'It will never happen': Sabyasachi on AI replacing human creativity

Renowned fashion designer Sabyasachi Mukherjee says craftsmanship will outlast artificial intelligence as technology's role is to support creativity rather than replace the human element behind it.

The designer, who has dressed some of the most famous faces in India from Shah Rukh Khan to Deepika Padukone, Priyanka Chopra, Alia Bhatt and many more, opened his sprawling new flagship store in Mehrauli here on Thursday.

Spread across more than 26,000 square feet, the store is a ode to his Kolkata roots and features 120 chandeliers, nearly 200 antique carpets, 300 original paintings by the Sabyasachi Art Foundation, and more than 100 antique textiles, mirrors and decorative objects.

Sabyasachi says AI should aid, not replace

Among the many objects and details displayed in the store was a gold plaque carrying Mukherjee's words, "Craft will not compete with artificial intelligence. It will outlast it."

Asked how strongly he believes in the statement, especially at a time when AI has touched almost every aspect of human life, the designer said the new technology has a role to play but only as an enabler.

"You know what happens is that there are momentary distractions and there are permanent relationships. Human relationships can never be taken over by AI. We will all want to become human again, it’s a temporary phase," the designer told PTI.

"AI is meant to aid; it’s not meant to supersede. When AI supersedes, then that’s the end of the world. It will never happen," he added.

But the increasing intrusion of technology in every sphere of life seemed very much on Mukherjee's mind as he made a distinction between having access to technology and letting it take over the experience in his opening remarks at the store launch.

"I think when you make the distinction between what is supporting and what is the main, that’s when your life becomes easier," he said.

Sabyasachi celebrates Met collaboration

Mukherjee also celebrated his label Sabyasachi's multi-year collaboration with The Metropolitan Museum of Art (Met) at the event.

The partnership, announced earlier this month, will see the designer draw inspiration from the museum's collection of art and culture for contemporary jewellery, accessories and clothing.

The inaugural chapter will feature a high jewellery collection inspired by the art of the Byzantine Empire, to be unveiled at a runway presentation during New York Fashion Week on September 15.

Mukherjee, who had attended the Met Gala in 2025 with superstar Shah Rukh Khan, said the collaboration with The Met came about unexpectedly, after his Mumbai store was recognised as one of the best stores in the world.

The designer initially thought he had received a spam mail when the museum approached him.

Why museums matter in the digital age

Explaining why the partnership matters to him, Mukherjee said museums have become increasingly important in a world where access to reliable historical information can be complicated by the speed and volume of digital content.

"We live in very strange times, because I think for a lot of people, history is six years old. For a lot of people, history is six months old. Maybe your time will come when history is six hours old or six minutes old," he said.

"As we live in a more and more digital world, and we have very little to verify about the physical world, it gets a little dangerous. Because between propaganda, fake news, between what is being obliterated or what is being rewritten, where do you go to find the truth? At least, I go to museums," he said, adding that museums have become "important beacons of "truth and information".

Mukherjee's collaboration with The Met brings together heritage and contemporary creativity that he hopes will appeal to the younger generation struggling with "authenticity and identity" amid the onslaught of information.

"There is no moving forward or having an identity without knowing what was your past and where you came from... This collaboration allows me to use 5,000 years of their wonderful archives to be able to build future artifacts and heirlooms for a modern generation," he said.

New flagship store pays tribute to Kolkata

The store pays a tribute to Mukherjee's beloved Kolkata with its architecture evoking the romance of an earlier era of the city with its railway carriages, steamships and the labyrinthine passages.

Talking to reporters about the Kolkata influences behind the store, Mukherjee said he wanted each of his spaces to carry a sense of his hometown.

"I try to tell the Calcutta story everywhere we go because it's a mad little eccentric city. The main corridor that you walked in through was the Chowringhee corridor, which is inspired by the iconic Chowringhee Road in Calcutta, where my office is and where Tata Steel is," Mukherjee said, recalling the area's architecture of the 1940s and 1950s, with "salons and chandeliers and beautiful sculptures".

A separate passage takes its cue from Hogg Market, Kolkata's famed marketplace, which Mukherjee remembers as a place where everything -- from food and clothing to flowers, furniture and curiosities -- could be found under one roof.

The store also features an enclosed installation inspired by Kolkata's tramcars, built in wood and etched in star-cut glass with a life-size Bengal tiger. Another space, the customer lounge, draws from the Bengali "nachghar" or "jalsagar", traditional spaces where music, dance and cultural patronage flourished.

"In Kolkata, your social capital was never money, it was always culture. Irrespective of how much money you had, it was always what you did for propagating culture that made you important," the designer said.