Artist petitions to posthumously award the title of Meritorious Artist to "village chief" Van Hiep

After artist Van Hiep passed away, public opinion was stirred up again when artists, out of love and admiration for his talent, stood up and mobilized each other to sign a petition asking the State to posthumously award the title of Meritorious Artist to "village chief" Van Hiep.

Artist Van Hiep in a sketch

When artist Van Hiep passed away, the audience and colleagues suddenly remembered that he did not have a “title”. At that time, they hastily signed a proposal to “request” a title for him. Thinking about it… makes me sad.

On the morning of April 11, during the memorial service for the late artist Van Hiep, Hanoi artists passed around to sign a petition drafted by director - People's Artist Khai Hung, requesting the State to posthumously award the title of Meritorious Artist to comedian Van Hiep - a giant of Vietnamese comedy.

In his acting career, comedian Van Hiep has participated in 1000 works and feature films. His roles in The Prisoner and the General, the boy Sacca in the play Nila, Nurse Hap in the play Doi Mat, Phi Van in the play Hoa Phao, the role of Oc in the play Ngheu, So, Oc, Hen... all left deep impressions in the hearts of the public. In particular, through the comedy series "Gap nhau cuoi tuan" of Vietnam Television, the name "Van Hiep Village Chief" has become the brand of an artist's life.

Having devoted his entire life to acting, bringing joy to life and being loved by audiences across the country, but until his deathbed, artist Van Hiep still did not receive any honors.

Van Hiep has confided many times about his disadvantage, because he is only a retired comedian, specializing in supporting roles, not qualified to be considered for the title. “Although the roles are short, the social impact that Van Hiep brings is very high. He is a very serious worker in the acting profession. Not receiving any title is a great disadvantage. I think that we should posthumously award the deceased a worthy position to have fairness and comfort their souls”, People's Artist Khai Hung.

According to the procedure for awarding the title of Meritorious Artist, the artist must have enough years of service in the establishment and two Gold Medals. Artist Van Hiep only plays supporting roles and does not participate in film festivals or performances, so the above regulation is no different from a riddle.

The procedures and documents for the application for the award of titles to artists are also quite complicated and inadequate. The purpose of awarding titles is to honor artists for their contributions to the field of art. Those contributions are recognized by the whole society. However, ironically, to get the title, they have to apply themselves, declare their achievements and have confirmation from the neighborhood group and the ward People's Committee, which is no different from asking for and giving. Many artists do not want to apply because they feel... hurt!

Is it time to change the mechanism for awarding titles to artists to ensure fairness for those who have worked hard and devoted their whole lives to acting? And should we award these noble titles to those who are still alive and at the peak of their careers so that they have more motivation to continue to excel and contribute?

Sharing about the proposal to posthumously award the title of Meritorious Artist to artist Van Hiep, artist Tran Nhuong expressed: "This is a very meaningful thing to do, it's just a pity that it's too late, but anyway, it's better late than never." Previously, actress Phuong Thanh was posthumously awarded the title of People's Artist 3 years after her death, although she had applied before her death, for unknown reasons her name was not included in the awarding of the title.

Most recently, actor Ho Kieng also passed away without receiving the title of People's Artist, while his co-stars from the same time period almost all became People's Artists (Ho Kieng was awarded the title of Meritorious Artist in 1997).

I think that artists like Phuong Thanh, Van Hiep, Ho Kieng, whether or not the State considers awarding them titles, to the public, they will always be true artists of the people. Because for artists, there is no greater reward than a place in the hearts of the public.

According to Media-M