Kawaii attack @ Pragati Maidan: Delhiites shop for stationery that’s too cute to resist

Aug 08, 2024 02:05 PM IST

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At the ongoing 28th Delhi Book Fair and 24th Stationery Fair, in Delhi's Pragati Maidan, the love for kawaii is too strong to overcome. Read on to know more!

Step inside the ongoing Delhi Book Fair and you are sure to feel the pull by some adorable looking pens, erasers, pen cases, toys, flasks and numerous other artefacts. These all are available as part of the Stationery Fair, set-up at the same hall inside Pragati Maidan, where the popularity of cutesy stationery is growing at an unimaginably high pace.

Kawaii products at 307 My Rainbow Kart, stall 12-07/C, are attracting most visitors at the ongoing Book and Stationery Fair.(Photo: Henna Rakheja/HT)

For the unversed, Kawaii is a Japanese term that means cute, and it's this cuteness associated with pop-culture aesthetics that's ruling the minds of book and stationery hoarders visiting the the concurrent fairs. Catering to varied demand from Kawaii lovers is the middle-aged couple Gaurav and Vandana Arora, who quit their corporate jobs last year and set-up 307 My Rainbow Kart, to sell Kawaii products via an online platform. Displaying physically at the fair now, Vandana shares, “There was a time when kids were crazy only about unicorn, but now Kawaii has taken over the stationery market. Not just the children but even the youngsters are going gaga over Sanrio characters like Kuromi and Cinnamoroll.”

Indu Singh from Ridhi Sidhi Collection at stall 12-03/C shares how sourcing Kawaii products requires a lot of effort. (Photo: Henna Rakheja/HT)

On the surface it appears to be a market that's driving its sales on the basis of 'cuteness'. But sellers assure the hard work that goes into procuring designs that will sell. "I run my business alone, by collecting and dispatching orders from home. Only I know how much time it takes to curate just a one hour live session to come up with products that will appeal to buyers via social media," says Indu Singh, standing at the stall of Ridhi Sidhi Collection, which offers everything in the shape of cuddly animals or pink hearts. She shares how she turned into an entrepreneur around six months back. “A few years ago I used to work as a school teacher and got busy in the upbringing of my children. When my children grew up, I started feeling bored and six-months back decided to set up my own business. Touch wood the business is going well but I must say that it's not easy to think which Kawaii products will work and source them since one needs to keep a tab on what are customers preferring. It takes a lot of research.”

Saurabh Jain, from Anti Ordinary Paper Company, at stall 12-05/E says he's selling doodle journals like hot cakes.

Beyond the Kawaii is the continuing dominance of Anime and Bollywood, which has been inspiring covers of notebooks, diaries and planners. “Our doodle journals are the most selling hot stuff,” says Saurabh Jain, from Anti Ordinary Paper Company. Pointing towards a notebook with a cover that read Kayde Mein Rahoge Toh Fayde Mein Rahoge, he explains, “When I was in school or college, I always felt that the notebooks were so boring. My idea was to make the cover attaractive so that it speaks without its owner actually saying anything.” Soon a youngster interrupts Jain, demanding for a planner with the cover of Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol's look from Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (DDLJ) and this Bollywood junkie feels assured that no trend can survive longer than SRK!