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Mark: Oversexed and into drugs?

Author: Mario E. Bautista
Column: Freehand

Mark Herras is happy to have a Metro filmfest entry each year since he joined showbiz. First was "So Happy Together" with Kris Aquino, then "Blue Moon" where he played the young Eddie Garcia, and "Super Noypi"last year.

For this year, his entry is "Bahay Kubo," where he plays the love interest of Marian Rivera, who he once wooed.

"Feeling ko, veteran na ako ng pagsakay sa float tuwing may Parade of Stars," he says. "But I enjoy joining the parade and seeing all the fans lined up in our streets to greet us. "

Mark has put up his own business, a disco-dance bar called Serve at the Araneta Coliseum Circle in Cubao. His associates are Cristine Reyes and sweethearts Joshua Zamora and Jopay Paguia of SexBomb. "Bagay sa amin kasi puro kami mahihilig sumayaw. This formally opened last night, November 29. I hope it clicks dahil marami namang taong gustong sumayaw. "

Mark was just 17 when he won in StarStruck Batch 1. He's now turning 21 on December 14. "I will hold a birthday concert on that night sa Music Museum. It's titled 'B. A. D' which stands for Bump and Dance. Kasama ko rito sina Yasmien Kurdi, Rainier Castillo, The Studs and EB Babes (to which is current girlfriend, Lian Paz, belongs). "

Is it true former sweetheart Jennylyn Mercado is not one of his guests because Lian Paz will get jealous? "No, hindi naman selosa si Lian. I'd like to invite Jen sana para kumpleto kaming StarStruck Batch 1 winners, kaya lang baka maintriga na naman kami. "

Mark laughs off the rumor that he's so slim these days because he's oversexed and is into drugs. "The reason why I'm so thin is dahil tambak ang trabaho ko at halos wala akong pahinga. May 'My Only Love' ako sa hapon and 'La Vendetta' sa gabi, then may 'SOP' pa on Sundays. Isasama rin daw ako sa 'Joaquin Bordado' as younger brother of Robin Padilla. But I'm not complaining as I'd rather be overworked than jobless. Hindi sex dahil I don't even have time for that sa sobrang kabisihan ko. Hindi rin drugs. Why would I resort to drugs when my life is doing very well?"

KIDS MORE UNNERVING THAN SENATE

SEN. Kiko Pangilinan is the main player in "1 vs 100" tomorrow night. This is the first time a top politician like him will be a contestant and he'll be up against 100 kids. So, which is more unnerving: the Senate or the mob of 100 kids? "I can face the Senate anytime. But this is the first time I'm up facing 100 children and it's kinda scary," he says.

Is this the first time you're joining a game show like this? "Yes. I was phone-a-friend for my wife (Sharon Cuneta) in another game show. Ngayon pa lang ako naging contestant mismo. "

What made you agree to join "1 vs 100"? "Well, Christmas is fast approaching. Baka sakaling manalo ako," he laughs.

What will he do in case he'd win P2 million? "I'll donate part of it to charity and the rest, to Sharon Cuneta-Pangilinan for additional home expenses," he laughs again.

Will he allow his kids, Frankie and Miel, to join the kiddie mob? "Yes, why not? It's up to them. Kaya lang, mahiyain ang mga bata, lalo na ang youngest ko. Kapag ayaw, ayaw niya talaga. Very mana sa aming dalawa ng mama niya. "

Will Sharon be willing to join "1 vs 100"? "Yes, I'm sure, coz binanggit ko sa kanyang sasali ako and she said, 'Uy, maganda 'yan. Ako kaya? Kailan nila iimbitahin?'"

Will he also care to join 'Deal or No Deal" and "Game KNB?" "Puwede naman siguro. Ako naman, it's all for the sake of having a good time and enjoying it. Kung mananalo rin, di mas okay. "

Do game shows help alleviate the plight of the poor in our country? "That's a difficult question. I think, in a way, merong natutulungan. But, of course, in the long run, the government and the people should really help to remedy the problems of poverty. Sa game shows, konti lang ang masusuwerteng matutulungan, pero mas mabuti na rin kaysa sa walang natutulungan, di ba?"

A new rule is applied in the game in Sen. Kiko's episode. The player has to pick 10 numbers ranging from 1 to 100, corresponding to a mob member. He then has to eliminate all his 10 picks to get the privilege of choosing the accumulated prize money. If he doesn't get to eliminate all his 10 picks yet, he has no choice but to go on with the next round and fight the mob anew.

'THE NAMESAKE': TRADITIONAL AGAINST REBELLIOUS

ALL Pinoys and other Asians who migrated to the U. S. will be able to relate with the characters portrayed in "The Namesake," a touching drama from Director Mira Nair now showing in Makati theatres. It covers almost three decades in the life of an Indian-American family based in New York City. Based on Jhumpa Lahiri's Pulitzer Prize-winning first novel, it begins in the 70s in Calcutta.

Ashoke Ganguli (Irfan Khan) and Ashima (popular Bollywood actress Tabu) are introduced to one another in an arranged marriage. Ashoke is already based in the U. S. for two years. Ashima is asked: "Can you be alone in a cold city with freezing winters?" They have an exotic Bengali wedding and Ashoke takes Ashima to New York. Over the years, their love for each other grows. Ashima is initially homesick and wants to go back to India, but Ashoke tries his best to please her.

Soon, their children come. First is a son, Gogol (Kal Penn of "Harold and Kumar"), who is named after his dad's favorite Russian writer so he is "the namesake". Then they have a girl, Sonia (Sahira Nair, daughter of the director. ) The story delineates the problems usually encountered by immigrants (just like in "The Debut" which is about Pinoys in California) who move to the U. S. to give a better life to their offspring. But the kids grow up so Americanized that they reject the culture of their own parents so this causes a gap and pain between two generations. Sonia even dislikes joining a trip to her parents' country as a teenager.

Like their American classmates, they leave their home as soon as possible. Gogol lives with his Caucasian girlfriend, Maxine Ratliff (Jacinda Barrett), while Sonia chooses to attend college in California. The kids complain that their parents are so traditional and backward in clinging to old fashioned ways while the parents can't comprehend while their kids are so rebellious, with Gogol even smoking pot and ashamed of his own name. A tragic incident, however, reunites the family and the children, with Gogol now an architect using the name Nikhil, are compelled to give more importance to their Asian heritage. Gogol eventually marries the Indian woman he made fun of as a teen, Moushumi Mazumdar (Zuleikha Robinson of "Rome"), who transforms from being a dowdy bookworm into a stunning beauty.

The director and her scriptwriter, Sooni Taraporevala, wisely start the film with the parents still young and in India, so the viewers can fully see the conflict from both sides, thereby gaining a better understanding of the conflicts and issues involved. Gogol might be the title-roler but the filmmakers rightfully give the same kind of importance to his parents. Irfan Khan invests his role as Ashoke with gentleness and great range as in that scene where he tries to assure his wife that it's okay even if she shrunk his clothes. Even more affecting is Tabu as Ashima who learns how to be independent in America. You will really sympathize with her. The makeup job showing them age through the years is astounding. Kal Penn is best known for the inane comedies he did and here, he shows that he also has a fine dramatic sensibility.

Director Nair is at her best when making films about Indian life and cross-cultural conflicts like "Salaam Bombay", "Mississippi Masala," "Monsoon Wedding," than when she's directing Hollywood productions like "Vanity Fair," a bomb that starred Reese Witherspoon. "The Namesake" is probably best interpreted in a mini-series but she's able to compress it well into two hours. They give it universal appeal and you feel that what's happening on screen is what we really experience in real life: birth and death, wedding and separation, times of joy and times of sorrow, making the film very rewarding viewing.

Source: People's Journal