Shubhika Sharma has five cats — two in her office and three at home. And they served as inspiration for her just launched collaboration with Garfield. To commemorate the iconic, lazy, orange cat’s 45th anniversary, Viacom 18 Consumer Products tied up with Shubhika’s brand Papa Don’t Preach for a limited-edition collection.
Just observing my cats’ personalities — sassy, loving, huggable — gave me clear direction as to what attitude this collection should have. I wrapped it up in a month,” says Shubhika who grew up reading the Garfield comic strip in newspapers and only later discovered that the tabby cat is orange in colour.
Jim Davis, the creator of Garfield, was clear that the brand had to operate according to guidelines laid down by him. “Garfield can never step out of his world, so Papa Don’t Preach had to enter his world. I really enjoyed the challenge of elevating Garfield to a luxury collection and incorporating Indian elements like paisleys and miniature art techniques in prints. As a brand we are future facing. We don’t use nostalgia as a tool. But this time, I allowed myself to dip into nostalgia,” adds Shubhika.
Shubhika was certain she did not want the collection to look very cartoon merchandise-esque. She also did not want T-shirts and outfits with quotes. So, now you find Garfield within paisley prints and polka dots. “We’ve woven him into small places because cats like getting themselves into small cosy spaces,” says the 36-year-old designer, whose Kala Ghoda store has mannequins in the shape of animals; they even sport eyelashes, eye shadow and look fashionable in Papa Don’t Preach’s outfits. “When people from Viacom 18 visited the store, they identified a synergy between the brands and reached out to us last year.”
The Garfield X Papa Don’t Preach collection pieces are summer-friendly and easy to wear. It comprises a 60s mod dress, 70s style flared jumpsuit, easy flowing skirts, A-line dresses, rich cottons, vibrant prints. The cat also finds himself on accessories like footwear, sneaktoes to be specific, a fun fusion of sneakers and stilettos. There are faux fleece tote bags with a gold medallion in the centre and Garfield’s most used words: Arrrgh! and Feed Me.
The digital print-heavy capsule also has a few pieces with embroidery, a craft form that is intrinsic to Papa Don’t Preach’s creations. The colour palette, while not bathed in the predictable orange (except three silhouettes), also includes a sophisticated range featuring Rosewood burgundy, Sacramento green, Fern green, French violet, Lazuli blues...
The collection starts at ₹4,500 and is available at Papa Don’t Preach’s stores in Kala Ghoda (Mumbai), Mehrauli (Delhi) and on papadontpreach.com
