Robi out to make some ‘magic’

MANILA, Philippines - Robi Domingo is happy at the rate things are going in his career. And who wouldn’t when a lot of people are beginning to sit up and take notice his ability to easily connect with the audience in a manner that is light yet spontaneous and entertaining. There are even those who compare his hosting style to Luis Manzano whom Robi certainly admires. “It’s nice to hear those kinds of comments,” he says.

Still, Robi knows those music to the ears praises are not reasons to be complacent. “I am really happy about everything that’s been happening in my life but I should not stop right there. I may be doing good shows but it doesn’t mean that I will just have to content myself based on what I’ve been given. I want to be different in such a way that people would instantly attach my name into it; ’yun bang ’pag sinabi mo yung linyang ’yun, ah, that’s Robi. ”

Robi plans to create his own catch line which he intends to share to the audience one day. “I’m at this point of my life where I want to make an impact to the society as a host just like Boy Abunda when you hear, ‘Kaibigan, usap tayo,’ you instantly associate that line to him.”

Same goes for Toni Gonzaga whose “Hello, Philippines! Hello, world!” tagline sticks like glue in the mind of most TV viewers even when her hosting chore in Pinoy Big Brother was long over. Luis, too, has his own mark doing “bergie, bergie” moves.

A lot of possible catch lines had already crossed his mind but Robi has yet to decide which one will indubitably leave a mark to televiewers.

“Actually, I wanted to start my line with ‘All over the world,’ but sometimes napipikon ako sa sarili ko sa pag-sabi ng, ‘all over the world…’ But I wish to one day host a reality competition with Mr. M (Star Magic head Johnny Manahan) as my director and I will say, for example, before we eliminate, “Mga Kapamilya ready, the coaches are ready, contestants are ready then let’s make some magic.”

Well, that remains a wish for Robi for now as he is about to embark on another hosting duty for the second season of the Kapamilya realiserye I Dare You with John Prats, Melai Cantiveros and Deniesse Aguilar. It will air Saturdays beginning tonight after Maalaala Mo Kaya.

“We will showcase people who may be doing simple things but have a big impact on others,” shares Robi and enumerates traffic enforcers, mixed martial arts fighters as examples.

I Dare You Season 2 is all about real-life challenges where celebrities and extraordinary Filipinos team up in hurdling the battery of tests given to them. Kapamilya celebrity guests are known as Celebrity Kakampi while the contestants are referred to as Bidang Kapamilya. Each team is comprised of Celebrity Kakampi and Bidang Kapamilya who will work together to accomplish tasks that they thought they cannot handle due to fear or uncertainty in fulfilling the task. The team will spend days and even months together in one place.

Asked how much effort he needs to exert as host, Robi reveals I Dare You will serve as a source of inspiration and learning not just to televiewers but also to the people behind the show. In his case, he was able to look deeper into the lives of the Aetas when he immersed himself in their community. “Ako, conservative ako, naka-turtle neck ako sa bahay,” Robi muses, “but seriously I obliged when they asked me to wear bahag because that is my way of showing respect to them. Embracing their culture is a sign of respect to the people.”

Does he feel hosting more comfortable than acting?

“I’m more into hosting because I want to communicate with a lot of people to get to know and discover more about life. I’m an advocate of learning. I thirst for knowledge. Sa Twitter, I always look for facts. I also never fail to read books. I get to finish two or three books in a month, kahit anong (klase) basta matututo ako so how much more dealing with people where you get to learn from their stories. You just have to find a way for them to open up.”