One of the more divisive aspects of Bridgerton season 3 was the costumes and overall look of the season, which came in for criticism in a number of fan spaces from Reddit, to X, to TikTok and beyond. Whilst the costumes moved further from the aesthetic of season 1 and season 2 into a more fantastical realm of heightened drama, for some it is the costuming of the Viscountess Bridgerton that stood out in terms of how vastly different it was from season 2. In season 2, the then, Kathani 'Kate' Sharma was dressed in a lot of deep colours and jewel tones evoking her Indian heritage, but in season 3 her costumes were more muted in colour, and there was less silk used for her clothing. But it is not her costumes on their own that causes concern when we look at Kate's costumes in season 3, but the way that the season 3 costume designer, John Glaser, spoke on the inspiration for Kate's costumes when compared with the inspiration for Penelope, Eloise and Francesca.
For Penelope the costume design team looked to old Hollywood icons such as Lauren Bacall as inspiration for her look in season 3, in this article in People magazine in June 2024, John Glaser is quoted as saying: “When you look at photographs from Old Hollywood, the people just look great. Their hair looks great, they look great, but you don't really remember what they're wearing because it's all about their face and who they are,”. In this same article John Glaser talks about the Audrey Hepburn inspiration for Eloise's costuming throughout seson 3, with much inspiration drawn from the 1964 film My Fair Lady. Penelope and Eloise's looks are not the only ones inspired by old Hollywood icons however, Francesca's look was also inspired by the Golden age of film, specifically by legends Grace Kelly and Katherine Hepburn. It is at this point we should note that all three of these characters are white, why is that important might you ask? Well it is to do with how John Glaser discusses the inspiration for Kate's looks in comparison to the inspiration for Penelope, Eloise and Francesca.
Image Credit: Netflix
Whilst Kate was not discussed in the People article referenced above, in this interview with Vogue John Glaser does discuss the inspiration for Kate's costumes in season 3. As we have seen the costumes were heavily influenced by old Hollywood, which makes it rather jarring when we see that for Kate John Glaser says: "There were subtle Indian references in Season 2, but we were much more blatant about it this time." From some of the reactions I have seen online from Desi fans this comment about Kate's costumes was met with surprise - and disbelief, however, this is not the most egregious part of his response to the question about Kate's costumes in season 3, he went on to say: "...we went for earth tones, more natural colors, the colors of spice.". This may not seem to be overly harmful on the surface, but this language used by John Glaser when talking about Kate feeds into negative tropes, and the idea of 'exoticisation' of non-white, specifically Indian, women. To give the benefit of the doubt it is possible that John Glaser thought he was honouring and celebrating Kate's Indian heritage, however, the language used is the language of othering. While the looks for the white characters were described through well known Hollywood icons, Kate's look was described using exoticised imagery of flavours and colours.
Image Credit: Netflix
What is interesting is if we compare the language used by John Glaser in relation to Kate's costumes to that used by Sophie Canale, the costume designer in season 2. When discussing the costumes for the Sharma's in general (and Kate specifically) Sophie Canale emphasised the way she rooted their costumes in their Indian heritage through the colour, the fabrics, and the embroidery designs. Sophie discussed how she wanted to pay tribute to the Sharmas Indian heritage which she did through the fabrics and the use of Indian embroidery and jewellery, evoking and paying tribute whilst keeping the Regency silhouettes and not making the costumes a caricature of Indian attire. Colour was the other way that Sophie Canale honoured the Indian heritage of the Sharmas by using bright, bold colours that are often associated with Indian dress.
The difference between season 2 and season 3 for Kate's costuming is more than just the aesthetics of the costumes, it is around the discourse and how the two different costume designers discussed the inspiration for the costumes. In season 2 Sophie Canale talked in terms of cullture and heritage, as well as talking about the narrative function of Kate's costumes, all done without leaning into tropes or exoticised imagery. John Glaser on the other hand discussed Kate's looks in a way that othered her, set her apart reinforcing that Kate is different to the white characters. This discussion, and the language used by John Glaser highlights an unconscious (or maybe conscious) bias, and it highlights how he saw Kate as being apart from the other Bridgerton women, not really part of the Bridgerton family, despite her being The Viscountess Bridgerton.
John Glaser's comments about Penelope, Eloise and Francesca versus his comments about Kate demonstrate how it is not only the aesthetic that matters when it comes to representation, but also the discussion.
Sources:
https://people.com/bridgerton-season-3-costumes-inspired-by-real-people-exclusive-8659368
https://www.vogue.com/article/bridgerton-costume-designer-talks-season-3
https://people.com/style/bridgerton-costume-designer-sophie-canale-interview-exclusive
https://www.harpersbazaar.com/culture/film-tv/a39467332/bridgerton-season-two-costumes
