Jia Ling's Mulan spoof sparked debates online. (Photo : Boyouti)
Chinese comedian Jia Ling is still the talk of the town, after her controversial interpretation of legendary heroine Hua Mulan on a TV show on June 27.
Jia, known for her "crosstalk" performances, portrayed Mulan as a cross-dressing warrior mouth-eating chicken on stage in Dragon TV’s “Happy Comedy” program.
In Jia's performance, Mulan was portrayed as a greedy and silly coward who was tricked into joining the army.
Because of the incident, the Chinese Culture Research Center Magnolia published an open letter to Jia Ling and crew requesting for a public apology.
“This is a vulgar comedy, which on the surface is eye-catching, but says to the deep, which is based on various forms of disintegration of our national spirit," said Mulan Culture Research Center deputy-director Zhang Jianguo.
On Thursday, sina.com revealed the results of their online survey regarding the controversial performance. It showed that 74 percent of respondents of a total 13,341 people opposed Jia.
They believed that the comedian owed a public apology.
Critics describe it as “a completely different depiction from her normal portrayal as a smart and brave heroine.”
Mulan, referred to as one of the "Disney Princesses,” was best known in the West in the eponymous 1998 Disney movie "Mulan."
"We strongly protest against what you did on the show and please apologize to the audience across the nation, especially for people from Mulan's hometown, Yucheng, Henan Province," read the open letter from the research center.
Guo Yifang, the history expert who wrote a biography of Mulan, said that the incident is "nauseating and irritating."
“She not only distorted Mulan's image but also defiled our nation's culture," said Guo.
Guo added that the show is misleading the young generation and the organizer should feel ashamed.
Meanwhile, the same website on Saturday showed that 8,117 netizens (70.6 percent of respondents) thought "there's no need to be so serious about a comedy show."
