Blurring the thin line between cute and creepy, Labubu dolls, or Labubus have the youngsters in a chokehold. Be it the uber-rich of Bollywood or the public figures of social media, owning this furry toy has become a style statement. With rumours of satanic involvement, this staggering incident from China has left social media abuzz.
A social media influencer from Shanghai took to the local social media app Red Note after their relative’s teenage boy caused ruckus in his home, worth nearly Rs 50 lakh. As per reports, the child was denied his demand of a Labubu doll and threw a rather pricey tantrum and ripped a Rs 48 lakh hole in his parent’s pocket.
Breaking a 100,000 yuan mirror glass ceiling worth Rs 12 lakh did not stop him. A 300,000 yuan chandelier valued at Rs 36 lakh was shattered too. The expensive tantrum made headlines in the South China Morning Post that revealed that it was the home of popular influencer Little Azheng or Tail Brother.
The costly Labubu doll tantrum
After being attracted by a jewel adorned Labubu, the teen asked for it from Tail Brother, but the influencer refused. The temper-tantrum soon turned into a behaviour fit which led him to throw a remote into the air. It not only smashed the glass ceiling but also the chandelier in the living room.
As Rs 48 lakh came crashing down, the influencer was left taken staggered. After the large-scale damage, the boy refused to apologise. As per Tail Brother’s rant on social media, the repair work would require removing the entire ceiling altogether, increasing the cost of the damage.
While the boy’s parents claimed that they could not afford to pay for the damages, they requested that the influencer not share this among their audience. However, Tail Brothers blamed the parents and said, “Elders always love using kinship as emotional blackmail,” and did not the take the matter to court.
This comes after a teenage girl in China committed suicide in a shopping mall after she could not purchase the doll after a fight broke out reported local media house Baku.
The big deal about Labubus
These quirky, big-eyed collectible figures from Hong Kong-based designer Kasing Lung were originally part of the “The Monsters” series by POP MART. In India, the craze took off after celebrities like Alia Bhatt and Janhvi Kapoor were spotted showing off their Labubu merch, with social media feeds filling up with unboxings, display shelves, and resale bids. The hype has turned them into not just toys, but status symbols for pop culture lovers.