The 76th Met Gala took place in New York on Monday night, bringing stars to the Metropolitan Museum dressed in outfits to match this year's theme, Fashion is Art.
This year's event, which was partly funded by Amazon's Jeff Bezos for the first time, was attended by some of the world's most famous celebrities, who wore a mix of custom-made looks and vintage pieces.
The guest list featured Rihanna, who wore metallic Maison Margiela; Nicole Kidman in dazzling red Chanel sequins; and Beyonce, who attended for the first time since 2016, in a diamond-studded skeleton gown by Olivier Rousteing.
The theme left plenty of room for interpretation, giving designers a wide scope to play with. Here's how a handful of stars and designers from the Middle East and India rose to the challenge.
Samar Hejazi
Palestinian-Canadian artist Samar Hejazi arrived wearing a look created by fellow Palestinian designer Zaid Farouki. Hejazi's look comprised a sheer skirt over sculpted hips, with a stitched black leather bodice.
Emily Blunt
The Devil Wears Prada star Emily Blunt attended the event wearing body jewellery valued at $500,000.
Her outfit comprised a black lace corset top and simple wide-legged black trousers, reportedly by Saudi brand Ashi Studio, topped with a body necklace by Mikimoto. Featuring pearls, set in 18-karat white gold, it also had a 21.85-carat pearl-shaped morganite and a further 45.97 carats of diamonds. She matched this with pearl earrings and rings, also by Mikimoto, with an additional 45.04 carats of diamonds.
Imaan Hammam
Moroccan-Egyptian-Dutch model Imaan Hammam opted for a Saint Laurent dress from the brand's spring/summer 2026 collection. The ruffled and tiered dress is made from light nylon, which allowed the model to enjoy twirling on the runway.
Jasmine Tookes
American model Jasmine Tookes wore a fitted look from Azerbaijani designer Gunel Babayeva's brand Sophie Couture, which was shown at Arab Fashion Week in Dubai. A sculpted bodice featuring gold beading, the look was finished with a sheer skirt covered in hand embroidery.
Isha Ambani
Indian heiress Isha Ambani arrived at the Met Gala wearing a gold sari by designer Gaurav Gupta.
Woven from gold by Indian artisans, the sari came with a bodice featuring more than 200 old-cut diamonds hand-sewn onto the cloth. All borrowed from the private jewellery collection of her mother, Nita Ambani, the look was conceived to incorporate the unique pieces into wearable art, in keeping with the gala's theme. The sari was also scattered with hand zari and aari embroidery.
The look was finished with necklaces, also from her mother's personal collection, featuring more than 150 carats of old mine-cut diamonds. Central to the top necklace was a 50-carat emerald from Lorraine Schwartz.
Ananya Birla
Indian businesswoman Ananya Birla also went for a striking look.
Wearing a dramatic custom look by Robert Wun, the skirt was made from gleaming black metal and was topped off with a tightly waisted peplum jacket. She finished the look with a silver face mask by Subodh Gupta, the Indian artist famous for his metallic skull sculptures.
Sabine Getty
Swiss jewellery designer Sabine Getty wore Saudi label Ashi Studio.
The hand-painted bodice referenced classical paintings. It depicted a nude torso, modesty provided by painted hands and was paired with a shredded tulle skirt and a single-sleeve top.
