What Indian museums can learn from the Met Gala

While India laments over the burning down of the iconic National Museum of Natural History in the capital on April 26, the world celebrated the annual Met Gala at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York on May 2.

The biggest names of Hollywood, music and fashion showed up at the red-carpeted steps, dressed to the nines for this year's theme of "Manus x Machina: Fashion In an Age of Technology". The museum threw its doors open to ensembles from the early 20th century for this year's Costume Institute exhibit, housed at the Robert Lehman Wing.

Naturally, nimble fingers clicked the flashbulb button faster than a rapper doles out lyrics. The paparazzi has flocked to the Met Gala since it's inception in 1971, which has today become a style event of incomparable proportions.

A quick search on the Internet reveals the scores of celebs who have been praised and lambasted for their fashion choices at the affair, including Sarah Jessica Parker, Kate Moss, Beyonce, Kim Kardashian, Lady Gaga and Rihanna.

They have used - and tried to use - the platform to make fashion history, and really, what better place to do it than at the very establishment where history is cherished.

This year, two women hogged the limelight for their style statements, though from two ends of the spectrum. The "Queen of Pop", Madonna, took last year's trend of "got it, flaunt it" to a whole new level as she unabashedly flaunted her assets in an ensemble by Givenchy, with light lace holding it together.

It should hardly have come as a surprise, given the fact that she mooned her fans at the Grammy's red carpet in February last year. But it appears that her shock-and-awe tactic is losing appeal, and the 57-year-old was deemed as being too old to wear such an outfit to a public outing.

The musician, who has devoted four decades of her life to courting controversy, did only what she knew best. Yet excitement was stirred only when she came out in defence of her clothing (or lack of).

Through an Instagram post, she hit back saying, "My dress at the Met Ball was a political statement as well as a fashion statement. The fact that people actually believe a woman is not allowed to express her sexuality and be adventurous past a certain age is proof that we still live in an age-ist and sexist society. I have never thought in a limited way and I'm not going to start."

And just like that, Madge started a new debate on what is age-appropriate, and whether anyone has the right to tell her how to dress or to "put it away".

Meanwhile, Homeland actress Claire Dane took everyone's breath away in a gorgeous glow-in-the-dark gown by designer Zac Posen. Organza fabric was woven with fibre optics for the luminous effect, and the dress came with 30 battery packs for the LED lights and its own mini bus to make sure the gown didn't crease in a car.

Dane truly had a Cinderella moment, as she twirled in a ball gown that one can safely say is beautifully ahead of its times. Through it, Posen has shown that there is much more to the future of fashion than just baring it all in risqué styles.

The annual fundraising gala for the Met Museum's Costume Institute has become an institution in itself through the vision and the hard work of many committed people.

It has transformed the image of a damp exhibit space to a young and modern crowd-puller with its fashion themes, creativity and the biggest thing that matters these days - celebrity faces.

Why can't Indian museums try and blow the dust off too? Rather than letting exquisite works of art languish away, forgotten and compelled to compete with plastic/photoshopped arts of the new age, why not open the doors of these temples of ancient craft and let a younger energy lift it up?

Television channels thrive on the exorbitant TRPs that annual film award functions muster. Why not capitalise on this tried-and-tested concept and use it to restore interest in our rich heritage?

Either way, it's better than letting a museum burn to the ground instead.