Photo: Michael Shannon Carrying Rs 1.5 Lakh Potato Chips Bag Turned Heads (Literally)

Luxurious living is an appealing concept. Companies frequently come up with ludicrous concepts and sell those items at a whopping price. Obviously, such products gain massive attention online. Consider Balenciaga, for example. This high-end fashion brand has a certain name and reputation. They have grabbed eyeballs for marketing products that appear to be social experiments. This time, the talk is over actor Michael Shannon’s Balenciaga Met Gala bag, which looked like a bag of potato chips.

The Flash star wore a black Balenciaga double-breasted tuxedo while on the red carpet. Despite looking stylish in this ensemble, the actor’s yellow chip bag accessory became the talk of the town.

According to the brand’s website, the bag is made of glossy calfskin and comes in three distinct colours: yellow for cheese and onion, red for chilli pepper and blue for salt and vinegar. It is supposed to appear like a crumpled, almost empty container of chips.

The flavours of the bags may be similar to actual chips, but the cost is far more—a single Balenciaga chip bag would cost you $1,850 (over Rs 1.5 lakh).

The brand has been able to grab headlines now and then. Balenciaga caused quite a stir in March of this year when it unveiled a bracelet inspired by translucent packing tape as a part of the Fall/Winter 2024 collection during Paris Fashion Week. A number of fashion influencers estimated that it may sell for as much as $4,400 or more than Rs 3 lakh.

The tape bracelet is only the most recent in a long, proud and provocative heritage of Balenciaga. Last year, the company designed a skirt that resembled a bath towel draped around your waist. This unusual outfit debuted at the Paris Spring 2024 fashion show. The cost of the towel skirt was $925 or around Rs 77,000. The dress is knee-length, made of a terry-cotton towel and has an embroidered Balenciaga insignia on the front. It is an all-over solid hue. It boasts a unisex design and customisable features.

It’s a well-known ploy from Balenciaga to present an ordinary-looking item as a ready-made luxury item. Parka with seven layers. The already-ruined sneaker. The tattered leather trash bag. The high-heeled crocs shoes. It’s almost as if Balenciaga has done everything to provoke theatrical outrage and attention on cue.