China’s most handsome man right now? Tibetan herder wows Chinese social media with rugged good looks
- A viral video of 20-year-old Zhaxi Dingzhen walking in front of his home on the Tibetan plateau saw thousands of netizens comment on his ‘wild’ handsomeness
- Reports that he has been invited onto TV programmes have been met with criticism online by those believing he should not become a ‘victim of capitalism’

Forget pop stars daubed with make-up and the latest reality TV show contestants: the most eye-catching star in China right now is a young Tibetan herdsman who has captured millions of people’s hearts with his ruggedly handsome appearance.
“How can such a man, wild but pure, exist in the world? I immediately fell in love with him,” one Douyin user wrote.
“He is so handsome! I’ve seen this video tens of times,” wrote another user. “His eyes are full of stars and are as pure as the blue sky behind him,” a third said.
Sick of male entertainment stars’ delicate looks and heavy use of make-up, many Chinese netizens are attracted by this Tibetan villager’s rugged style. In the video, which has garnered over 2.7 million likes and 135,000 comments, most of which express fondness for Dingzhen, as he known in short, he is seen walking in front of his home on the Tibetan plateau and smiling shyly towards the camera.