Japanese man earning ₹7 lakh/month relies on income of 3 wives, wants to have 54 children

A man in Japan lives his life depending on the earnings of his wives, despite having an income of over ₹7 lakh per month as an influencer.

A Japanese man who is also a social media influencer revealed that he earns nearly 1.25 million yen (approximately ₹7 lakh) per month but relies on the income of his three wives to cover household expenses. He further expressed his desire to father 54 children. According to the South China Morning Post (SCMP), he wants children to break the record of Japanese shogun Tokugawa Ienari, who fathered 53 children with his 27 concubines.

Ryuta Watanabe is a Japanese man who relies on the income of his three wives. (Instagram/@watanaberyuta_official)

“Himo otoko”

The 36-year-old Ryuta Watanabe, calls himself a “himo otoko”, the outlet reported. The term when translated from Japanese into English means an able-bodied man who is dependent on a woman financially.

Who does he live with?

The outlet reported that he lives with his three wives. Though he calls them wives, since Japan does not allow polygamy, the women are his partners without registration.

He lives with three women and his four children, including a pair of twins. Hailing from the northern Japanese prefecture of Hokkaido, he also has a fourth wife. She lives separately and has an on-and-off relationship with Watanabe. In addition, he has seven more children with different women whom he dated at some point in his life.

Career as a social media influencer:

Watanabe revealed that, after dropping out of secondary school, he has tried over 20 part-time jobs over the years. Finally, he found his calling as a gigolo. According to the outlet, he said he was “born to be a gigolo.”

He debuted as an online influencer in 2024 and has since shared different glimpses of his polygamous lifestyle on social media. According to him, he earns millions of yen through his work as an influencer.

What did social media say?

“What he does looks nothing different from a cult religion, and it scares me,” a Japanese social media user wrote, reports SCMP. Another said, “I wonder if this man can be a good option for the hard-working women who do not want to get married and want to have children.” A third said, “I worry about their children’s wellbeing especially when they grow up and face criticism and even bullying from people who find their family strange.”

The outlet reported that in a previous interview, Watanabe revealed that he engages in sex more than 28 times a week to increase his chance of fathering more children. He added that he never masturbates, so he doesn't “waste his sperm.”