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Why Chinese drama ‘Hidden Love’ should be on your binge-watch list this season - India Today

By Bhavna Agarwal: [In times when love has become a tug of war between swiping right or left, ‘Hidden Love’ is an ode to the era of old school romance and innocent crushes.]

After the colossal growth of K-dramas globally, Chinese dramas are the next to hit the global market. Asian content, for years, has been watched and consumed by fans of dramas/movies globally. After 2020, there was a steep rise in the accessibility of this content on popular streaming platforms like Netflix. Currently, the one show everyone has been talking about is the Chinese drama ‘Hidden Love.’ It is already trending in the top 10 list on Netflix India.

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WHAT IS ‘HIDDEN LOVE’ ABOUT?

‘Hidden Love’ shows the journey of Sang Zhi (Zhou Lusi) as a young girl who has a crush on her brother’s friend Duan Jiaxu (Chen Zhe Yuan). With time, the crush turns into love and, despite the five-year age gap, the two organically fall in love and share an intimate relationship. ‘Hidden Love’ is about finding tender moments of love and the innocence attached to it. It is a gentle reminder that love is not a fleeting emotion, and age is just a number.

WHAT’S RESONATING WITH VIEWERS?

It is not uncommon to see a teenage to adulthood romance. But how those stages have been captured is what decides whether or not it will resonate with the audience. In the case of ‘Hidden Love’, apart from the fact that it boasts an excellent cast, including Lusi and Zen Yuan, the sensitive approach to the story is what makes it a definite binge-watch.

Despite the fact that it is 25 episodes long, the show does not hurry to establish the teenage crush angle and slowly builds on it instead. While many wondered if the show was normalising a teenager falling for someone who is five years older than them, the writers make sure to negate all worries with their gentle and intelligent approach to it.

It addresses the concerns and dilemma through the prism of the characters themselves to understand if the debate about the age gap is relevant once Shen Zhi embraces adult life. In one of the scenes, Jiaxu is seen fixating about it, and whether it is even right for him to fall for someone who is visibly younger than him. “Is it fine as long as she is an adult?” Jiaxu is seen considering his love and decision, thereby also answering the questions of the audience.

Things could have been problematic, but, throughout the show, the makers make sure to remind you that, despite the age difference, the two are in full capacity as adults to decide whom they can love and how they want to spend their lives.

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At no point, the show makes a statement, or lectures you on how to love. It steers away from cringing and instead uses soft focus camerawork to accentuate the brewing and bubbling romance between Shen Zhi and Jiaxu. The hesitation, questions, resistance, realisation and falling and rising in love is shown as a gradual process which makes it appealing to the wider audience. The subtly and focus on building the characters and the relationships, utilising the actor's strength and not deviating from the story and its premise is what is working for 'Hidden Love.'

PERFORMANCES

Zhou Lusi and Chen Zhe Yuan have one of the best onscreen chemistry. The gentle gaze, focus on capturing small gestures gives the show a refreshing outlook. The two embodied their roles with honesty and sincerity, which are reflected on screen. Their conviction in performance was palpable and is the reason why ‘Hidden Love’ has received a thundering response outside of China as well, especially in India.

MUSIC AND ROMANCE

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Music also plays an important part in the storyline. The soft vocals and instrumentals make sure to keep you interested in their love story. There is enough tension required to keep you hooked on the story without going overboard.

The Chinese drama makes sure to wrap this story in the language no one can resist: Love. It is filled with pure emotions, which perhaps can only be found in books and fictional worlds these days.

In case you are interested (and I hope you are), the show is available to stream on Netflix.

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https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMiiwFodHRwczovL3d3dy5pbmRpYXRvZGF5LmluL2JpbmdlLXdhdGNoL3N0b3J5L3doeS1jaGluZXNlLWRyYW1hLWhpZGRlbi1sb3ZlLXNob3VsZC1iZS1vbi15b3VyLWJpbmdlLXdhdGNoLWxpc3QtdGhpcy1zZWFzb24tMjQwNTc3OC0yMDIzLTA3LTEz0gGPAWh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmluZGlhdG9kYXkuaW4vYW1wL2JpbmdlLXdhdGNoL3N0b3J5L3doeS1jaGluZXNlLWRyYW1hLWhpZGRlbi1sb3ZlLXNob3VsZC1iZS1vbi15b3VyLWJpbmdlLXdhdGNoLWxpc3QtdGhpcy1zZWFzb24tMjQwNTc3OC0yMDIzLTA3LTEz?oc=5

2023-07-13 03:16:03Z

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