"We do not become geisha to pursue our own destinies, we become geisha cause we have no other choice" Memoirs of a Geisha.
Do Japanese women still become geisha? Yes, because as long as there remains demands for geisha these Japanese customs will always exists.
Japanese girls are sold to managers when they are very young, these girls are usually orphans. Until the day that they are declared geisha their managers consider them an "Investment"-Feeding, clothing, tuitions fees for dance, singing, and music lessons.
A manager is consider a "MOTHER" to a geisha. She is responsible for making sure the "Geisha to be" is fully ready to become geisha. She is also responsible for feeding, clothing, and educating the girl.
What is the difference between geisha and prostitutes? Geisha and prostitutes are quite similar in the respect that they both sleep with their clients, and receive money/gifts for their sexual advances. So does that make Geisha's Prostitutes? The answer is a simple NO'. Why? Because it's simply not in their job description. It's not there profession. They don't go out in order to "GET LAID" for the exorbitant price such as a service is paid. Also Geisha are considered "A moving form of art".
"Swathed in silk and longing (mostly for a bald guy called Oscar), the big-screen version of "Memoirs of a Geisha" arrives with good intentions firmly in place. Based on the best seller by Arthur Golden, this lavishly appointed melodrama was directed by Rob Marshall, lately of "Chicago," and features the Chinese superstars Ziyi Zhang and Gong Li, and the Malaysian transplant Michelle Yeoh, as Japanese geishas swept up in jealous rivalries during the 1930's and 40's. Mr. Marshall can't rescue the film from its embarrassing screenplay or its awkward Chinese-Japanese-Hollywood culture klatch, but "Memoirs of a Geisha" is one of those bad Hollywood films that by virtue of their production values nonetheless afford