For many individuals in China's Gen Z, their priority isn't friendship or romantic love but a connection with a "buddy" within a niche activity. This type of companion is referred to as a "dazi" in Chinese. However, what exactly is a dazi, and why are young Chinese so enthusiastic about it?
A dazi can be understood as an activity partner who participates in a shared endeavor with a stranger or a group of strangers. Hence, those seeking a dazi are searching for a companion to partake in an activity that they are unable or daunwilling to do alone, such as traveling, reading, attending a concert, or watching a film.
"The relationships that form between dazi can fulfill their niche interests," says Zhang Zheng, an associate professor at Tsinghua University's School of Journalism and Communication. "Young people's hobbies today are diverse." For example, Pan Kexin, a 24-year-old graduate music student, has a dazi who is a primary school boy. Their shared passion is engaging in conversations about biology, chemistry, and genetics.
Pan met her dazi at his primary school. Despite being a stranger and significantly older, she found the boy to be open and at ease. Their discussions quickly turned towards biology and chemistry, becoming more profound as they met regularly. They engaged in intriguing discussions, such as how to change a snail's color to match a dragon fruit, or the boy's collection of rare metals.
"When I was a junior high school student, I dreamed of majoring in biology at university," Pan says. Unfortunately, her classmates didn't share her passion. "The same holds for my dazi. When he engages his classmates in a discussion on biology, they are always clueless." Now, Pan finally has the opportunity to discuss an interest that she had to keep hidden from friends for many years. "I don't consider our relationship as intimate as a friendship," she adds.
According to Professor Zhang Zheng of Tsinghua University, the relationship between dazi is appreciated for its relaxed, purposeful, and pragmatic nature. Factors such as fast-paced lifestyles, diverse hobbies, and workplaces located far from home all contribute to the need to find a dazi.
A university student nicknamed "Yezi" found herself needing a dazi when she was preparing for civil service exam. She had to find an examination partner to share the travel and room expenses. Within their WeChat group, members shared lists of exam necessities and experiences, fostering a mutually beneficial relationship between dazi. "We definitely aren't friends," Yezi notes, "but we still need to maintain sincerity with each other."
Generally, Gen Z uses social media to find strangers to join them as dazi in a particular activity. After the shared activity, they often part ways. Occasionally, however, a relationship between dazi evolves into a genuine friendship. Wu Meixuan, a student taking a gap year, needed to practice her spoken English and found her dazi, a girl majoring in English known as "Shanyao" online. They agreed to practice regularly by phone call while maintaining a distance from each other's personal lives.
Though they initially kept their identities private, as their conversations and shared interests in reading and historical movies deepened, they began to talk about their families and daily complaints. Wu's relationship with Shanyao was her first dazi experience. While she thought it might be awkward at first, they eventually became very close. "How amazing!" she exclaims.
Despite the benefits of relationships between dazi, Zhang warns of potential risks. People can easily be exploited in relationships with strangers, posing risks to personal safety and property. Zhang further cautions that these relationships can be detrimental as they might prevent young people from building positive, healthy, and long-term social connections. Stable relationships can eventually become valuable social supports for young people. However, relationships between dazi are generally transient, posing a challenge for young people to build more stable and supportive relationships.