Park Shin Hye sees Starlight Angels
By Suwitcha Chaiyong
Photos courtesy of I-Rim
In 2009, charismatic Korean actress Park Shin Hye had a big break in her acting career when she starred in the TV series, You're Beautiful. The series was popular throughout Asia and has been rerun several times on Thai television.
The popular actress recently had her first fan meeting in Thailand, arranged by I-Rim. The Park Shin Hye Asia Tour: Kiss of Angel in Thailand event was the final destination of her first Asia tour.
Aside from meeting local press and fans, Shin Hye donated some of her personal belongings to a charity auction, with proceeds going to underprivileged patients at the National Cancer Institute.
SKILLFUL STAR
At the three-hour meeting on June 29 at Siam Pavalai Royal Grand Theatre, the 23-year-old star showed off her versatile skills. She first surprised fans by opening the event with her great piano playing and singing. Later in the meeting, Shin Hye sang some of her soundtrack songs like “Pitch Black” from Flower Boys Next Door, as well as performing some K-pop dance hits with beautiful, professional dance moves.
CUTE COUPLE
During the interview, Shin Hye mentioned her upcoming series, The Heirs. The actress joked that she was happy to work with a tall actor like Lee Min Ho because it meant that she could wear high heels.
Fans at the event screamed like crazy when a video was shown with messages from Korean stars to congratulate Shin Hye on her 10th anniversary as an actress. Her You’re Beautiful co-star Jang Keun Suk received the loudest scream, especially when he joked that his mom wanted Shin Hye to be her daughter-in-law!
HAPPY ANNIVERSARY
Shin Hye’s fan club, Starlight Angel, worked hard to impress their favourite actress. While Shin Hye sang “The Day We Fall in Love” from the Heartstrings soundtrack, everybody held up signs that read, “Happy Heartstring’s two-year anniversary.” Shin Hye was so surprised that she had tears in her eyes. She later made heart gestures and thanked her fans.
LOVELY END
Starlight Angel also made a video for the event. It was a short animated film that told a story of how Shin Hye was their star and how they had been waiting for her to visit them for a long time. The star was overwhelmed and couldn’t hold back her tears.
Shin Hye confessed that she sometimes felt confused and lacked confidence in her work, but added that if she ever felt lost again, she would think about her Thai fans.
To end the event, Shin Hye sang the Thai song “Ah Gan Rak (Symptom of Love)” before thanking her fans once again.
A day before the fan meeting, the pretty actress met with the Thai press at Imperial Queen’s Park Hotel for an interview.
Question: How do you feel about having your first meeting with your Thai fans?
Shin Hye: I’m thrilled. Before I came here, a lot of fans sent me messages and asked when I would be coming, so I knew they wanted to see me.
Question: What inspires you to do so much charity work?
Shin Hye: Even though I can show my love by acting and holding fan meetings, I want to do more than that. When I help underprivileged people, I receive a lot of love in return. Recently I was able to give disadvantaged children an opportunity to eat warm rice. I felt overwhelmed.
Question: Did you know that Thai fans call you “Nong Pak,” which means vegetable?
Shin Hye: I’ll keep working hard so that fans can see me often and stay healthy!
Question: What was it like working with the band A.N.Jell in You’re Beautiful?
Shin Hye: Everybody was so diligent. There was a scene where we had to eat ice cream, and we forgot that we were acting. We took the scene so seriously that the director had to tell us to relax!
Question: Which Thai dish you would you particularly like to try?
Shin Hye: Pad Thai. I often eat Pad Thai in Korea.
Vocabulary
- charismatic (adj): having a powerful personal quality that attracts and impresses other people
rerun (v): to show a film, a television show, etc. again
destination (n): a place to which somebody or something is going or being sent
auction (n): a public event at which things are sold to the person who offers the most money for them
proceeds (n): money that you receive when you sell something or organise a performance, etc.
underprivileged (adj): having less money and fewer opportunities than most people in society
versatile (adj): able to do many different things
daughter-in-law (n): the wife of your son
gesture (n): a movement that you make with your hands, face, etc. to show a particular meaning
overwhelm (v): to have such a strong emotional effect on somebody that they don’t know how to react
disadvantaged (adj): not having the things, such as education or enough money, that people need in order to succeed in life
diligent (adj): showing care and effort in your work
