A New Material Language
Indian designer Rimzim Dadu has long been celebrated for her material innovations, particularly her signature use of hair-thin steel wire to create textiles that are both structured and fluid. For her latest couture collection, titled 'INLAE', she pushed
this exploration further. Presented at India Couture Week 2026, the collection drew inspiration from the ancient Mughal art of inlay work, but reinterpreted it through a strikingly modern lens. Instead of using mother-of-pearl as a simple surface embellishment, Dadu reimagined it as a fundamental component of the garment itself, creating a new dialogue between the industrial strength of steel and the organic delicacy of pearl.
Crafting the Unconventional
The collection was the result of months of research and technical refinement. Each piece of mother-of-pearl was individually cut, buffed, and then meticulously hand-set into the handcrafted textile structures made from steel wire and metallic cords. The process, inspired by traditional stone-setting techniques in jewellery, required immense precision. The goal was to embed thousands of these iridescent elements to create surfaces that have the intricacy of fine jewellery but retain the movement and drape of fabric. The result was a series of sculptural saris, cropped bandhgalas, and fringe skirts that seemed to glow from within, challenging conventional ideas of what couture can be.
Jewellery as Garment, Garment as Jewellery
This approach aligns with a broader trend in haute couture where the lines between clothing and adornment are becoming increasingly blurred. At the recent Paris Haute Couture Week, Indian designer Rahul Mishra’s ‘Devi’ collection also explored this concept, though through a different lens. His garments, inspired by ancient Indian temple sculptures, used dense embroidery and beading to create the illusion of carved stone, where jewellery is not an accessory but an integral part of the form. In Mishra's work, broad collars expand into chest pieces and girdles are built entirely from beads, making jewellery the primary anatomy of the look. Rimzim Dadu’s collection offers a different take on the same idea, focusing on the fusion of contrasting raw materials to create a wearable art form where the garment and its jewelled elements are inseparable.
The Future of Adornment
Dadu's 'INLAE' collection was praised for being one of the most experimental at India Couture Week. By pairing mother-of-pearl with her signature steel wire textiles, she experimented with how these contrasting materials could coexist, creating a unique aesthetic. The challenge, as she noted, was to make a hard, precious material feel fluid and effortless on the body while preserving its natural brilliance. This innovative approach questions the traditional hierarchy where fabric is the base and jewels are the accent. Here, both are treated as equal partners in the creation of a single, unified object. It suggests a future for couture where designers are not just creating clothes, but are inventing entirely new textiles and, with them, new ways for us to understand luxury, craftsmanship, and personal expression.
