Former Chinese TV host He Yani is enjoying a resurgence in popularity after spending 15 years recording the Mangxuandi, also known as a group of blind musicians, in Shanxi Province.

He Yani detailed her experience in a new book titled The Eyeless.  

The Mangxuandui are known for their illustrious history originating to as early as World War II when they helped fight the invading Japanese by carrying messages, ammunition and distributing flyers throughout China.

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The troupe has spent the past 80 years traveling around Shanxi villages while preserving their unique melodies and original vocals known among the traditional Zuoquan folk.

The Chinese government already recognized the Mangxuandi as one of the country's intangible heritages in 2006.

He Yani came across the troupe in 2001 while in the rural community of the winner of a Northwestern China folk song singing contest. He happened to be one of the hosts of the music contest and was then a popular figure on television.

Since He started documenting the Manxuandi, she had already released two documentaries: Blind Singers of Taihang and Dididege. The first focused on how He fell in love with the musicians and how she managed to get foreign TV channels to share their story.

In 2005, He's TV program in Zhejiang Satellite TV ended, and she immediately returned to Shanxi with a professional team from Hong Kong. With no funding at all, she had to get help from the government and borrow money with her home as collateral. He's gamble paved the way for her to introduce the troupe to a wider audience. On a more personal note, He got closer to the musicians.

"So many stories happened during the shoot. Sometimes I could barely sleep since I was trying to digest them all. Some stories they told me were so brilliant, and I hadn't been there to record them, so I gradually changed my mind from making a documentary to making a fictional film," He told Sina.

He's work did not come without any obstacles. Money became difficult a year after and her team had to leave because she could not pay them anymore.  She could not even distribute her footage due to lack of funding. 

But with He's efforts, the Shanxi Province has now taken notice of the plight of the Mangxuandui. In fact, authorities have provided them better care as the public has taken more notice of the group. Zuoquan county funded the building of a home for the group amounting to 1 million yuan ($150,000) and has helped arrange for them to perform in major cities.  

TagsHe Yani, Mungxuandui