‘The Handsome Weeping Men’: Japan’s Answer For Emotional Unavailability

Crying is underrated, because it’s the best thing ever – and we should really stop tagging it as a bad thing. On some days, it’s exactly what one needs. Not food, not a good movie, just some good-old crying. Apparently, Japan gets it. Now, they have a thing called ikemeso danshi, which translates to the handsome weeping boy.

So, young men are hired to comfort by wiping away their tears in office settings. This service is offered at a price of 7,900 yen, which is equivalent to over INR 4,000. Additionally, if an individual struggles to express their emotions, these weeping boys are skilled at extracting tears. These men are even employed by firms to make people feel comfortable with vulnerability in a team.

“Japanese are not used to crying in front of people. But once you cry in front of others, the environment will change, particularly in a business.”

The brainchild of Hiroki Terai, this service introduces rui katsu or public crying events, given that Terai champions the stress-relieving power of crying. The good-looking men or ikemen in Japanese, assist clients in watching emotional videos or movies, till they cry. That’s not it, they also wipe away the clients’ tears. So, basically – they are as emotionally available as one can be.

Thanks to our toxic exes, even crying is monetized today.