Gelli ready for more work

MANILA, Philippines - You can’t blame Gelli de Belen for having cold feet when she acted out her role as Amelia in the recently-concluded All My Life. Her last movie outing, Mahal Kita Walang Iwanan, was 12 years ago. And though she had a short stint in another soap, she didn’t feel as much pressure as she did months back.

“I told directors Mac (Alejandre) and Andoy (Ranay) to keep an eye on me because it’s been a long time since my last serious acting,” Gelli relates. “I was nervous even in blocking; it really felt like I was acting for the first time. At lalo na nung kaeksena ko si Lani (Mercado) and Jay (Manalo), grabe talaga.”

But after the first take, everything went smoothly for Gelli.

“I just felt the need for more practice,” she explains.

Perhaps, Gelli adds, she got so engrossed in hosting SIS (with sister Janice and Carmina Villarroel) where everything just flows. Gelli doesn’t even bother about projecting the right angle or not. All she does is share what’s between her ears during the show’s discussion portion. She doesn’t mind if she sometimes goes overboard when she speaks her mind. And when the game segment of the show comes around, Gelli feels like a kid at heart.

“We’ve been together for eight years at kung may mang-okray man isa sa amin on-air eh walang pikunan. I’m just being myself when hosting and I love acting,” she explains.

Is she ready for another drama show?

“Why not, especially if the role is too hard to resist and I’m also willing to do a sitcom,” she confirms.

Besides, her and husband Ariel Rivera’s sons Joaqui, 10, and Julio, 8, are never a hindrance whenever her schedule gets hectic. The boys no longer require too much supervision from Mom and Dad anymore.

“If ever Ariel and I can’t attend to them pronto, my mom, mom-in-law and brother-in-law are just too happy to help us out,” Gelli said, and proudly shares that Ariel often sends and picks their kids from school, like when she had tapings in Subic.

Joining the Backroom family a week after her manager Douglas Quijano was laid to rest is one sign that Gelli is ready for more work.

“I called up Tito Boy (Abunda) and he wasn’t surprised at all. Nangarag talaga kasi ako sa mga tumatawag, I needed help because I can’t concentrate na sa taping noon,” she enthuses.

How does it feel to be in Backroom?

“I’m happy and amazed that I’m going to presscons again. Even Ariel is surprised,” Gelli quips.