Alia Bhatt to attend Met Gala wearing Prabul Gurung

The Brahmastra actress will appear at the event for the first time

Bollywood actress Alia Bhatt, at the opening of the Nita Mukesh Ambani Cultural Centre in Mumbai. Reuters

Bollywood star Alia Bhatt, one of India’s highest-paid actresses, will make her Met Gala debut this year.

Set to star in the Netflix film Heart of Stone alongside Gal Gadot, the Brahmastra and Darlings actress will make her first appearance at the event, wearing a look by Nepalese fashion designer Prabal Gurung.

The autumn/winter 2022 runway show by Prabal Gurung during New York Fashion Week. AP

Other Indian celebrities who have attended the event over the years include Priyanka Chopra, Natasha Poonawalla and Deepika Padukone.

Launched as a fundraiser for the costume department of New York’s Metropolitan Museum since being taken over by Vogue director Anna Wintour, the Met Gala has become one of the biggest nights of the fashion calendar.

Set to the same theme as the exhibition at The Costume Institute, the evening is now a platform for film stars, musicians, fashion designers and models to go all-out, with stars wearing elaborate, custom-made looks. The theme for the 2023 Met Gala is Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty, in honour of the multi-disciplined designer who died in February 2019.

Past show-stopping looks at the Met Gala have included a transformable gown, worn by Blake Lively in 2022 that switched colours; and a glow-in-the-dark Zac Posen gown, worn by Clare Dane in 2016.

One person who is known for stealing the limelight is singer Rihanna, who embraces the theme every time she attends, including the year she arrived dressed as the Pope in custom John Galliano.

Although Bhatt's attendance is confirmed, there has been no hint as to what her Gurung may look like. Given the prestige of the evening, it will doubtless be something memorable.