There are manananggal plush dolls and they're made by mothers in rural Naga

Isn't it perfect for Halloween?

Photos of a manananggal plush doll quickly turned viral after netizens Marco Lopez and Ed Geronia posted about it on Facebook.

According to Marco, he came across the uniquely Filipino toy at the recently concluded Orgullo Kan Bikol Trade and Travel Fair, "a yearly trade fair organized by DTI that showcases the products of the 6 provinces of Bikol," the Camarines Sur native tells GMA New Online.

"What caught my attention were the fangs," he continued. Upon realizing it was indeed a manananggal plush doll, he quickly snapped it up for P500. "It was a bit pricey but it was also big — about 12 inches long — and I knew it was well-made. It was a Karaw product."

Karaw Craftventures is a social enterprise from Naga that trains people from underprivileged sectors of society, among them inmates at the Naga City Jail and mothers from far-flung rural areas of the city.

According to Paolo Orpiada, founder of Karaw, the manananggal plush doll belongs to the Engkanture collection that has over 12 different designs inspired from Filipino folklore in Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao.

"We started the initiative because of the idea na we want to promote the Filipino culture and that's by introducing characters from the Filipino folklore into different merchandise," Orpiada said.

From the cyclops Bungisngis of the Tagalog region, Bicol's moon goddess Haliya, and Daligmata, the monster who helps find lost things of Visayas, Karaw takes inspiration from Filipino stories and reimagine them as toys — so people wouldn't be afraid of them but rather be enthusiastic to learn and explore more about them. 

Marco, in fact, got himself an Oryol, the woman-serpent from the Bikol epic Ibalon, from Karaw some time ago.

Made out of standard material for plush dolls, the manananggal doll might even be more interactive than other plush dolls as it splits into half at the waist — much like the mythical man-eating manananggal in the Filipino folklore. And hey! It even has wings!

According to Orpieda, Karaw trained mothers from barangays in Naga and parts of Camarines Sur in the craft of doll-making, after which the enterprise would sell the items for them.

Aside from paying the mothers their due for labor, proceeds from sales of the dolls are used to give more trainings to the communities.

It's like horror, but with a lot of heart. — LA, GMA News

For inquires, get in touch with Karaw Craftventure on Facebook.