What a silly mistake!
Ex-EXO member Luhan banned from Taiwan after visa gaffe, but on the bright side...
You have to pay the price for making mistakes, as silly and careless your gaffes might be, especially if you happen to be a pop star.
Last week, Chinese singer-actor Lu Han - best known as a former member of K-pop boy band EXO - was prohibited from entering Taiwan for two years after he reportedly travelled to the island for work on a tourist visa.
The 26-year-oldBeijing native was in Taipei to shoot scenes for Zhejiang TV's popular reality show Back To School, but was forced to cut short his trip as a result of the boo-boo.
Zhejiang TV shouldered the entire blame and has since issued an official apology via microblogging platform Sina Weibo for "neglecting" to apply for proper work visas for its cast.
Personally, I find this blunder on the same level of stupidity as Russian tennis star Maria Sharapova's failed dope test (she "forgot" to read e-mails about the banned drug meldonium) and local Uber driver Shirwin Eu's unsuccessful attempt to run in the recent Bukit Batok by-election after he turned up at the nomination centre without the mandatory documents, assentors and deposit.
EASILY AVOIDED
Seriously, all these errors could have been easily avoided if the parties involved were more meticulous and detail-oriented.
One tiny misstep can lead to major repercussions.
Due to Zhejiang TV's negligence, Lu will not be able to enter Taiwan as a tourist for the next five years. He can, however, apply for a work visa after two years.
I can already imagine his Taiwanese fans sobbing in misery.
But Lu doesn't appear too affected by his visa problems.
At least not on his Sina Weibo microblog, where he made no mention of the incident.
After all, Taiwan is a small showbiz market compared with China.
China is where the bulk of Lu's jobs are - and where the money lies.
Indeed, more and more Taiwanese celebrities, such as Lu's castmates in Back To School, Wilber Pan and Ella Chen, are appearing on Chinese reality shows to win over the mainland Chinese audience.
After leaving EXO in October 2014, Lu's acting career has taken flight.
He scored lead roles in comedy 20 Once Again and crime thriller The Witness last year, as well as in director Zhang Yimou's upcoming epic sci-fi action film The Great Wall.
Lu doesn't need Taiwan to be a superstar.
That said, it still must suck to be barred from Taiwan as a tourist.
Hopefully he doesn't miss the food and night markets too much.
Get The New Paper on your phone with the free TNP app. Download from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store now