It has been revealed that actors Nao and Ryuhei Matsuda will co-star in the NHK drama series "Tokyo Salad Bowl," which will begin airing on January 7, 2025. The drama is based on the manga "Tokyo Salad Bowl: International Investigation Case Files" by Kuromaru, who is also known for "Kurosagi."
The drama is set in Tokyo, where approximately 700,000 foreign residents live. In this "salad bowl" metropolis where different languages, food, and cultures intersect, the green-haired international investigation police officer Mari Koda (Nao) and the troubled Chinese interpreter Ryo Yukino (Matsuda) team up in this socially conscious entertainment drama to pick up the lives of those who are at risk of falling through the cracks of Japanese society.
Nao will play Mari Koda, a police officer with distinctive green hair in the International Investigation Division of Higashi-Shinjuku Police Station, who reaches out to people without discrimination, whether they are foreigners or Japanese. Nao said, "It's always scary to face my own ignorance, but through Kota, who doesn't judge until he sees it with his heart's eyes, I was given the courage to face the fear of ignorance and continue to imagine. It looks like it will be a unique 'salad bowl'! I'm looking forward to meeting everyone with my lettuce head, and I'll do my best."
Matsuda plays Akino Ryo, a Chinese interpreter at the Metropolitan Police Department's interpretation center, who does his job without letting his own emotions get in the way. Due to a sad event in the past, he has lived his life keeping himself at a distance from others, but after meeting Kota, he begins to face his past. Matsuda said, "It's a role that melts my frozen heart as I'm dragged around by the lettuce-headed Kota," and expressed his expectations, saying, "I'm looking forward to filming, where many different languages will be flying around."
Regarding the drama adaptation, the original author, Kuromaru, said, "When the serialization began, many people told me, 'You're really good at depicting such a difficult theme.' When I heard about the drama adaptation, I also thought, 'I can't believe there are people who are willing to take on the challenge of making a drama with such a difficult theme!'" He continued, "The theme, the characters, and the language... This work will require a lot of effort to adapt, so I am thrilled that so many wonderful staff and wonderful cast members are involved in it. I hope that Nao, Matsuda Ryuhei, and the rest of the cast will act freely, and I hope that viewers will look forward to the drama that the production team has drawn with their extensive research and sharp perspective. I am excited as a viewer myself." The drama "Tokyo Salad Bowl" will air on NHK General TV every Tuesday at 10 pm from January 7, 2025.
