A Kapuso star-filled Kadayawan weekend

MANILA, Philippines - “I’m trying to court her. So far, so good,” said Tom Rodriguez happily of his budding relationship with My Destiny co-star Carla Abellana in a TV interview. This is enough to titillate the imagination of fans and followers of the Kapuso primetime TV series.

One couldn’t deny the glow in Tom’s eyes when the hunk actor graced the Kapuso mall show at Gaisano Mall for the 29th-year celebration of Davao City’s Kadayawan Festival. His musical theater background came handy as Tom serenaded the crowd and took time to show his appreciation. It was reciprocated by Dabawenyos’ cheers and applause. The actor was generous to give everyone a handshake or a hug.

It wasn’t only the crowd who experienced first hand the warmth of Tom and other Kapuso stars. Even the members of local press could attest to that as they were granted with brief interviews.  

Since My Destiny is a hit in Davao City, Tom expressed his gratitude to those who watch the show night after night. For posterity sake, Tom took a few “selfie” or should I say “crowdie” with Kapuso Dabawenyos.

Also on hand to work the crowd were Rhian Ramos and Chynna Ortaleza of My Destiny and Dading, respectively.

“My character is the heavy one but not the whole soap. The soap is light,” says Rhian of her My Destiny character named Joy dela Rosa, who has leukemia. “It is affecting everyone. Ang problema ng character ko ay pinoproblema ng pamilya niya. We’re not doctors but we’re trying our best to be accurate as possible like (in portraying) what happens when a person has leukemia. On my part, my job is to give justice to the emotional struggle of someone who goes through it.” Rhian does this by committing a certain amount of time to study her character as the story progresses, in spite of the challenges that come with the TV-acting territory.

Prior to taping My Destiny, Rhian wrapped up a movie titled Silong, which stars the GMA Artist Center talent opposite Piolo Pascual. “It’s a romance thriller and the whole story only takes place in one house,” she says. “It’s just me and him the whole time. But I’m not exactly sure when it will be released and if they’re gonna send it anywhere.”

Silong is definitely the first step for Rhian to do more indies in the future. Her followers would love to see her in a movie bound to Cinemalaya, whose recent edition had seen Kapuso stars winning awards. One of them is Chynna of Joel Lamangan’s Hustisya and Gino Santos’ #Y (Hashtag Y).

 “It’s a very special award because it meant that people were convinced of our relationships,” says Chynna on the cast of #Y winning the Ensemble Acting award. “Nobody outshone others. It was very balance.” She plays Abby, a call center operator who helps those in trouble. The character is a little older than the well-off teens in the youth-oriented film. Abby needs to work because her dad is sick.

According to Chynna, #Y is reflective of what the young generation goes through every day. It is reminiscent of Bagets and Kuya. “It (shows) the bright, sunny side of their existence. It is very real. I got a lot of feedback from teenagers like they were given a voice because (the movie) touched everything that they are interested in, and also the dark side like sex, drugs and depression.”

After the roundtable chat, Rhian and Chynna joined Gabby Eigenmann, Glaiza de Castro, Ruru Madrid and Tom for a show at Gaisano Mall. They prepared song numbers for the Kapuso Dabawenyos, who had a blast seeing the stars up close and personal. That same night, the group graced the Meet and Greet and Street Party.

The following day, it was the turn of Dennis Trillo, Thea Tolentino, JC Tiuseco and Andre Paras to touch base with Kapuso fans at Abreeza Mall’s activity center, while the cast of Ang Dalawang Mrs. Real, represented by Dingdong Dantes, Lovi Poe, Rodjun Cruz and Marc Abaya, topbilled the SM City Davao showcase.

With the warmth shown by the Kapuso stars to Dabawenyos, their shows were jam-packed. This is how GMA has won the heart of Kadayawan.