- Gaurav Gupta is a celebrated haute couture designer from India.
- All three outfits Gupta designed for Beyoncé's tour took over 1,500 hours to make, he told Insider.
- The outfits were fitted in Paris on a body double, Gupta said.
Whether it's Beyoncé's Renaissance tour or Taylor Swift's Eras tour, stage outfits are now as anticipated as the setlist.
And in true Beyoncé style, her looks are as extravagant and luxurious as they come, with the best designers of every sub-category of fashion at her disposal.
The Renaissance tour began on May 10 in Stockholm, with a further 56 dates scheduled around the world. Every outfit is distinct, and in a surprising twist, every show features a never-before-seen look.
Gaurav Gupta is a celebrated haute couture designer who hails from India, and his designs are loved by celebrities and ultra-wealthy clientele on a global scale. The designs, a mix of custom and haute-couture runway pieces, have been featured in three of Beyoncé's US tour shows.
Gupta spoke with Insider about how these looks, which took hundreds of hours to create, came together for the Renaissance tour.
North Carolina
Hema Bose, founder at Maison Bose, who collaborated with Gupta on these pieces, said in a statement to Insider: "Like the saying goes, it truly takes a village! This will go down in history as one of the greatest shows in our lifetimes."
Gupta added that before the tour was due to start, they were approached by legendary stylist Karen Langley. Those who know their Beyoncé fashion looks could tell you all about Langley, mainly because she has been instrumental in shaping the artist as a fashion icon.
"The outfit took about 538 hours to make from start to finish. There was complete freedom given to us. We sent sketches for Beyoncé; out of them, a few were selected; we made them and sent them to Paris where a body double had fitted them," Gupta told Insider of the first of their looks worn by Beyoncé on August 9.
Atlanta, Georgia
The second look for the Atlanta opening number on August 11 was a proud moment for Indians all around the world.
"This placement marks a significant relevance of cultural appreciation of India's traditional design," Hema Bose said in the statement to Insider.
The Neon Green Athena Saree Gown was actually first seen at Gupta's Paris Couture Week runway show in July, Gupta said.
"After the stylist selected them off the runway, we made those pieces in Beyoncé's size and shipped them to LA for fittings, and then they took a call for when she should wear it during the tour… the outfit took around 320 hours to make," Gupta told Insider. "It was so heartwarming to see her wear the saree gown, especially for her opening look."
The saree has a long history in India and wider South Asian traditional wear. "I have always been fascinated and enamored by the history of the saree and the more than 600 different ways it is traditionally draped," Gupta said.
Atlanta, Georgia
The third look of Gupta's that Beyoncé wore coincidentally fell on India's Independence Day, August 15. Gupta told Insider it took over 700 hours to make: "It is hand sewn with over 20,000 crystals, 40,000 sequins and multitudes of glass bugle beads."
This piece was picked off of the Paris runway, like the Atlanta opening night outfit, he added.
"To wake up to such glorious visuals, on the day of Indian Independence Day, is another example of how Mrs. Carter and her team continue to be expanders for others," Hema Bose said.