Salam! This is Sugi from ASHU TRAVEL, your guide to scenic horse riding journeys in Central Asia.
The day has finally come…!
The Kyrgyzstan episodes of “Shingo no Me,” a Japanese TV show hosted by Shingo Katori, will air on Saturday, June 6 and Saturday, June 13!
The theme is a unique one: “Find someone in Kyrgyzstan who looks like Bakarhythm!”
This is ASHU TRAVEL’s second TV coordination this year, following “Gutto! Chikyubin.”
We’re so happy that more and more people are getting the chance to learn about Kyrgyzstan!
Broadcast dates and how to watch
Here are the broadcast details!
- Air dates: Saturday, June 6 and Saturday, June 13, 2026
- Network: ytv (Yomiuri TV, Japan)
- Program: “Shingo no Me”
- Host: Shingo Katori
- Official program website: https://www.ytv.co.jp/shingonome/
- Catch-up streaming: TVer
Please check the program’s official page for details on air times and when streaming starts!
About the Kyrgyzstan episodes of “Shingo no Me”
Here’s the concept of the show and the highlights of the upcoming Kyrgyzstan episodes.
What kind of show is “Shingo no Me”?
“Shingo no Me” (literally “Shingo’s Sprouts”) is a show that tests the “seeds” of various TV ideas in search of the next “future hit show.”
The host is Shingo Katori, a national star in Japan who has been at the forefront of television for many years.
Which sprouts will grow into tomorrow’s hit shows…? Every week, a host of exciting seeds appear!
This month’s guest host is Bakarhythm
Bakarhythm appears as the guest host for June!
Shingo Katori is active across many fields as an actor, singer, and artist, while Bakarhythm shows off his many talents not only as a comedian but also as a screenwriter and actor.
Personally, I absolutely love “Brush Up Life.”
Look forward to the chemistry between the two and their verdicts on the show ideas…!
This time’s idea: “Find a Bakarhythm look-alike!”
The idea behind the Kyrgyzstan episodes is “Find someone who looks like Bakarhythm in Kyrgyzstan, Central Asia!”
A film crew traveled from Japan to Kyrgyzstan, asking around and carrying out on-the-spot investigations.
Did they really find someone who looks like Bakarhythm…? Don’t miss what verdict the two hosts deliver in the studio!
What kind of country is the Kyrgyz Republic?
The Kyrgyz Republic is a mountainous country in Central Asia with a population of about 7 million.
It lies west of China, south of Kazakhstan, and east of Uzbekistan and Tajikistan. About 90% of the country is mountainous, and nomadic culture, with its yurts, is still very much alive.
And the faces of the people who live here… look amazingly like Japanese people!
It’s a slightly mysterious country where, walking around town, Japanese visitors can’t stop thinking, “Hey, that person looks just like someone I know!”
Do Japanese and Kyrgyz people look alike?
Walking around town, you notice some curious similarities. In fact, there seem to be deeper reasons behind them.
The Kyrgyz legend of the “two brothers”
There’s a legend in Kyrgyzstan that goes like this:
“Once upon a time, there were two brothers. The older brother, who loved fish, set off east and became Japanese, while the younger brother, who loved meat, stayed on the western highlands and became Kyrgyz.”
Taxi drivers, guesthouse owners, market vendors… when locals find out you’re Japanese, they often tell you this story.
We often find ourselves welcomed like family, with people saying, “Kyrgyz and Japanese are brothers.”
Similar faces—and even the same birthmarks!
Kyrgyzstan is home to people of East Asian (Mongoloid) descent.
With a history of people from East and West crossing paths since the days of the Silk Road, many faces you see on the street look strikingly Japanese!
What’s more, the Mongolian spot (a bluish birthmark) seen on newborn babies is common to both peoples (this is noted on the official website of Yamanashi City, Japan).
You’ll often run into people on the street who make you wonder, “Could they be related to that actor?”
Source: Yamanashi City official website, “Kyrgyz Republic”
Culture and food feel familiar, too
It’s not just the faces that are similar.
- “Lagman,” noodles similar to Japanese udon, and “manty,” which look just like dumplings (gyoza)
- “Kurut,” a fermented food reminiscent of Japanese natto
- Kyrgyzstan’s own rough-and-tumble festival?! “Kok-boru” (UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage)
- Taking off your shoes and sitting on the floor to eat
- The “komuz,” a three-stringed instrument akin to the Japanese shamisen and biwa
- “Manas,” a heroic epic like Japan’s Tale of the Heike (one of the longest in the world)
- The “Kyrgyz language,” which has the same SOV (subject-object-verb) grammar as Japanese
These may not be mere coincidences—perhaps there’s a shared cultural foundation linking the east and west of the Eurasian continent.
Sources: UNESCO “Kok-boru” UNESCO “Making Kyrgyz and Kazakh yurts” UNESCO “The Manas epic”
Mongolia looks like Kyrgyzstan, too?!
It’s not just Japan and Kyrgyzstan—Mongolia and Kyrgyzstan have lots in common as well!
We’ve put it all together in a column on the site of “Tsokto Mongolia Horse Riding Tours,” ASHU’s partner company in Mongolia. Be sure to take a look!
Spots in Kyrgyzstan we visited during filming
Besides the look-alike search, the show captures many different sides of Kyrgyzstan.
A first-ever visit inside Kyrgyz state television!
Believe it or not, this was the first time a Japanese TV station has gone inside Kyrgyzstan’s state television!
This was possible because Nuriya’s father used to work at the state broadcaster. We set up the shoot through his connections.
Be sure to catch a glimpse of a Kyrgyz broadcasting studio, which you normally never get to see, on the show!
The lively streets of Bishkek
The crew asked around day and night at the central square, around the Philharmonic Hall, and on the city streets.
You’ll see the real Bishkek, bustling with locals!
Osh Bazaar
A Kyrgyz market lined with food, clothing, and household goods. It’s a place swirling with voices, aromas, and colors.
Not only can you get a peek into local life, with every kind of meat and beautifully patterned bread, but you can also find the famous white honey and teas made with Kyrgyz flowers—perfect for souvenirs.
Just walking around makes you hungry…!
In fact, the bazaar is scheduled to move to a different location in summer 2026, so I’m glad we got to see it one last time!
A night of stand-up comedy
We went to a venue featuring popular local comedians. It was a chance to experience Kyrgyz comedy culture firsthand.
Even with a different language, people laugh at many of the same things, and the whole venue filled with smiles and laughter.
Chong-Kemin valley
Two and a half hours by car from Bishkek, this national park is surrounded by majestic mountains.
It’s home to ASHU Guesthouse, ASHU TRAVEL’s base, and is a popular spot for horse riding amid stunning scenery.
We watched a match of kok-boru, a traditional Kyrgyz sport.
Kok-boru is a traditional sport dating back to ancient times. Simply put, it’s “rugby on horseback”—but what the players fight over is a goat carcass. I was shocked the first time I saw it on Netflix.
I couldn’t take my eyes off the dynamic game played by these incredibly fit young men.
A livestock bazaar held only on Sundays
Since the days of the nomads, sheep, horses, and cattle have been a part of everyday life in Kyrgyzstan.
The livestock bazaar, held once a week only on Sundays, draws crowds of people as well as animals.
Sellers and buyers haggling over prices, animals calling out, families out for the day…!
It’s a place packed with scenes of everyday Kyrgyz life.
On ASHU TRAVEL tours that include the Chong-Kemin route, we sometimes stop by on the way back to Bishkek if there’s time on a Sunday. If your timing works out, you’re in luck!
How ASHU TRAVEL helped
ASHU TRAVEL is a local travel company specializing in Central Asia, founded by our Kyrgyz director Nuriya, with a particular strength in scenic horse riding tours.
Speaking Japanese, English, Kyrgyz, and Russian, we have guided more than 3,000 people.
Beyond tours, we help with a wide range of services, from coordinating filming locations in Central Asia to arranging Russian-language study abroad.
For this shoot, we provided full coordination—guiding, interpreting, obtaining filming permits, selecting locations, transfers, accommodation, and meals—so the film crew could “just show up and leave the rest to us.”
Nuriya also accompanied the crew as a local guide and makes a brief appearance on the show (she’s not part of the main cast, but don’t miss her!).
We hope the show helps people discover the charm of Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyz people love Japan. On the street, people often come up to me saying, “I want to visit Japan,” or “I love Japanese anime.”
But when I tell people in Japan that I work in Kyrgyzstan, the reply is often a slightly sad “Where is Kyrgyzstan…?” I feel that’s such a shame.
Blue lakes stretching beneath the sky. Hoofbeats of horses galloping across the highlands. Warm meals inside a yurt. People who welcome you by name. A slow, unhurried pace of time you can’t find in Japan.
For anyone feeling a little worn out by busy daily life, I want to share these stunning views and the warmth of the people—from the back of a horse.
I’m truly happy that this broadcast of “Shingo no Me” is a chance to introduce the still little-known Kyrgyzstan to so many people…! I hope that through our tours and film coordination, the friendship between our two countries will continue for many years to come.
Don’t miss the Kyrgyzstan episode of “Shingo no Me,” made with all these feelings, on Saturday, June 6!
If you’d like to see it with your own eyes, ASHU TRAVEL is here to help. We look forward to meeting you in Central Asia…!
Contact us and check social media for the latest updates!
We share the latest Kyrgyzstan travel info and stunning scenic spots on Instagram! Follow us to see what real trips look like!
ASHU TRAVEL official website: https://ashu-travel.com/en/
Instagram: @ashutravel_jp
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