It has been announced that actor Ichihara Hayato will appear in the NHK Taiga drama "Berabou ~Tsutaju Eika no Yume Banashi~" which will start on January 5, 2025. This will be Ichihara's third time appearing in a Taiga drama, following "Onna Joushu Naotora" (2017) and "Kamakuradono no 13-nin" (2022). He will play the blind millionaire Toriyama Kengyo.
Toriyama Kengyo is the man who bought Segawa (Koshiba Fuka), who was known as the most beautiful courtesan in Yoshiwara at the time, for 1,400 ryo. "Kengyo" is the highest official rank given to blind people, and Toriyama gained a large fortune by engaging in usury with the permission of the shogunate. Toriyama has obtained everything through the power of money, but the only person he has not been able to win is his wife Segawa's heart, and he senses Tsutaju (Yokohama Ryusei) in this.
Ichihara commented, "I will be playing Toriyama Kengyo, who is still a mysterious character but holds the highest rank in the blind organization Todo-za. Depending on the fate we were born with, it is up to us to decide how we feel about the good and bad aspects of the life we are given, but what fills Toriyama Kengyo's longing for people that cannot be explained by logic? I will play the role with respect for all people and things that are in the same situation as Kengyo."
"I feel that this character is unlike any other in a taiga drama so far. I will prepare thoroughly for the actual filming and do my best to make sure you enjoy my time on the stage," he said enthusiastically.
"Berabou - Tsutaju Eika no Yume Banashi" is the 64th taiga drama, starring Yokohama, and depicts the life of Tsutaya Juzaburo, who is said to have built the foundations of Japan's media industry and pop culture. The production team bills the story as "a remarkable young man who was born with nothing - no parents, no money, no artistic talent - but became the darling of his time as 'the media king of Edo.'"
