Princess Diana was the sole reason behind Lady Dior's evergreen rebrand (Credit: Pinterest) Queen Camilla toting her creamy taupe Lady Dior almost everywhere, over the past few weeks left many inexplicably disgruntled. But it only sounds odd if you don't know the backstory behind the iconic Christian Dior original. You see, the Lady Dior wasn't always called the 'Lady Dior'. Somewhere during its early years it underwent a major rebrand which honestly in itself doesn't sound like all that big of a deal. But when you learn it was the now-late but still evergreen Princess Diana's fascination with the bag that prompted the lasting exercise, the vitriol against Queen Camilla's Lady Dior moments, explains itself. The lore of the Lady Dior is truly an interesting one. The design and final product of this iconic bag silhouette was conceived back in 1994. Back then, its journey commenced as the 'Chouchou', which in French translates to 'favourite'. The bag was conceived by Dior's artistic director at the time, Gianfranco Ferre. Understandably, the piece was utterly exclusive at the time, so much so that it made the perfect gift for the world's favourite princess. In September 1995, France's First Lady, Bernadette Chirac, gifted the unreleased bag, in a chic and shiny black, to Princess Diana at the Grand Palais in Paris in the midst of a Cezanne exhibition. Princess Diana found herself utterly enamoured by the then-exclusive Dior piece - who can blame her, the signature Cannage quilting pattern inspired by the Napolean III chairs are to-date, more than enough to steal anyone's heart. And we know for a fact that this was no passing fancy, for she carried it quite literally everywhere she went - this included innumerable walks across tarmacs, an official visit to Liverpool as well as the 1996 Met Gala. Princess Diana with Bernadette Chirac; the Lady Dior (Credit: Pinterest) Also Read: Throwback Thursday: The Mughal Mystery Behind the 'Gate of Paradise' Spectacles Crafted with Emerald Lenses It wasn't hard to catch on how much she was in love with the little baguette and Christian Dior caught on pretty seamlessly. In 1996, after a year of Princess Diana romancing the Chouchou, with her permission and of course to her absolute delight, the luxury giant renamed it the 'lady Dior', particularly in honour of her. Decades on, not only has Princess Diana's memory endured, but so has the memory of the luxury memento she once loved so dearly. Also Read: Throwback Thursday: Gwyneth Paltrow's Harry Winston Necklace from Oscars'99 had a Very Personal Second Life at Her 2018 Wedding Coming back to the present, the hate against Camilla - a persisting one given the twisted and rather public history of the royal family - seems to have peaked with her taking a rather evident fancy to her very own Lady Dior. This is not to say that policing someone's fashion choices is a passable act, but Camilla finds herself in a truly unique position. Seeing as the bag in question was named after a woman with whom she did not share the best of terms, many have termed her persistence to carrying the bag as tone-deaf and disrespectful. Now, intentional or not, that is left to public perception. Aalokitaa Basu is a writer and Senior Copy Editor whose work explores the intersection of lifestyle, culture, beauty, wellness, and self-possession. H... View More