to rewear, fearing someone might recognise it from Instagram. Yet here’s Alia, nonchalantly rewearing pieces with the same flair as if she’d bought something brand new, giving us all a lesson in fashion humility.
It started last year when she repurposed her wedding sari by Sabyasachi and wore it to an awards ceremony. More recently, she wore the stunning pink lehenga from her Mehndi ceremonythis time to attend the lehenga’s own designer Manish Malhotra’s Diwali bash. The lehenga, crafted with roughly 180 textile patches, was a head-turner once again and a tribute to upcycling at its most glamorous. Her stylist, Ami Patel, captured it perfectly on Instagram: “Recycled the upcycled.”
The piece is a masterpiece of circular fashion, taking 3,000 hours of work by the skilled Mijwan women. It wasn’t just any lehenga; according to Vogue India, it’s a patchwork marvel of chikankari and Kashmiri embroidery, mingling textile art from across Indiabandhani, banarasi brocade, jacquard, and kaccha resham knots all stitched together. Even coins and tassels made the cut, adding layers of texture and history. The piece was already a masterclass in sustainable high fashion, but Alia decided it had one more lesson in it.
This time around, Alia switched up her look with a tousled updo, trading the boho waves she sported at her wedding for a more polished vibe. Gone were the emeralds; in their place, she chose Kundan pieces and traditional chandbali earrings, keeping her neck bare for a cleaner silhouette. Her makeup was all signature Bhattthink flushed cheeks, naturally freckled skin, and tinted lips.
So, the next time you feel strangely about rewearing a piece to a big event, just remember: if Alia can recycle her custom lehenga in front of India’s most discerning eyes, maybe we can all risk rewearing that favourite top.
