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Kiyaa, claimed to be India’s first branded fashion doll, was launched today in a marketplace dominated by heavyweights such as Barbie, Bratz and Daisy.
The doll, created by a city-based start-up Shel Studio Design, mirrors the image of a common teenager, dressing up in the country’s ethnic fashion mould, including embroidery and handlooms, yet having a contemporary touch.
Priced at Rs 699, as compared to the minimum price tag of Rs 999 for a Barbie, the product was launched in the on-line market, including on Snapdeal and Amazon. “We will be slowly putting the doll at retail stores across the country. We are targeting sales of 10,000 pieces in the next one year,” Sailaja Theerdhala, founder of the start-up, said.
Sailaja, who runs a local boutique, spent nearly three years in creating Kiyaa (meaning cooing of the bird in Sanskrit). “Many countries have their own fashion dolls, such as Sara of Iran, Pullip of Korea and Fulla of UAE, but India did not have its own authentic branded fashion doll. We first made 2-D designs of the doll here and then took it to China for the mould. But the Chinese mould distorted our design with the doll getting traces of Chinese look. We then made the mould here and then had the doll produced in China, as we do not have adequate doll making facilities here,” she told Business Line.
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