Showbiz elites typically travel with publicists and stay in penthouse suites, however several local stars are taking their polished faces to less-than-glamorous locales for charity.
Chinese actor Li Yapeng has brought a medical team to his hometown in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, embarking on a new mission to aid rural children with cleft palates.
The medical team, the first of its kind in China, was formed earlier this month by the Smile Angel Foundation, also known as Yanran Angel Foundation, which Li and his pop diva wife Faye Wong founded last year. They hope to provide free surgery to children like their daughter Li Yan, who was born in May 2006 with a cleft lip.
The newly founded team of 17 medical professionals aims to help expand the foundation's ability to reach more needy children living in rural areas.
Li said at the press conference in Beijing that the team is planning to spend one or two years helping 900 children in Xinjiang, and will also travel to other Chinese provinces and autonomous regions, such as Yunnan, Guizhou and Tibet.
"Since the establishment of the Smile Angel Foundation, we have received lots of letters. With the professional medical treatment, I believe, more children will benefit. That is our ultimate goal," Li says.
He also reveals that the foundation's second charity banquet will be held in Shanghai this December, with the couple's friend, Hong Kong actress Carina Lau taking care of the arrangements.
"Helping those children is our responsibility," says Lau, who has been working with the couple since the foundation's setup. "We are happy to see the children's smiling faces, just like the name of the foundation."
The foundation held a star-studded banquet in Beijing last December, raising 8.45 million yuan ($1.12 million) through the auction of items donated by celebrities. So far, about 200 children from poor families have received surgery with financial help from the foundation.
"I feel I'm very lucky as I've had everything I want. So I want to help those in need, especially the children. And I hope through our efforts, more people will join us," Lau says.
"I will help children like my daughter, and when she grows up, I will take her to help all these people. When a child smiles at you, I think the impact on your heart is incredible," Li says.
The couple and their celebrity banquet guests are only part of China's celebrity charity wave.
Parties, concerts and live appearances at which celebrities often appear in, glamorous clothes, luxury accessories and fancy makeup, seem more like a fashion show than a fundraising event. However, there is another factor which should be mentioned, and that is the attention they receive because of their involvement in the fundraising, which in turn influences others to follow the same path.
"I am glad to see more and more Chinese celebrities are using their fame to help others. And those who work with goodwill causes hope the high-profile do-gooders will inspire their fans to lend a hand too," says Wang Rupeng, secretary-general of the Chinese Red Cross Foundation. "The media is celebrity-focused now. The cause is put in the public eye immediately when a celebrity is involved."
Zhang Ziyi sent words of comfort to flood victims early this month. On her official Chinese website on Sohu.com, Zhang left a message saying: "After seeing news of the floods-stricken region, I am worried about everyone's welfare, especially the old people, the women and the children."
Zhang says she used to perform for charity at a young age, and she calls on people to unite to fight the floods.
A growing number of celebrities have started lending their names and time to help people in the flood areas.
Initiated by China Red Cross Foundation and Sohu.com, more than 100 stars from the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong, such as Jeff Chang, Fan Bingbing, Qu Ying, Ye Pei and He Jie are writing messages of support on their blogs.
Sohu.com also opened a blog foundation page for donations. "It is the first time we have done charity through the blog, which is popular in China now," Wang Rupeng says. "Blogging is an effective and interactive way to spread our idea of helping others in need." According to Wang, all the money collected will be put into the China Red Cross Foundation bank account to help people in need.
In July, Chinese martial-arts superstars Jet Li and Jackie Chan joined hands for a charity fund, the One Foundation.
In April, Li worked with the Red Cross Society of China to set up the One Foundation, with the idea of encouraging each person to donate 1 yuan ($0.13) per month.
Previous reports say that big names including Jay Chou, Andy Lau and Peter Chan have contributed to the fund.
Jackie Chan founded the Jackie Chan Charitable Foundation in 1988 to help young people receive better medical services and aid disaster-stricken victims. Recently, the actor announced he would donate half of his assets to the foundation when he dies.
"You could die tomorrow and you've done a few movies, won some awards - that doesn't mean anything," Chan says at the press conference of the film Forbidden Kingdom, which is the first film collaboration
between the two most well-known Chinese martial-arts actors. "But if you've built schools or raised a child or done something to make things better for other people, then it just feels better. Life is better."
How fans react to famous faces lending a hand - and whether it inspires them to donate time or money to a cause - comes down to how sincere the stars appear in their efforts.
Though some criticize celebrities attending charity events for publicity, there is no denying that they are voices of influence and their good deeds can raise awareness for different causes.
"As time goes on, people are becoming eager to give, both the celebrities and common people," Wang says.
"It has given a huge swath of humanity a chance to reach out to help, and has made China an emerging charity superpower."
Source: China Daily
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