Poll collectables craze: From 'kutty surprise' Kinder Joys to party office miniatures

CHENNAI: Imagine opening a Kinder Joy and finding a tiny Vijay collectable staring right back at you. Not just that, you can now even buy a miniature office of your favourite political party, complete with flags, desks, party

paraphernalia, and more. This election season, many business owners in Tamil Nadu are cashing in on political fandom through collectable gifts.

One such business owner is Priyadarshini Desingu from Erode who runs the 'Maruthi Resin Arts' Instagram page, where she sells Kinder Joy units themed around Vijay’s Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK). The entire candy is a treat for die-hard Vijay fans: the outer packaging features Vijay and the lines “kutty surprise”, while the inside contains the usual chocolate cream-wafer along with Vijay stickers, a Vijay badge, a Vijay phone charm, and a resin bracelet featuring the TVK flag. What began as an experiment has now seen much success. She has sold over 150 such Kinder Joy units so far, including bulk orders from teens. “They stick it on their laptops or bikes and send feedback,” she says. One Kinder Joy confectionery unit costs Rs 300, not including shipping charges.

The hype for these collectables began at least two months before the Assembly election date was announced, notes Shruti Sukumar from Chennai, who runs the online-only April Shop that sells 3D miniature boxes depicting scenes. In the election context, the boxes often depict an office room with a politician seated inside. She has received over 30 orders for a miniature of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) kit, which has a replica of the party office featuring Chief Minister MK Stalin. The second most-ordered ‘party office box’ remains Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam.

One of Shruti’s miniature boxes has the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami at the Chief Minister’s desk with late former chief minister MG Ramachandran and J Jayalalithaa’s portraits hung on the wall behind, lending a very realistic touch. These miniatures range from Rs 2,500 to over Rs 3,000, she says.

Sundar from Sundar Arts and Drawings in Madurai says that he started getting enquiries for election-related collectables after the ‘TVK Amazon Kit’ went viral. His curated TVK kit, priced at Rs 350, now offers: a party flag badge, a 12-inch flag, a whistle (the TVK’s party symbol), a Vijay sticker, a transparent shirt pocket-sized portrait of Vijay visible from inside a white shirt pocket, and an ID card designed like a party membership card, attached to a lanyard in the TVK’s party colours, dark maroon and yellow. For Sundar as well, TVK kits are the best-selling ones. “Supporters and fans wear these pocket-sized merchandise to campaigns and want to be part of it,” he says.

The election collectable frenzy has spread across the border, too. “People from Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka have reached out for miniature ‘party office boxes’,” says Arun, founder of Saran Castle Gift Factory in Tiruchy. Smaller boxes are available for Rs 2,500, while the more elaborately detailed party office miniatures cost over Rs 20,000. He has been receiving orders from Malaysia too, which has a sizeable Tamil population. "Someone wanted to get their grandfather, who has now moved to Malaysia, a DMK miniature kit, as he misses being part of the election excitement back home,” he adds.