Shah Rukh Khan’s long-awaited debut on the MET Gala steps lived up to every bit of the expectations that had built up ever since the news of the superstar’s appearance at global fashion’s biggest stage broke.

The anticipation was even higher since King Khan was to be dressed by none other than Calcutta designer Sabyasachi Mukherjee, a favourite of Indian stars for their global appearances.

On Monday night (Tuesday morning in India), New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art’s teal carpet saw Khan arrive in his signature flamboyant style, courtesy of Mukherjee, in a look celebrating heritage and maximalist elegance. A blockbuster moment in the making — equal parts red carpet razzle-dazzle and cultural mic drop.

The theme for this year’s MET Gala exhibition was “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style” and the dress code was “Tailored For You”.

Khan’s look was a masterclass in maximalist suave — a floor-length, elongated coat in Tasmanian superfine wool with monogrammed Japanese horn buttons. The hand-canvassed, single-breasted coat featured a peak collar and wide lapels, paired with a crepe de chine silk shirt and tailored superfine wool trousers.

The pièce de résistance? A pleated silk cummerbund and the Bengal Tiger Head Cane — an 18k gold work of art adorned with tourmalines, sapphires and diamonds. Custom jewellery from Sabyasachi High Jewellery — layered necklaces bearing his initials to a diamanté-encrusted “K” (for King Khan) — imbued the look with personalsymbolism.

Khan told a fashion magazine during the carpet call: “I’ve little kids (Suhana, Aryan and AbRam) who are very excited about the MET.”

Khan added: “I don’t know if I would have come here on my own, but when Sabya suggested it, they went ‘wow’. I still don’t know if that was ‘wow, they called you’ or ‘wow, you’ll be good on it’.”

Talking about his outfit, Khan said: “I told Sabya I only wear black and white, and tonight’s look is because of that. What he’s designed for me is what I’m most comfortable in. That’s how I think it should be.”

Mukherjee said in an official note issued by his company: “I wanted to represent Shah Rukh Khan as Shah Rukh Khan and nobodyelse. Shah Rukh Khan is amagician, superstar, and icon. Period.”

The Indian couturier, who made his second consecutive MET Gala appearance — after a head-turning, bejewelled debut appearance last year — surprised everyone with his look. The man who’s known for his subtle personal style — think white shirts and denims — turned it up several notches and how!

Inspired by the noble houses of India, Mukherjee interpreted the theme with a hand-quilted, oversized court jacket and sherwani in hand-dyed Murshidabad silk, paired with a silk shirt, black quilted trousers and cummerbund, styled with custom embroidered shoes by Sabyasachi Accessories. The look was completed with exquisite pieces from the Bengal Royal collection of Sabyasachi High Jewellery — a lavish emerald choker, accentuated by an oversized vintage-style brooch, and chunky rings. His headpiece, a fez-inspired velvet hat, adorned with a marigold plume and a jewelled starburst, was the highlight of the look!

The gala theme explored the role of sartorial style in forming Black identities, focusing on the emergence, significance and proliferation of Black dandyism. The exhibit, comprising clothing, photographs, fine art, historical texts and artefacts, was the first Costume Institute exhibit to focus on menswear since 2003’s “Men in Skirts”. It drew inspiration from Monica L. Miller’s 2009 book, Slaves to Fashion: Black Dandyism and the Styling of Black Diasporic Identity, offering a rich exploration of how fashion became a powerful form of self-expression and defiance against societal and racial norms.

Mukherjee’s interpretation? Boldly Indian, fiercely defiant. He linked the Black dandy ethos to a story from Indian history — Jamsetji Tata’s refusal to accept exclusion from a British-only hotel in colonial Bombay, and how that led to the creation of the iconic Taj Mahal Palace. “We celebrate dandyism on the MET Gala red carpet by bringing our own version with a uniquely Indian exuberance,” said Mukherjee. “For culture to be relevant, it must be dynamic,” added the designer.

Joining Khan and Mukherjee on the star-studded carpet were other Indian stars making their MET debuts. Mom-to-be Kiara Advani turned heads in a dreamy Gaurav Gupta gown that paid homage to André Leon Talley with a dramatic cape, seamlessly blending motherhood with haute couture.

Punjabi pop star Diljit Dosanjh channelled the opulence of Maharaja Bhupinder Singh of Patiala in a regal custom Prabal Gurung outfit, complete with ceremonial sword and Gurmukhi script embroidery. And designer Manish Malhotra, making his own debut on the MET Gala carpet, followed in the footsteps of Mukherjee, reminding the world of the global reach of Indian fashion.

SRK and Sabyasachi’s MET moment? Fashion history. It wasn’t just an outfit. It was a full-throttle celebration of identity, cinema, craft and charisma. And let’s be honest — when Bollywood meets Black dandy meets Bengal baroque, the result is nothing less than spectacular.