‘China’s Most Handsome Man’ Dingzhen Zhenzhu Joins Variety Show As Host, Slammed By Netizens For His Poor Command Of Mandarin
His haters certainly haven't been holding back when it comes to voicing out their resentment, or should we say jealousy, about Dingzhen’s success.
Tibetan herder Dingzhen Zhenzhu, 21, aka China’s 'Most Handsome Man' has made headlines again. And this time it's for joining Hunan TV’s massively popular variety show Day Day Up as a host.
Day Day Up, which has been running since 2008, recently underwent a revamp and will now feature hosts like Wang Han, Pan Yueming, Hu Haiquan, and yes, Dingzhen.
While promoting the show at a Hunan TV event, Dingzhen said he “wants to learn more from the seniors and hopes to spread knowledge about village culture and traditions” on Day Day Up.
However, some noticed that while the other hosts spoke eloquently and bantered with each other, Dingzhen struggled to get a word in and could only watch from the sidelines.
Since the announcement that he's part of Day Day Up's new xiong di tuan (or 'band of brothers' in English), netizens have had a field day commenting on his hosting skills, or lack thereof.
“Dingzhen can’t even speak Mandarin fluently, how is he going to host a show?” read one popular comment.
Another doubtful netizen wrote: “Don’t you need some kind of portfolio to show that you’re a host? Does Dingzhen have special privileges?”
Others also took issue with his accent, complaining that his pronunciation is unclear and that the broadcaster only hired Dingzhen because of his popularity.
Dingzhen catapulted to fame in 2020 after a Douyin video showing his "innocent smile" went viral. He now serves as the tourism ambassador for his hometown of Litang in the Sichuan province, and even represented China at an UN event for World Earth Day in 2021.
Dingzhen has been swamped with opportunities to appear in public events and variety shows, like last year's Chinese Restaurant opposite Huang Xiaoming. He's also been credited for bringing Litang out of poverty in the short span of a year.
All this has made him the target of online criticism, with many saying that he is undeserving of such success.
You would think that would be enough to stop his haters… but it clearly hasn’t worked all that well.
His respond to this new wave of criticisms?
“[I would like to] thank all the seniors for their help and I still have lots to learn,” Dingzhen wrote on his Weibo. According to Chinese media, ever since gaining popularity, Dingzhen has been working hard on improaving his Mandarin and his command of the language has gotten much better.
Some netizens also backed him up, saying that since Day Day Up is a talk show which focuses on Chinese culture and places, so it is apt that Dingzhen is a part of it. They also added that his involvement could benefit impoverished villages and draw attention and aid to their development.
Photos: Sinchew News, China Culture/ YouTube