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Sabyasachi controversy explained: Why his designs are facing scrutiny online
Days after his Met collaboration and new Delhi flagship launch, designer Sabyasachi Mukherjee faces social media scrutiny over the originality of his designs.
Designer Sabyasachi Mukherjee recently opened a 26,000-sq-ft flagship store in Delhi’s Mehrauli, but the luxury house seems to have found itself in trouble.
On Sunday, fashion designer Ranjit Rodricks drew attention to an earlier claim by Dehradun-based designer and former Indian Air Force pilot Ila Anoop, who had pointed to similarities between a saree she designed and one by Sabyasachi. In July, Anoop had posted a Reel saying a Sabyasachi black saree with a 3D brooch resembled a brooch organza saree she had designed in 2017.
Rodricks also compared Sabysachi’s earlier designs with Dolce & Gabbana, pointing to similarities in the silhouettes and embellishments, while also comparing a Sabyasachi ‘CAT LADY’ sweater with a Joanie Calpirinha version bearing the same slogan.
Where does inspiration end and imitation begin?
Rodricks believes that quality can sometimes be the unfortunate casualty of rapid diversification. He tells us, “I feel that when someone diversifies too fast and into too many things, then quality is bound to suffer. Most designers pass on the work to interns who are relatively underpaid and these young interns source inspiration from Pinterest and other platforms. Sometimes the end result could be startlingly similar as in the case of Sabyasachi.”
He stops short of calling the designs outright copies, but says the resemblance to the work of other designers remains visible. “The footprints and the thought process of the original designers are there. Does he sign off on every piece before it hits the store? Do they have multi-factor verification? I cannot say,” he adds.
For Rodricks, the question becomes particularly relevant when a label operates at the luxury end of the market. “It’s one thing to pat yourself on your back for your laurels and another thing to give your customers something that looks suspiciously like a design by someone else,” he says.
‘I only wrote it was a coincidence’: Ila Anoop
An admirer of Sabyasachi’s work, Anoop felt there was a resemblance between his brooch saree designs on Instagram and pieces she had designed over the years. She commented on his post, “Interesting coincidence. Our small homegrown brand @saree_bashobyila have been creating plain sarees and brooch sarees for years. It’s fascinating to see these ideas finding a much wider audience today,” but later noticed that her comment had been hidden. She then posted a Reel titled “Sabya, why was my comment hidden?” on July 5.
Anoop tells us, “I don’t want any bad name for him but I felt hurt. I wrote that it was a coincidence. I never said that they copied my design.” Asked if her comment amounted to an accusation of plagiarism, she shares, “I haven’t said that anywhere. But I had to share the story about the saree; otherwise people would not understand the context behind my message on the hidden comment. I also take inspiration for my designs from people, but I cannot miss the similarities (with Sabya’s designs),” adding, “Rather than hiding a comment and then not responding, they could have written something encouraging.”
Anoop asserts that “promoting herself” on Sabyasachi's page was never the intention: “I’m a very small person. I saw a similarity in design and tagged my brand. I was not trying to promote myself on their page.”
