We were all under the impression that Aishwarya Rai Bachchan had just one custom look by at this year’s .Yet, two months and two weeks after the event, Tony Ward has revealed that there was actually a second custom couture gown waiting in the wings.
Courtesy of Tony Ward
That immediately raises one question: why share it now instead of during Cannes?
Tony Ward revealed that the gown featured more than 7,000 hand-applied pearls in seven different sizes and required over 600 hours of craftsmanship. That’s an extraordinary amount of work for a gown and cape that never made it onto the Cannes red carpet, or into the conversation, until now.
Courtesy of Tony Ward
The timing is what makes this reveal so puzzling. Cannes is when these looks attract the most attention, and this gown would undoubtedly have been part of that conversation, especially considering Aishwarya’s style has been shaky over the last few years. Instead, it has surfaced long after the festival ended, when the momentum has completely disappeared.
Courtesy of Tony Ward
My only guess is that Aishwarya’s team only recently gave Tony Ward permission to release these images, because it’s difficult to understand why a gown of this calibre would have remained unseen otherwise.
Courtesy of Tony Ward
It’s a shame, because I genuinely believe this would have been one of the standout looks of Cannes had it appeared on the red carpet at the time.