The thing is, Bela Padilla just wants to be known as herself: someone who wants to excel in action drama, even if it takes her time to do so.
“I’m always boxed in,” the 20-year-old Bela sighs. “I want people to give me a place, to find out who I am.”
And who is the real Bela Padilla?
Not just another pretty face, for one.
Video: Go out on a romantic date with Bela Padilla
At 20, Bela takes her social responsibility seriously. If she has her way, Bela wants to play villain roles with a redeeming value towards the end.
“If mine is a bad character, kill me in the end,” she remarks. “I don’t want the kids who are watching to think bad people get away with what they do.”
She won’t even think twice about walking up to the director and asking him to tweak the character a bit if the values it projects are far from healthy.
Bigger picture
“I’m looking at the bigger picture,” Bela echoes one of her tweets.
“You have a responsibility, not just to yourself. You have to think of the people watching you.”
Bela can’t forget the question her mom once asked her.
“What’s your goal? Why are you here?” she asked her youngest child.
Bela did some soul searching and came up with the answer.
“When people watch you on TV for 30 minutes, you relieve them of whatever’s going on in their life. Kung may utang sila, nakakalimutan nila ang utang nila. You relieve them of stress.”
It’s not everyday that celebrities her age think that way. That’s because not all 20-year-old celebrities feel they’re already 30 the way Bela does.
Not all young celebrities got exposed to burning controversies the way Bela did (remember the now-resolved `confrontation issue’ with Marian Rivera?)
This, and Bela’s constant exposure to adult conversation at home, make her wise beyond her years. But her age being what it is, Bela can deal with the young and the not-so-young at the same time.
“It’s easy for me to jump from one age bracket to the next,” she relates.
Book lover
It’s also easy for Bela to read a wide variety of books, write articles, poems and even scripts.
“My mom and I have our own set of libraries,” she motions to a big wooden bookcase full of hard-bound volumes.
Her British dad (mom is a Filipina) taught her to love suspense thrillers. That’s why Bela can’t help but laugh at comments that her reading fare is as masculine as can be.
Bela also doesn’t mind making fun of herself by saying, “My books are more messy (than my mom’s). They’re sometimes under my bed. It all depends on my mood.”
The bookworm is a prolific writer. Her articles have appeared on “The Manila Bulletin.” And yes, she still writes the traditional way – by jotting all her thoughts in a notebook she brings with her on the set, during church services (she and her mom are devout Jehovah’s Witnesses), etc.
Bela prefers the warmth of the notebook to the coldness of the laptop. In the same way, she just loves “the smell of books,” how it feels when she turns the pages and sees the print all lined up before her eyes.
“My mom tells me that the more senses you use in doing something, the more it leaves an imprint on your mind. That’s why I enjoy books,” Bela explains.
Young men out there, take note. The way to Bela’s heart is through the written word.
No wonder Bela wants to take up Creative Writing when she goes back to school soon.
But she has to squeeze this in between showbiz assignments and shoots for product endorsements. Bela shows her funny side in the upcoming movie “My Kontrabida Girl” with Aljur Abrenica and Rhian Ramos.
Bela is just as excited to portray Kris Bernal’s twin in the family drama “Hiram na Puso,” which starts airing March 5 on GMA 7.
Workaholic
“I enjoy work so much,” she gushes. “I have fun on the set and it doesn’t matter if we work for a long time.”
A new endorsement for an apparel line will also make Bela more visible in the coming days.
The lady is so busy, she can hardly squeeze in time for a Valentine’s date.
“I have a pictorial on Valentine’s Day,” she reveals.
But she promised to find time to date a lucky Yahoo! Philippines OMG! user a few days after Valentine’s. Coming from someone as wholesome and pretty as Bela, that chosen guy will surely be the envy of friends!
By Maridol Rañoa-Bismark | Yahoo! Southeast Asia Newsroom
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