Tourism bodies claim fictional character born in their localities

Tourism authorities in several provincial-level regions have vied to promote their areas as the "real birthplace" of the Ne Zha character, hoping to ride the wave of popularity of the hit blockbuster, attract more tourists and boost economic growth. However, experts have called for some restraint as the fervor over the mythical character has gone beyond expectations.

The animated film Ne Zha 2, or Ne Zha: Demon Child Conquers the Sea, has become China's highest-grossing movie of all time, with over 10 billion yuan ($1.4 billion) in ticket sales since its opening on Jan 29 during the Spring Festival holiday. It's a sequel to China's top-grossing movie of 2019.

The box-office sensation is adapted from Chinese mythology and loosely based on the novel Fengshen Yanyi, or The Investiture of the Gods, which was written during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). In the film, a boy named Ne Zha, who was born with a demonic destiny and mighty power, fights against his fate and takes down villains with his best friend Ao Bing.

According to the novel, Ne Zha was born in Chentang Pass during the Shang Dynasty (c.16th century-11th century BC). However, the location of Chentang Pass in real life remains controversial, causing a "bidding war" for Ne Zha's birthplace online.

Yibin, a city in the southwestern province of Sichuan, said that it has over 20 places, relics and natural sites closely related to the folklore around Ne Zha. In August 2019, its Cuiping district was named "home to Ne Zha culture" by the China Folk Literature and Art Association, according to the Yibin government official website.

Other cities and provincial-level regions such as Tianjin, Henan and Anhui are also claiming to be Ne Zha's birthplace based on their folk tales or historical relics.

Experts said that it is still difficult to determine the real locations depicted in Ne Zha's story, as the character is a fictitious one, though it is loosely modeled on a real person in history. The fact that Chinese regions are vying to be known as the character's birthplace shows that local authorities are trying to benefit from the in-vogue film to boost their tourism and economies, they said.

Figures from travel portals appear to support this claim. According to online travel agency LY.com, the number of Yibin hotel room bookings and the average price of the rooms both grew 30 percent year-on-year from Feb 1 to Feb 9. Tianjin's Hexi district saw hotel bookings surge over 60 percent year-on-year during the period.

Travel portal Qunar also reported that during the Spring Festival holiday from Jan 28 to Feb 4, hotel bookings in Yibin rose 50 percent year-on-year on its platform.

It is not the first time that a Chinese folklore or film or entertainment product based on mythology has intrigued people's interest in Chinese traditional culture and prompted hordes of enthusiasts to visit certain regions.

The Chinese video game Black Myth: Wukong, based on the classic Chinese novel Journey to the West, was all the rage worldwide after being released last year. A large number of gamers and fans have flocked to Shanxi province, which is home to 27 of 36 scenes in the game, with most of the scenes closely related to Buddhist culture and Taoism.

Tang Yezhe, a 32-year-old engineer in Beijing, said he's a fan of the Ne Zha films and Black Myth: Wukong.

"Ne Zha 2 is really stunning. The story, the characters and the special effects of the film are all exciting and vivid. I watched the film twice with my wife," he said.

He added that he traveled to Datong, Shanxi, in October with his family to see sites associated with the Black Myth: Wukong game.

"I've heard about the online birthplace contention of Ne Zha. I think it's hard to define where exactly Ne Zha comes from as he is a mythical figure," Tang said. "Sichuan and Tianjin are so far the two strongest candidates, and I may pay a visit to Sichuan's Yibin city to see the relics about Ne Zha."

Wang Peng, an associate researcher from the Beijing Academy of Social Sciences, said in a recent interview with news outlet CQCB.com that Ne Zha is one of China's most popular mythical figures and has boosted short-term public attention to destinations concerning Ne Zha's story.

He suggested local authorities combine their own cultural and tourism advantages with the influence of Ne Zha to ensure more sustainable tourism development, rather than blindly jumping on the bandwagon or ignoring their local tourism resources.