At her darkest moment, battling fatigue and depression in her Chinese hometown, Huang Bingbing says she found solace in watching an escapist love story between two young people in an obscure Thai TV drama.
she appeared Love by chanceFive years ago, I was watching a gay romance clip on social media and quickly became obsessed with the “immature love” depicted in the show.
Inspired by her favourite role model in the series, Huong moved to Thailand a year later to start a new life, and became part of a growing army of fans of the “boys’ love” romance genre that has taken Asia by storm.
The boys’ love genre, which features gay male romance, began in the 1960s as part of Japanese manga comics known as “yaoi” but has become a fast-growing cultural export to Thailand, where the LGBTQ community is generally more accepted than in many Asian countries.
“People here don’t care about gender, and all love is the same, whether it’s between men, women or the third gender,” Huang, 36, said. AFP,
Stories featuring good-looking couples, romantic scenarios, and themes of being true to oneself are especially popular with female viewers.
Commonly known as BL, the genre has proven to be a hit in the region, with episodes racking up millions of views online.
The genre of ‘girls love’, based around lesbian couples, is also becoming increasingly popular.
At promotional events, fans queue for hours to meet the stars of their favorite shows, sometimes traveling great distances, as is often seen among K-pop fans.
At an event this year, Huang represented a Chinese fan group called Girls’ Love, which donated a giant floral display made of baht banknotes worth about $1,000.
Thai people do it best
Thai BL is also very successful in China, although the government has banned Chinese companies from producing or broadcasting such dramas.
“Since we like it, we will find ways to explore it,” Huang said.
“Even if we can’t find a path ourselves, we will ask how other people see and follow them.”
The Thai BL series has also won fans in Japan.
Kira Thu-Ha Trinh is a regular customer at a small Thai-themed cafe in Tokyo that has become a hotspot for BL fans, with walls filled with celebrity photos.
He explained that the genre became “explosively popular” during the Covid pandemic, when there was nothing to do but watch TV AFP,
“You’ve exhausted everything that’s offered in Japan. Usually there’s only one BL drama a season. If you want to immerse yourself more in that kind of thing, you get suggestions from the algorithm,” he said.
And, Trinh said, “It sounds a bit rude, but Thailand has made it better.”
BL production has grown rapidly in Thailand in recent years, with production houses holding events for fans in the country and across Asia.
According to data collected by Puwin Bunyavejchewin, a senior researcher at Thammasat University’s Institute of East Asian Studies, the number of BL shows produced has increased from 19 between 2014 and 2018 to 29 in 2021 and 75 in 2022.
Poovin said the genre has also become popular in more conservative societies such as India, Indonesia and Malaysia, though fans in these countries are often more discreet.
“There is a large group of fans (in those countries), but they cannot publicly describe themselves as big BL fans because of socio-cultural barriers such as religious matters,” he said. AFP,
Actors for Change
Thailand is expected to legalise gay marriage later this year – making it the first country in Southeast Asia to do so – but LGBTQ activists say there is still work to be done to change attitudes.
Poovin said that despite their popularity, BL series do not reflect the challenges faced by Thailand’s LGBTQ community.
“Sometimes gay men in Thailand have a tragic life. They have family problems. But nobody wants anything tragic to happen,” he said.
Some in the BL industry hope that their work can help promote LGBTQ rights, such as gender and marriage equality, in popular culture.
Actor Suppapong Udomkawkanjana, who got his big break Love by chance And having founded his own TV production company in 2020, he says his goal is to go beyond romance stories.
At a temple in Bangkok, the 26-year-old actor joined the cast and crew of his latest drama, a girls’ love show, who gathered to pray for the success of his new series.
“I see opportunities in BL series like advocating for gender and marriage equality,” he said. AFP,
