Misato Otoshi pulling a rickshaw in Tokyo’s Asakusa area. - Japan News/ANN
TOKYO: Female rickshaw pullers are drawing attention in Tokyo’s Asakusa area, a site to which tourists flock from all over the world.
Because it requires so much physical power and endurance, the job of rickshaw puller used to be thought of as only for men. But in recent years, more young women have gone through the difficult training it requires and taken up this job.
In and around the Asakusa area, which is home to tourist spots such as Tokyo SkyTree and the historic Sensoji Temple, pullers transport passengers to the sites they want to visit, take pictures for them, show them around these spots and provide them with information on subjects like local history and where to get a good meal nearby.
The female pullers say they are proud to play an important role in entertaining tourists, and some of them attract and surprise tourists by uploading photos and videos of themselves pulling heavy rickshaws to social media.
According to Misato Otoshi, a 31-year-old female rickshaw puller, pullers can tow up to 250 kilograms, including the rickshaw itself, which weighs 90 kilograms. They operate the vehicle using the principle of leverage: pulling the long handle makes it possible to move the heavy body of the vehicle.
“Since women are usually not as physically strong as men, we have to use special techniques, grabbing the handle in particular places and tilting our bodies in particular ways,” Otoshi said.
Before she became a puller, she worked as a TV personality, actress and nursery teacher in Japan and a waitress in Australia while on the Working Holiday visa.
In 2020, after she returned to Japan from Australia because of the Coronavirus pandemic, two rickshaw pullers whom she happened to meet told her how interesting the job is.
The same year, she joined Rise Up, a company that operates the rickshaw service Tokyo Rikisha in Asakusa. “I like to do things other people don’t,” she said.
But gaining the skills to become a puller was tough. She started working, but she had to return to training after a senior puller told her that her control of the rickshaw was unstable. “When I carried two customers on my rickshaw, it felt heavy and made me uneasy,” she said.
Otoshi repeatedly practiSed carrying two senior pullers on a rickshaw to learn to keep it stable before making her second “debut.”
Otoshi posts photos and videos of herself pulling rickshaws, as well as ones of Japanese food and tourist spots, on her YouTube channel and Instagram account to promote Japan’s attractions and rickshaw services.
She said that some foreign tourists who have seen her posts have later come to Asakusa to ride in her rickshaw.
Otoshi said, “Rickshaw pullers get so close to their passengers, and I feel like I can convey my passion to them. It’s great to be a part of a customer’s precious memories.”
Mii Suzuki, 25, a female rickshaw puller with Tokyo Rikisha, became interested in the job when she was a university student and got to ride in a rickshaw pulled by a woman in Asakusa.
“I was wearing a kimono at the time and it made me feel like a princess,” she said. “Even after I got down, there was still an afterglow from the happiness I felt.”
“The staff, including the puller, were so nice, I started to think I wanted to work as a puller, too.”
Suzuki had 15 years of experience as a swimmer and was confident in her physical strength, but she struggled to pass the test at the end of the training sessions to become a professional puller.
“It was difficult for me to respond flexibly to various situations on road. I felt a lot of pressure,” she said. After undergoing about 90 training sessions in nine months, she finally passed the test.
“It was the hardest time I’ve ever been through,” she said.
Before graduating from university, she searched for work as a news anchor, but she eventually stopped. She decided she wanted to continue working as a rickshaw puller. Now, in addition to pulling a rickshaw, she also takes on jobs emceeing events and wedding ceremonies.
“I was happy to hear a customer say something like, ‘I was tired from work, but riding in your rickshaw cheered me up,’” she said.
According to Ryuta Nishio, a former rickshaw puller and president of Rise Up, the number of female rickshaw pullers at the company has been increasing. When Nishio launched his own company in 2019, he had one female puller. As of September 2024, the company had 14 female pullers out of a total of 60, not including trainees. The women ranged in age from 18 to 31.
Many women have applied to the company after seeing its promotional posts on social media sites like TikTok and Instagram and thinking pulling a rickshaw would be “a cool job,” Nishio said.
Among his company’s several social media accounts is an Instagram account operated by female pullers, who share not only photos of themselves pulling their rickshaws but also other things, like videos of themselves dancing cutely.
One reason why the job draws women may be that it pays well.
A puller gets commissions depending on how long they carry passengers. Nishio said his company’s rickshaw services are more than just a means of transportation, they’re a form of ‘entertainment’; they charge ¥5,000 to take two passengers on a 10-minute ride.
A popular rickshaw driver can earn more than ¥1 million per month, although the highest amount made by a woman in one month so far was ¥400,000 earned by a university student.
But Nishio said, “I recommend applicants who are looking for a high salary to find another job. We are focused on providing good service to customers, and I tell employees, ‘If you focus on the customers, the pay will follow.’”
Nishio also tells female applicants at interviews that being a puller is a hard job. “The pullers are required to be highly skilled. They need to watch the road carefully, to be physically strong and to entertain customers. Many women quit at the interview,” he said.
Nishio hopes to have an even balance of male and female rickshaw pullers in his company in the future. “I think a good company should provide a good work environment for female employees. If women continue to play active roles in my company, we will be able to expand what our company is able to do,” he said. - The Japan News/ANN
