AFTER being warmly welcomed as part of the cast of the afternoon soap “Pira-Pirasong Paraiso,” Maricel Soriano relayed that she went through a time when she declined a lot of acting projects.
“May stage ako na ganun, na ayoko. Hindi ko naramdaman eh. Sabi ko ‘pag naramdaman ko, tuloy tuloy tayo. Ayan na nga. After (‘The General’s Daughter’) tuloy tuloy na. Parang ganun, parang ang hirap magsabi ng no lalo na ‘pag maganda ‘yung project. Parang sa utak ko pa lang naglalaro na. Hindi na ako nawawala ngayon. Kasi alam ko na ang daan (laughs). Nakakatawa, ,di ba? Pero ,yun ,yung pinag-pray ko kasi. Sabi ko, ‘Lord, I want to be responsible again so gusto ko may ginagawa na marami akong pinapatawa, marami akong napapaiyak, kaya gusto ko ‘yun. Answered prayers,” she shared.
As the entertainment industry’s undisputed “taray queen,” Maricel shared she understands why a member of the local media gave her the title.
“Nung araw kasi diretso ako, kung ano ‘yung tanong, ‘yun ang sagot. Kaya sabi nila, ‘Ay mataray itong babae na ito.’ Kasi bakit nila ako tinawag na mataray eh sinabi ko lang naman ‘yung totoo. ‘Di ba? Hindi ko alam. Sinabihan na lang ako ng ganun. Sabi ko, ‘Ganun? Ako ‘yun?’ (laughs),” she recalls.
Even with more than five decades of acting under her belt, the veteran actress said she still has roles she would love to and younger actors she looks forward to collaborating with some day.
“Meron pa. Gusto ko naman parang bida kontrabida para maiba lang. Mas bad. Pero kailangan may redeeming factor. Kailangan may rason bakit ganun. Parang gusto ko iba pero may reason kung bakit ha. Dapat meron. Gusto ko rin makatrabaho si Enchong Dee tapos si Daniel Padilla gusto ko kasi makatrabaho din at etong bata na ito, si Joshua Garcia, magaling sila ha,” she explained.
At 58 years old, the “Pira-Pirasong Paraiso” star also revealed who she credits for her always glamorous and classy look onscreen. The Diamond Star shares the same fashion stylist as fellow actress Jodi Sta. Maria.
“May stylist ako, si Patricia (Coronado). Kasi sabi ko, ayoko ‘yung 50-plus na nagpapaka-bagets ha. Ayoko ng ganyan ha. Baka nakakahiya naman tayo, sabi ko. Gusto ko ‘yung relax lang. As yourself, ‘yung ganun lang,” she revealed. (PUSH)
