[[{“value”:”
Social media has given rise to the age of virality that have made many things popular. In recent years, the Stanley Cup became a social media phenomenon, and now more people have the drinking water bottle than you knew before. It has been the same with Labubu, a plush toy that has recently been dominating our reels in India.
While it looks really interesting, it is also very intriguing for many, who have grown up hanging similar things on our bags and keychains among other accompaniments.
As you soak in the viral trend, here are some interesting facts about it:
What is Labubu?
Labubu is a character designed by Hong Kong artist and designer Kasing Lung for his story series ‘The Monsters’. While it is the main character that has become popular, there are several characters too. Lung created the character in 2015 inspired by Nordic mythology. It was also released as a figurine made by the company How2Work but gained prominence in 2019 after a collaboration with Chinese toy company Pop Mart. Over time, the elf-life character with big eyes and ears and pointed teeth has been released in more than 300 colours, shapes and sizes.
Who is Kasing Lung?
According to the KaiKai Kiki Gallery website, Kaising Lung was born in Hong Kong in 1972, and started working with How2Work in 2011 before creating the popular character that has now taken over the world.
The website further states that he has several other works to his name including his first illustrated book ‘My Little Planet’ that was published in Taiwan in 2013. A year later, collaborating with storybook writer Brigitte Minne, he published another illustrated book ‘Lizzy Will Dansen’ with Belgian publisher De Eenhoorn.
Growing popularity
While the Labubu toy has been around in Asia for some time now, it became even more popular when Korean pop group Blackpink’s Lisa sported the keychain with the character on her bag. The singer, who also featured in the latest season of The White Lotus, has fans all over the world, and it didn’t take long for it to spread to other parts.
Apart from Lisa, other stars like Rihanna, Dua Lipa and even Madonna have also been reportedly spotted with it along with Ananya Panday in India.
“}]]
