Sam Smith turned heads with his wild outfit at the Brit Awards, capturing the attention of millions of people around the globe.
Controversy has hit the internet after the 30-year-old singer and songwriter, Sam Smith, left the press frazzled over his eye-catching outfit. The latex suit divided the internet, leaving fans wondering why the famous star would wear an inflatable suit to one of the biggest award shows of the year.
Sam Smith chose to team up with Indian designer Harikrishnan Keezhathil Surendran Pillai, known as Harri. Just five days prior to Saturday’s ceremony, Harri got the call to supply the star with an astonishing red-carpet outfit. Harri tells the BBC that,
“Smith reached out to me on Monday, asking if I could create something custom-made for the Brits. I was a bit scared because it’s not enough time. It usually takes four to five weeks because it’s all handmade. It took me a day to think about the logistics of everything. So I gave confirmation on Wednesday that I could make this work and we finished it an hour before the red carpet!”
So who is this new upcoming designer?
After attaining a show at London Fashion Week in 2022, Harri, who hails from a village in Kerala, India revealed that he was inspired by his dog while designing the suit. He revealed that the first prototype was created during an MA show at the London College of Fashion in 2019.
Since Harri’s debut at the MA show, his designs began to attract attention. He was then asked to join the British Fashion Council’s Newgen scheme to help young designers display their talent.
This kick-started Harri’s career getting him noticed by Perfect Magazine, who published his designs in their November 2022 issue. Since his time with the British Council’s Newgen, the Indian designer caught Sam Smith’s attention, leading to one of the most controversial outfit scandals of the year.
“The idea about creating a silhouette came from my dog. He’s a small dog – it was the thought of seeing me from his angle [on the ground looking up],”
Harri tells BBC.
The designer’s dog’s-eye distortion view of enlarged arms and legs essentially inspired the design. All the balloon-style aspects of the suit were made from latex, with Harri revealing that his second job was latex farming.
After several months of trial and error, Harri finally mastered the process of creating designs from latex material. After teaming up with Sam Smith for the Brit Awards, the Indian designer has since revolutionised the fashion industry. What will we see from him next?
Subscribe to FIB’s Weekly Breaking News Report for your weekly dose of music, fashion and pop culture news!
