Beauties Under Pressure

Reigning Bb. Pilipinas beauties Jennifer Barrientos, Janina San Miguel and Patricia Fernandez are very much focused on their preparations in representing the Philippines in their upcoming international pageants, that they don’t care about the negative criticisms thrown their way. These include talk that they do not deserve their crowns.

This I confirmed when I got to talk to them at the Pizza Hut SM Northwing branch last month. The three beauty titlists were in Cebu recently as special guests during the opening of another Pizza Hut branch in Tabunok. Pressure also is not in their vocabulary, so to speak. Janina, who will represent the country in the Miss World pageant in Ukraine this October, even managed to joke that her controversial answer during the Bb. Pilipinas Coronation Night, which showed her poor grasp of English, will be an advantage once she gets to the host country of the tilt. This is because, according to her, while other candidates are yet to make a scene or gimmick to attract attention in Ukraine, she doesn’t have to with her controversial answer now popular in You Tube. “Yung iba gagawa pa ng ano (scene) para mapansin,” she pointed out.

But, of course, she is not merely sitting pretty nowadays because she is taking her communication skills training seriously. “Okay naman po ako sa English training, actually favorite ako ng teacher namin,” she smiled.

Interestingly, like Jennifer, Bb. Pilipinas was the first pageant that Janina joined. But if Jennifer, who is a Tourism graduate from the University of Sto. Tomas, has been modeling before joining the country’s most prestigious pageant, Janina was what you would call a very raw beauty. She corrected earlier reports that she won first runner-up in the Ms. University of the East (UE) pageant (she was a Mass Communications freshman at UE before she joined Bb. Pilipinas). She said it was another beauty titlist that was referred to. How could she when she wasn’t even into modeling? “Hindi nga ako marunong maglakad at mag-project,” she admitted.

She said that it was only out of curiosity that she went to the Araneta Coliseum to screen for the pageant after seeing a TV ad about it. “Nakita ko lang yun sa TV, natuwa ako, sabi: ‘who’s the fairest of them all,’ kaya nag-audtion ako,” Janina recalled. “Nakakagulat nga eh, dahil screening pa lang naka-two-piece na.”

So, just imagine the amazement of her trainer, Jontie Martinez, when the very raw and inexperienced Janina snatched the best in long gown and best in swimsuit awards from the seasoned candidates. Janina confirmed that Jontie just told her to simply enjoy the pageant for exposure’s sake, besides if she loses, she will be made to join again two years after. But destiny had other plans for her. “Kung sa’yo talaga ang crown makukuha mo talaga yun kahit hindi mo ini-expect. At saka ang bibigat ng mga kalaban namin, siguro pong yung sincerity, hindi kami nakipag-compete, as in yung compete na compete, hindi kami nananapak ng paa.”

Because Miss World is more on charity works, Janina is eyeing on doing something related to special education to gain points in the pageant. “Ah gusto ko sana yung mga special children, kasi hindi sila masyadong natutukan dito, kasi yung mga SPED teachers ay nangingibang bansa na sila, hindi talaga maganda, so ipo-promote ko talaga yun.”

Asked if she would eventually join showbiz after her Bb. Pilipinas-World reign because people say she is a natural comedienne, Janina is firm on her decision to finish her degree and then work in the hard news department as a TV broadcast journalist.

If Janina is hesitant to give in to the lure of showbiz, Bb. Pilipinas-International Patricia has no qualms of doing so. This Speech graduate from UP Diliman welcomes the possibility to be in showbiz as long as she won’t be made a bold star. Of the three, Patricia can be considered as the experienced one when it comes to pageants because she placed first runner-up in both Mutya ng Quezon City and Mutya ng Pilipinas in 2006.

When she finally qualified to join Bb. Pilipinas, she was looking forward to make it to the top 10. “Importante hindi maalis yung hope, think positive ka lang,” Patricia opined. She initially just hoped to make it to “at least the top 10, kasi yung top 5 medyo malabo.” But asked if being experienced was her edge over Janina and Jennifer who were first timers, Patricia does not think so. “It’s a matter of how you look at it, because when you’re a first timer people expect… little di ba? Parang hindi nila sasabihin na ay pang-ilan sali niya yan dapat manalo na siya, walang ganon di ba? Pero kung nakasali ka na sa iba, although meron kang greatest experience, people would criticize you, parang kapal naman yan, sali-sali pa ulit, akala mo kung sino, di ba may mga ganun? So ngingitian ko na lang ang mga magaganda,” she reasoned out.

The Miss International pageant will be held in Macau this November. As part of her preparations, she is also learning Japanese and Chinese. Jennifer, on the other hand, is learning Spanish, while Janina is honing her English. And because Patricia is a positive thinker, she is hoping to make it big in the pageant. “Sabi ni Ate Lara (Quigaman, Miss International and Bb. Pilipinas 2005), we really have to think that we will win, because if we will just go there to represent para ka lang ambassador daw, he he, so ‘wag ka na lang magpunta.”

Jennifer, for her part, will represent the Philippines in the Miss Universe pageant in Vietnam on July 14, and like Patricia, her optimism towards a positive outcome is burning. “When I entered Binibini, hindi ko iniisip na sana mananalo ako, I always think that I’m a winner already. So hindi naman siya, na parang mayabang ka, but you have to feel yung confidence ng crown eh.  It’s an advantage for me na ganun ang tinuturo sa akin,” Jennifer declared.

Interestingly, Jennifer belongs to a conservative family, and she is to be fielded in a pageant that gives focus on both beauty and brains. The one who is good in flirting before the cameras has the advantage rather than the innocent looking candidate—this is now the trend in Miss U. And when you say flirting, it means having excellent poise and confidence onstage plus outstanding catwalk skills. So how is she preparing for this?

“Ah, medyo hard siya for me dahil hindi ako lumaki sa ganung environment, but I’m getting used to it, kasi madalas akong manood ng pageants, Miss Universe most especially. [I also watch] Victoria’s Secret fashion shows. Pinag-aaralan ko the way they pout their lips, even yung mga expressions sa face,” revealed Jennifer.

Since her exposure as a model is more on photo shoots, she has a lot of learning to do in terms of catwalk skills.

So there you have it. Out bets for the international pageants, especially Jennifer, are now doing their best to learn everything they need to be able to deliver a smashing performance when their respective contests take place. Will they win? Destiny holds the answer to it.

React@[email protected]