Where couture meets cultural elevation

New Delhi recently witnessed a night of rare brilliance as Grey Goose Vive Le Voyage unveiled the second edition of its cultural platform, Cocktail Couture. This chapter of the series came alive through a collaboration with acclaimed Indian couture designer Amit Aggarwal, whose visionary approach to silhouette and structure has long pushed the boundaries of modern couture. Together, they presented Exon: The Code of Light, a collection that transformed alpine purity into couture language, extending the ethos of Vive Le Voyage into a night that was immersive, imaginative and unforgettable.

Grey Goose Vive Le Voyage has steadily emerged as a curator of cultural intersections, creating experiences where design, creativity and lifestyle converge. Cocktail Couture is its boldest expression of that vision. While the inaugural edition set the stage, this second chapter established the platform as a fixture in India’s cultural calendar. Its narrative this year was drawn from the French Alps, landscapes defined by purity, clarity and elevation. These motifs became the muse for Amit Aggarwal, who wove them into a couture vocabulary that merged French excellence with Indian artistry.

The setting itself was integral to the experience. A luminous glasshouse in the heart of New Delhi was transformed into a crystalline runway, and an atmosphere shimmering in glacier blue and pristine white echoed the purity of Alpine landscapes. Every detail contributed to an environment where the boundary between set and couture blurred seamlessly.

The evening opened with a live piano performance by Sahil Vasudeva, and shortly after, Kalki Koechlin delivered a bilingual toast in French and English, saluting duality, artistry and refinement. Exon: The Code of Light was Amit Aggarwal’s interpretation of Alpine purity through sculptural couture. His use of translucent textiles, metallic structures and sharply defined geometries evoked the facets of ice and the fluidity of light. Shimmering materials refracted illumination across the runway, creating garments that appeared weightless yet strong. Each silhouette captured the paradox at the heart of couture: fragility that conveys power, precision that communicates imagination.

Speaking about the collaboration, Amit Aggarwal shared, “When one speaks of high fashion, it has always been synonymous with French couture. This partnership with Grey Goose Vive Le Voyage challenged me to explore how one elevates purity, elegance and glacial smoothness into couture. The result is a collection that feels light yet powerful, sculptural yet effortless.”

Adding to this, Siddhant Kapoor, brand manager-Premium White Spirits, Bacardi India, reflected on the collaboration. He said, “With this edition of Cocktail Couture, we seek to go beyond indulgence to craft sophisticated cultural moments. Our collaboration with Amit Aggarwal reflects the brand’s ethos: French excellence, artistic innovation, and the ability to transform every detail into an elevated experience. We are incredibly proud of this evening, where each element came together as a spectacle of refinement, offering a rare taste of luxury at its peak.”

The runway closed with Ibrahim Ali Khan and Sharvari Wagh’s showstopping looks, embodying the evening’s central idea: couture as an expression of imagination and craft. 

What made Cocktail Couture 2.0 distinctive was the way it extended beyond the runway. Amit Aggarwal also introduced a bespoke couture barware collection created exclusively for the evening. Sculptural glassware and accessories in icy shades of teal and blue mirrored the alpine aesthetic of the collection. These objects were conceived as extensions of couture into lifestyle design, transforming functional forms into art. By incorporating his sensibility into barware, Amit Aggarwal demonstrated that couture is not confined to garments; it can exist wherever design meets imagination.

As the evening unfolded, the atmosphere evolved. After the runway showcase, the venue transformed into an afterparty, where music by DJ Nina transformed the space, infusing it with energy and celebration. 

What resonated most was the philosophy behind the event. Cocktail Couture 2.0 was not just about scale but about meaning. By bringing together Amit Aggarwal’s couture and the ethos of Vive Le Voyage, the platform demonstrated how collaboration can create experiences greater than the sum of its parts. Couture-inspired staging, staging amplified couture, and cultural performances bound them together. The result was a unified narrative of refinement, imagination and brilliance.

This reflects a wider shift in the definition of luxury. Globally, luxury is no longer measured solely by possessions but by experiences. Cocktail Couture represents this evolution in India. Guests did not simply attend a fashion show; they entered a living artwork. The collaboration also symbolised how French excellence and Indian creativity can come together in powerful ways. Amit Aggarwal’s couture showcase was a dialogue across geographies and disciplines, underscoring the future of luxury as inclusive, fluid and collaborative.

With Cocktail Couture 2.0, Grey Goose Vive Le Voyage positioned itself firmly as a cultural force in India’s luxury landscape. By partnering with a designer of Amit Aggarwal’s calibre it demonstrated a commitment not only to elevating how luxury is perceived but also to redefining how it is experienced. 

All images: The brand