Bodies at war

This is an industry that pays a lot of attention to bodies. And so here in show business, we have different kinds of bodies: Voluptuous bodies (Ara Mina, Rufa Mae Quinto, etc.), rock hard bodies (Vina Morales) and even sculpted by Dr. Vicki Belo (Kris Aquino – she’s open about that... isn’t she?)

It is not surprising therefore that a group of shapely young ladies that sings and dances was formed last year and was called D’Bodies. Some of its original members were actually from another group dubbed as the shampoo beauties because their names are Rejoice Rivera, Pantene Palomino, Lux Laurel, Palmolive Palma, Ivory Ibañez and Dove de Vera.

This group first made news when they got into trouble with the Manila City Hall after posing hardly clothed in Mayor Lito Atienza’s Baywalk.

Early this year, they become tabloid fodder again when they encountered problems with their producer, Marineth Gamboa, who eventually replaced them with a new batch that can match them pound for pound when it comes to shapeliness.

The deposed members of D’ Bodies acted swiftly and with their manager Lito de Guzman formed another group and called it D’ Baywalk Bodies (or is it Baywalk Beauties?).

And so now they sneer at Ms. Gamboa and especially at the new batch of D’ Bodies and they insist that they are prettier and sexier and younger and anything that would annoy the other camp. Of course, there’s always a retort from the other side and you just dismiss this as another one of those insignificant showbiz verbal wars.

The other day, however, I was already bothered by their verbal exchange after their court hearing. (I don’t know anymore for what because they get into all sorts of legal tussles.) This was covered by both Saksi and TV Patrol and was therefore viewed even by audiences.

I am not sure which group started the first verbal salvo, but this was one of the statements uttered: "Mukha kayong mga katulong!" ("You look like housemaids!")

To say that they are prettier, younger, sexier is just fine with me – although I would rather that they wait for other people to compliment them on their looks.

But putting our helpers in a derogatory light is something I will not tolerate. Belittling these people who help us make our every day life so much easier should not be allowed.

At home, I never even call them katulong because recent society has so demeaned this term. (Earlier generations called them alila, but this has evolved into the kinder-sounding katulong, but which I feel now also needs changing.) Instead I refer to them as kasama sa bahay, which I feel gives them a little more dignity as they go through their daily chores in "our" home.

At this point, I would like to ask: How is the katulong supposed to look like? Now, please don’t let me go through that cliché "Beauty is in the eyes of the blah-blah-blah!"

May I just remind you that a lot of our women – wives, mothers, daughters and sisters – are working overseas as domestic helpers... katulong if we have to be nasty about it. So please let us be careful with the words we utter. Even writers of sitcoms and gag shows should also be sensitive to this because our helpers at home have feelings too and are just as human as the rest of us.

I will try not to be hard on these members of the D’ Bodies and Baywalk Bodies because they are young and obviously misguided. But I hope they will be more careful with their statements next time – all done in the hope of annoying the other camp and generating publicity in the process.

A couple of weeks ago, I had both groups on Startalk and I made an attempt to make them smoke the peace pipe, but they refused. Obviously, the two feuding camps feel that it is easier for them to get publicity and exposure on TV if they are at war. And so the verbal attacks between D’ Bodies and Baywalk Bodies continue...

But these beautiful bodies better be careful. Things can get really ugly. I hope we won’t wake up one day and find, ugh, headless bodies.