Sisters Trisshala and Roobini Sittamparam created the Velara Warriors action figures and initiated a kickstarter campaign to fund their project. Photos: The Star/Raymond Ooi
When Trisshala Sittampalam couldn’t find the action figure of Rey, the lead character in the Star Wars:The Force Awakens film in toy stores last September, she was frustrated and dumbfounded.
“The store had all sorts of other action figures ... male action figures, that is. But there was no action figure of Rey. They even had figures of some of the background characters in the movie ... but not the female lead! The store manager then told me that they don’t retail female action figures because merchandisers typically don’t make them,” Trisshala relates, her voice going up a notch as she recalls the incident.
