In Japan, companies are renting 'handsome weeping boys' to make employees cry, wipe their tears

You might have heard of partners in crime, but Japan is offering people a partner in crying. Japanese companies are hiring “handsome weeping boys” for their employees who first make them cry and then cry with them and console them. As bizarre as it may sound, this unconventional method has its own logical reasoning.

The idea of a “handsome weeping boy” in Japanese offices was initiated by Hiroki Tekai, who is the founder of crying workshops in Tokyo. The concept of this practice is to bring people together so they can work better as a team by showing their vulnerable side.

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"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,” Tekai told BBC.

Japan’s ‘handsome weeping boys’: Partner in crying

These weeping men are known as ikemeso danshi, which translates to “handsome weeping boy” in English. But, how does a normal day in business look like for ikemeso danshis? Well, to start with, they are quite professional.

First, they will show sad films to team of group of people in a separate room from their work desks. These films are mostly about cute little pets getting hurt or left alone, or about father-daughter relationships. Once everyone in the room starts weeping or sobbing, the ikemeso danshi will walk around with a large cotton handkerchief and softly wipe the tears from people’s faces. He then diligently refolds the handkerchief for each person to offer them a dry patch.

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Companies, who want to hire these weeping men or crying session facilitators, can choose from a selection of handsome men. Some people pursue this as a full-time job while others also do it on a part-time basis.

More and more companies in Japan, specifically in Tokyo have launched similar projects where they rent non-sexual cuddling sessions for their employees. In Japan, rent-a-friend service is already available, where you can rent a person to become your friend for a session or two.

Why only men?

As per Tekai, crying workshops are mainly led by handsome men to bring the image of crying men into the mainstream while using those men to make other people cry. When asked why good-looking people only, Tekai told BBC that he thinks “it's because it's so different to daily life. It's exciting."

Many employees have accepted that most Japanese people are not expressive and seldom do they express their emotions freely. These crying workshops are actually helping people to cry out loudwithout shame, which helps in shunning the social stigma linked to expressing emotions openly in public settings.

(With inputs from agencies)