MAM
Levi’s x stranger things fall/winter 2019
MUMBAI: For Fall/Winter 2019, Levi’s® partners with Netflix’s hit series Stranger Things on a capsule collection that will include product for both men’s and women’s. Watch any movie or TV show from the 1980s and you’ll witness a decade awash in Levi’s®. And for contemporary proof of that, look no further than the Stranger Things series, which takes place during the 1980s. The show recreates every detail of that era, even down to the Three Musketeers candy bar wrappers. And since Levi’s® was a major staple of 1980s fashion, it makes sense that the characters would regularly sport a wide array of Levi’s® products.
Working directly with the Stranger Things wardrobe team on their third season, Levi’s® leveraged their extensive Archives to help round out period-correct costuming for a wide range of characters in the show. The new season is set in 1985, a time when the Levi’s® brand’s massive imprint on culture and everyday style was as significant as it is today. The Levi’s® design team also worked with the show’s costume designers to create special, authentically replicated Levi’s® looks for two fan-favorites on the show: Eleven and Dustin. Not only will these full looks appear in the show, they’ll also be available for purchase as part of this summer’s special edition Levi’s® x Stranger Things collection. This July, you’ll be able to go into a store and buy a complete, authentically recreated Levi’s® looks worn by two beloved Stranger Things heroes. It really is 1985 all over again.
The two in-show looks include the Aztec Print Shirt and the El Pleated Jean worn by Eleven. In addition, there will also be a range of pieces that celebrate various elements of the show. Tees and sweatshirts with Stranger Things graphics and phrases, jeans and Truckers with hi-res character images, special edition Levi’s® sundries, like upside down patches and red tabs (a nod to the “Upside Down”, of course), and a one-of-a-kind Levi’s® Batwing tee that uses the Stranger Things title graphics. Basically, it’s one of the most beloved shows on TV, celebrating one of the most beloved decades of the 20th century, teaming up with one of the most iconic brands in the history of fashion.
“Stranger Things – when this opportunity slid across my desk, my nose started to bleed. Getting to visit the set and work on some of the costumes with their amazing designers was another level of collaboration.”—Jonathan Cheung, SVP of Design Innovation at Levi’s®.
The two teams partnered on a campaign that features the collection shot throughout the famed Starcourt Mall, the set and primary backdrop of Stranger Things Season 3.
Brands
Reserve Bank of India cancels Paytm Payments Bank licence
Central bank cites compliance failures; curbs tighten as wind-up looms
MUMBAI: India’s banking watchdog delivered its sharpest blow yet to Paytm Payments Bank, cancelling its licence and effectively ending its ability to operate as a bank under the law.
The Reserve Bank of India said the entity can no longer conduct banking business under the Banking Regulation Act, citing concerns that its affairs were not being run in the interest of depositors or the public and that it had failed to meet licence conditions.
The move escalates a crackdown that has been building for months. The bank had already been barred from onboarding new customers since March 11, 2022, and later faced restrictions on deposits, credit and wallet top-ups. In January 2024, the central bank ordered it to stop accepting fresh deposits, pointing to persistent non-compliance, including lapses in customer due diligence, use of funds and technology systems.
Operationally, the bank is now on a tight leash. It may process withdrawals of existing deposits and facilitate loan referrals through banking correspondents, but it cannot take fresh deposits.
The central bank said it would apply to the high court to wind up the bank.
Paytm sought to ringfence the fallout. In a regulatory filing, it said the licence cancellation applies to Paytm Payments Bank Limited, a separate entity, and should not be attributed to One 97 Communications. It added that there is no exposure or material business arrangement with the bank and that it operates independently, without Paytm’s board or management involvement.
“As informed earlier, Paytm (One 97 Communications Limited) and its services, which have been operating without interruption, will continue to operate uninterrupted. These include the Paytm app, Paytm UPI, Paytm Gold and all other services offered by its subsidiaries and associated companies,” the company said.
The distinction may reassure users of the app ecosystem, but the regulator’s verdict is unequivocal. After years of warnings, caps and curbs, the payments bank experiment at Paytm is being shut down—decisively, and with little room left to manoeuvre.
