MET GALA 2025 - trends, best dressed and controversies
- antarasjournal
- May 8
- 6 min read
The Met Gala theme for 2025 was based on this years exhibit of the MET costume institute: ‘A nod to Superfine: Tailoring Black Style’ which is inspired by Monica L Miller’s book 'Slaves to Fashion: Black Dandyism and the Styling of Black Diasporic Identity'.
In alignment, the dress code was ‘Tailored for you’, a nod to menswear in fashion.
So… what does that mean?
The theme pays homage to Black Dandyism, which takes clothing of an oppressor, and turns it into a statement of rebellion. It's a silent way to show moral superiority, not just about how you look, but to communicate a statement. Dandyism is a fashion revolution that features elements of the tailored suit, the silk pocket square and sharp creases, as we saw on the carpet.
“Don’t talk about your clothes, let your clothes do the talking,”
... was the motto of a famous figure from the 18th century, Beau Brummell. He was a preeminent example of Dandy, and best known for taking the approach of refined fashion, and revolutionizing personal style as an art form, choosing to switch the flamboyant past clothing of its time for sharp tailoring.
A celebration of individuality and history, it is an act of protest that shows the impactful influence of Black culture in fashion.
Details on the carpet…
Accessorising: little details that paid ode to the artisans of ‘tailored by you’
Mona Patel - merging engineering and fashion
The person I was looking forward to most at the met this year was Mona Patel, who went viral last year for her incredible Iris Van Herpen look, and she was back with a bang. An Indian Harvard, Stanford and MIT alumni, serial entrepreneur and philanthropist - she was dressed by my favorite designer of the night - Thom Browne in an impeccably fitted suit inspired attire. However as a woman in Tech, the most remarkable parts of her outfit lay in her kinetic spine by Lisa Jiang and Timothy Bowl and a robot dog - Hector (who is based on Browne’s hector bag) created by MIT grads.
Diljit Dosanjh's ode to Maharaja of Patiala
Coming from a Sikh maternal family, there was great pride in seeing Diljit Dosanjh proudly wear his turban, kirpan (sword), tehmat (draped bottoms) and sherwani (long jacket), the first turban wearing individual to walk the met steps ever. His cape featured script in Gurmukhi and a silhouette of the map of Punjab. The sharply tailored outfit was inspired by the Maharaja (King) of Patiala in the early 20th century and created by Prabal Gurung. If you're wondering how this connects to the theme of Dandyism, it is in its very essence. Diljit chose to merge his personal identity with the theme of Dandyism that focuses on wearing clothes of the ‘oppressor’, sharp tailoring and personal identity as a rebellion. Much like Africa, India also went through a period of oppression and colonisation and the maharajas of the time began blending western tailoring with Indian identity, a way to declare their presence and rebel against dress codes forced upon them by the colonisers. He took elements of the style, such as a dandy walking stick and interpreted it with a desi twist - with his jewel studded kirpan, a symbol of elegance and power.
If you've been on the internet - you've also probably heard about the Cartier controversy, where the brand refused to allow the Indian singer to wear a necklace originally owned by the Maharaja he was paying homage to. The necklace was a 1,000 carat diamond, commissioned by the Maharaja in 1928, the largest Cartier had ever made. Just a few years ago - the jeweller had allowed influencer Emma Chamberlain to wear a redesigned version of it to the Met, so several questions were raised on why they denied an Indian access to the necklace.
Instagram creator, ‘padmatalks’ takes a unique perspective on the topic, mentioning how she believes when Emma Chamberlain wore the necklace back in 2022, it was part of a corporate narrative, she was Cartier’s brand ambassador, a white woman ‘unburdened by our colonial legacy’. She goes on to mention how she believes the message as a result was not about the Indian jewel but rather how Cartier resurrected, restored and reconstructed a lost treasure. ‘A broken jewel, from a looted world, now elevated and made whole thanks to us, not Punjab, not India, but us,’ trying to prove the empire’s artifacts are safest in western hands. However, if Diljit, a Punjabi-Indian artist would wear the necklace, the narrative would focus less on Cartier’s curatorial power because for Diljit it's much more than fashion or jewellery, it's a way to reclaim and revive a historical piece of his people. The conversation revolves around the lost Indian jewellery, and why it was lost, stolen or reconstructed, a political conversation luxury brands want to not just associate with. It's not a material object but a memory, a piece of colonial entanglement, an example of the violent retribution of wealth. She ends by mentioning how she believes the luxury house attempted to preserve the colonial narrative, that the west curates global heritage and those who are colonised are spectators and consumers in their own history, how colonised culture is best when it's fossilized.
(Please note: this is taken from padmatalks, all credit to her and opinions are her own)
Andre 3000
If there's a place to wear a piano on your back, and make a statement - it's the MET gala, and Andre 3000 did exactly that. The rapper and musician used the MET as a way to promote his new album, '7 Piano Sketches' that released the same night.
Unveilings
Damson Idris arrived at the met gala in style in an F1 car, wearing a racecar driver suit. He soon unveiled his matching red suit by Tommy Hilfiger, and definitely made a statement.
Janelle Monáe was dressed in Thom Browne, who described her as a modern day, time travelling dandy. Her style is an essence of the aesthetic, with tailored suiting and sculptural layering as a part of her signature look. She takes inspiration from her father who was a sanitation worker, her mother who was a janitor and banquet server and her grandmother who was a cook - who all feature uniforms that include button down shirts, cummerbunds and jackets, but puts a twist on it. She also had a grand transformation, featuring not one but two looks on the carpet.
Alton Mason in custom BOSS looks
Deconstructing the suit
One of the trends we saw on the carpet in womenswear was using elements of formal fashion of the oppressor like suits, deconstructing and including elements of it in their dresses.
Zooming in: craftsmanship in detailed textiles
A snatched waist
Corsets have become all the rage in the past few years with Kim Kardashian, Billie Eilish and Taylor Russell having worn them at past met galas and this year was no different. A writer for Harper’s Bazaar, Brooke Bobb said, ‘In the best-case scenarios, these body-conscious looks can do both, offering a level of camp that promotes craft and beauty and glamour, while simultaneously appealing to a universe of Gen Z kids glued to their livefeeds.’
The white tux epidemic
Zendaya always manages to deliver on the brief brief, and while her outfit was impeccably tailored, she wasn’t the only one who delivered the white tux and white hat brief, in fact actor Anna Sawai was almost identically dressed. On the carpet, white tuxes, especially with a matching white hat were all the rage spotted on several celebrities.
Others wearing white suits included Lewis Hamilton in Wales Bonner and Madonna in Tom Ford
This year, most attendees followed the dress code, paying ode to the deep rooted history and impact Black people have had on fashion.
*All pictures are from getty images and external sources
An extremely well written article. Very informative and interesting. Enjoyed reading it,
Absolutely loved the article!!! Ir was super interesting to learn a bit about the history behind this years theme. Looking forward to your next post!!
I love it!
Best writer, best article, best takes!!
Thanks for decoding the event & the looks for me. Really enjoyed the article.