If you say "Labubu what ?" or "Labubu who"? --- then you are in serious danger of making a boo boo with Gen Z. You are better left under a rock or wrapped in mothballs, they probably would say with a cocky attitude.
However, knowing the eager lapping up of celeb trivia across generations, not just the cognoscenti but the hoi-polloi( no condescension meant ),are currently fixated on this viral trend. There is a palpable eagerness to upstage everyone else on Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, Tik-Tok, WeChat and more with a single, double or a bunch of Labubu dolls in various shades.
A viral toy pandemic was unleashed a few months ago from Shanghai to San Francisco , infecting Southeast Asia totally, which put this slightly zany looking doll on the global ramp. The brain child of Hong Kong-born artist Kasing Lung, Labubu is a character in "The Monsters" toy series . It has saucer-sized eyes, rabbit-like ears, a quirky grin displaying nine teeth.
The toothed wacky looking doll had people queueing up patiently to buy it offline or online. But amidst this craze for the doll, an internet theory was spun on social media saying that Labubu dolls are linked to the ancient Mesopotamian demon Pazuzu : so they could be exuding demonic energy. Hints of paranormal. Some people destroyed their Labubu dolls in fright.
Kasing Lung has debunked this evil association. He says the elfin doll is inspired by Nordic folklore and is a kind hearted creature. For once China's soft power has gone global and softened the opprobrium attached to China during Covid . This "cool" doll has helped in softening the jagged edges of the Chinese hegemonic image in the West.Droll role for a doll! Labubu can strut on the toy-stage and say with a wink: Toys "R" Us!
From peak frenzy to a more sedate hankering to possess the quirky doll, the toy is not merely a collectible but a fashion accessory. A glittering galaxy of film stars from across continents are displaying this 'cute -monster' on their purses , in key chains, or in their fancy cars as a fashion accessory.
When the Thai- born K-pop superstar Lisa splashed photos with Labubu dolls on Instagram in 2024, its popularity soared. Some celebs like Kim Kardashian, Rihanna, Dua Lipa in the West,and our Bollywood beauties like Twinkle Khanna, Shilpa Shetty, Ananya Panday are all charmed by this 'cuddly-ugly' doll. And the 'with-it' Big B , always evolving with time, is also not 'without it'. He recently introduced his Labubu doll suspended in his car on an Insta post.
Labubu, has set the cash registers ringing for its creator Kasing Lung but now more for Pop-Mart that has rights to its sale. With its marketing chutzpah of blind boxes, the dolls are bought without one knowing what kind of doll is inside till you unbox it. And that creates a buzz and a sense of mystery and happenstance.
With its goofy appearance Labubu seems like an unlikely contender to occupy the pedestal of a viral doll. But there is no knowing the randomness of a fad . FOMO syndrome in full play. Pop-Mart as a toy company is wet behind the ears as yet when you compare it with Mattel, an American toy entertainment company founded 80 years ago.
Its storied Barbie doll, which was initially as American as apple pie , did evolve into a doll in more feminist roles---there's even a Black Barbie. Mattel has sold over a billion Barbies. Barbie and Ken, her male counterpart Ken,are on the honour roll of being the two most popular dolls in the world.
Pop-Mart is not popping the bubbly as yet but releasing mini-monster dolls so that boredom doesn't set in about loopy Labubu. This is China's moment under the sun, but traditional dolls from many countries also have their aficionados .
From Teddy Bear, Peter Rabbit, Beanie Babies and Barbie to monster dolls over the years is not too strange a cultural shift. There has always been a Gothic element in mythology,
literature, architecture, art , films and music the world over.
A dalliance with the shadowy world of ghosts and evil exists in most cultures. Witness our fascination with horror films, horror comics and chilling fiction, ghosts and gore. And Stephen King dubbed the "King of Horror" dominates the genre these days.
Antoni Gaudi, a venerated architect and designer from Catalan,Spain, displays an intriguing Gothic taste in his Casa Mila in Barcelona. If Pop-Mart could have a pop-up display at Casa Mila, it would be a master stroke in advertising and another Olympic leap for Labubu!
Ushi Kak aka Kashpundit, an author and a columnist, writes satire generally. Views expressed are the writer's own.