by Lia Sciortino
Pya'y in Kunming
Documentaries | Culture | China
After a financial crisis in Thailand in the late 1990’s, Thai businessman P’yai decided to take a gamble and explore opportunities in China. Although his first visit to Kunming in 1999 did not meet his expectations, a second visit in 2002 pleasantly surprised him.
P’yai was delighted to see a city transformed in such a short period of time. Facilities were in place, and businesses were thriving. Despite initial difficulties owing to the language barrier, P’yai eventually became a successful entrepreneur in a new land he now calls home.
Zhang Lei filmed the story in Kunming, China to document P’yai’s journey to show how the development of a city can attract migrants, and impact on lives other than those of its inhabitants.
"My message would be merging. This person lives in Kunming, he is more like a normal Chinese citizen there. [I believe] that nations have a lot of similarities and that if a people take the time to learn about a culture they can lead happy lives as migrants," says Zhang Lei.