Serious envy

Kaew takes on a dramatic role

By Suwitcha Chaiyong
Photos by Varuth Hirunyatheb
and courtesy of Channel 8

Jarinya Sirimongkolsakul, better known as Kaew from the girl group Faye Fang Kaew, recently branched out into serious acting. The 23-year-old star has recently starred in the TV sitcom Luang Pi Digital (Modern Monk) and the TV drama series, Poeng Pai (Envy) on Channel 8.

While Kaew has mostly played cheerful characters similar to herself, in Envy she plays a kind, weepy girl named Ilada who dedicates herself to her spoiled and jealous younger sister, Waeruree, played by Vanessa Herrmann.

Student Weekly recently met up with Kaew at Channel 8 the office. The young actress told us about her experience taking on a serious role.

Student Weekly: Did you enjoy acting in a dramatic role?

Kaew: Yes. It was a new experience. This is the first series where I play a mature, harassed person. I initially wondered if I could do it because there are a lot of emotional crying scenes. But I really gave it all I’ve got.

Student Weekly: How do you feel about Ilada’s personality?

Kaew: I sometimes felt irritated that she let her sister do whatever she wanted. I thought that Ilada should stand up for herself and oppose her sister. But the director explained that Waeruree acts like that because she’s a younger sister with a tumour on her face. She feels insecure.

It was hard for me because I’ve never had similar experiences to Ilada in real life.

Student Weekly: Did you find the crying scenes difficult?

Kaew: Yes. I couldn’t get into the character at first. I had to work with Vanessa and we’d only just met. It took us time to get to know each other, but things were fine once we became close. I had so many crying scenes that I got a headache!

Student Weekly: Were you able to cry right away on the set?

Kaew: Everybody is always having fun and making jokes on the set, so I had to really concentrate to change my emotions for the crying scenes.

Student Weekly: Is it true that you had to reshoot one scene several times?

Kaew: We had to reshoot the scene where I fall down the stairs. It was hard because I had to cry and be careful of my safety at the same time.

Student Weekly: How did you feel about your romantic scenes with Fluke Jira from C-Quint?

Kaew: We know each other, but I often laughed when we had romantic scenes. Fluke is very playful.

Student Weekly: After working on several different shows, do you still enjoy acting?

Kaew: Yes. It’s always challenging and a new experience to play a different character. It’s also fun.

Student Weekly: Out of the characters you’ve played so far, which is your favourite?

Kaew: Ilada. I normally play characters that are similar to myself, but Ilada has a totally different personality. I’d like to try playing a psycho character in the future.

Student Weekly: How did you feel about your military training experience on the show, Kami Tid Mun?

Kaew: In the morning, we were woken up by a trainer yelling at us to get out of bed. We then had some tough training. I saw comments on YouTube saying that we were just acting, but we weren’t. We did it for real. I learned that being a soldier is really exhausting. I also found out that being united is very important because everybody in the team gets punished one person makes a mistake.

Student Weekly: What was it like travelling in Korea during winter?

Kaew: We left Seoul to visit a fishing area and it was totally frozen! There were holes in the ice for fishing, but we couldn’t catch any fish at all. I saw somebody else catch a fish, but I think that maybe he brought the fish with him and just pretended to catch it there. [Laughs.]

Student Weekly: Do you have any special message for your fans?

Kaew: Please keep watching Envy. Everybody worked hard in this drama, and I play a role that’s different from anything I’ve done before. Check it out and let me know what you think!

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