Whisky is increasingly colliding with the world of design, and with extraordinary results, as is evidenced by a new collaboration between Chivas Regal and Gaurav Gupta. The Indian couturier, known for dressing icons like Beyoncé and Deepika Padukone, has designed two limited-edition bottles, Chivas XV and Chivas 12. They have been launched to celebrate the festive and Diwali gifting season.
The creative partnership combines Chivas’s “I Rise, We Rise” ethos with Gupta’s “future primitive” aesthetic. The outcome is a meeting of fashion, mythology, and malt that redefines what modern global luxury looks like. Let’s take a look at five things you should know about this new fusion of whisky and haute couture.
1. The Man Behind the Bottle is Couture Royalty
Gaurav Gupta is no ordinary designer. He has ascended to the status of a global cultural icon. He is one of the few Indian couturiers presenting collections during the prestigious Paris couture schedule.
His work is instantly recognizable on the world’s most famous red carpets. Gupta’s designs have appeared at The Grammys, The Oscars, and the Cannes Film Festival. He is the man responsible for Beyoncé’s molten Grammys gown. He also created Deepika Padukone’s famous “liquid-sculpture” couture.
Gupta’s signature is his “future primitive” aesthetic. This style is obsessed with sculptural form, fluid lines, and abstract art. He has a long history of transcending boundaries. For example, he previously collaborated with IBM to create an artificial intelligence-inspired sari-gown.
This context around Gupta’s design is key to the collaboration. The Chivas bottle is a collectible piece of art, just as it is a bottle of whisky, bottled for Diwali.
2. Gupta Was Given Creative Freedom With His Designs
The Chivas Regal x Gaurav Gupta collaboration began with a bold invitation. Chivas wanted a designer who, in their words, “embodies creativity and is a global icon from the East.” They found that in Gupta, an artist known for turning imagination into structure.
When Chivas approached him, there were no rules. For a designer who thrives on freedom, it was the perfect challenge. The result was not just a new look for a bottle, but an entirely new mythology.
Gupta imagined a fantasy realm inspired by three symbolic creatures that appear across both editions:
- The Winged Panther, representing freedom and fearless ambition.
- The Infinity Serpent, symbolising infinite possibility, evolution, and renewal.
- The Third-Eye Sun, embodying wisdom, clarity, and illumination.
These symbols come directly from Gupta’s personal creative universe.
By merging his private mythology with Chivas Regal’s spirit of collective ambition, Gupta created something rare in luxury design, a collaboration that feels both intimate and universal.
3. Meet The Bottles: Day and Night
The collaboration is a two-bottle release, with each bottle showcasing different aesthetics around Diwali.
The Chivas Regal XV: The Gold Bottle
This edition is described as an “ode to opulence” by Chivas. It features rich gold tones, evoking bold sensuality, and the design intricately weaves indigenous Indian motifs. The XV edition is available exclusively in global travel retail, appealing to collectors and jet-set buyers seeking something rare.
The Chivas Regal 12 Year Old: The Silver Bottle
The Chivas 12 Year Old takes a different approach. Dressed in silver, it feels lighter, cooler, and almost lunar. It is the serene counterpart to the XV’s golden intensity. It is available through select luxury retailers in key domestic markets, offering a more accessible way to experience Gupta’s vision.
4. It’s a Fluid Collab With a Sustainable Heart
This collaboration is more than a visual statement. It’s rooted in shared values that reflect how modern luxury is evolving.
For Chivas Regal, the partnership connects directly to its global ethos, “I Rise, We Rise.” The philosophy celebrates collective progress and creativity, a message that aligns naturally with Gaurav Gupta’s own view of culture and design.
Chivas’s Global Marketing Director, Nick Blacknell, said the designer’s vision “helps redefine what luxury means today.”
That modern vision also includes sustainability. Gupta pointed to Chivas’s commitment to achieve carbon neutrality by 2026. In his own work, he uses upcycled ocean plastic for packaging and prefers silk over polyester to reduce environmental impact.
This shared focus on responsibility gives the collaboration more than surface appeal. It proves that beauty, artistry, and conscience can coexist.
5. The Goal is “Infinite” Imagination
For Gaurav Gupta, this collaboration was never only about design. It was about emotion, and creating something that feels larger than luxury and rooted in the spirit of celebration.
Timed for Diwali, the Festival of Light, the partnership captures a sense of renewal and imagination that fits the season perfectly.
The theme of infinity runs throughout Gupta’s work and through this collaboration. The serpent motif, representing endless possibility and evolution, becomes a reminder that both art and whisky are living forms, constantly transforming, never static.
As Gupta explained in ShortList, “Culture should be fluid. Fantasy flies over geography. Everyone knows wings, snakes, the sun; these are universal symbols.” He also referenced his endless (or infinite) imagination when asked what was up next in his career: “I can design anything, clothes, cities, universes. There’s no limit. I just go with the flow.
That spirit of fluidity defines the entire project and Gaurav’s career.
The New Blueprint for Global Luxury
The collaboration between Chivas Regal and Gaurav Gupta shows how tradition and innovation can work together. It connects a Scotch whisky house with one of India’s most respected fashion designers in a way that feels natural and purposeful.
The two limited editions are the result of a partnership that combines craftsmanship, cultural awareness, and design. The project captures how heritage brands can evolve without losing what makes them distinctive.
Read the full article at 5 Things You Need To Know About Gaurav Gupta’s Chivas Regal Collaboration
