Five years ago, no one knew this boy from Chiangmai. Today, Witwisit “Pitch” Hiranyawongkul or Pchy, 22, has millions of fans across Asia thanks to the gay teen romance Love of Siam and his band August. We speak to him as he prepares to release a new movie and his first solo single.

I loved to play music as a student. And Madiew [Chukiat Sakveerakul, director of Love of Siam] was a friend of some seniors in my high school. Madiew knew I could sing so he asked me to sing for the Khaoniew Mooping soundtrack [2006]. Then he asked me to audition for what later became Love of Siam.

I love to take risks. I was studying for the entrance exam to Thammasat University during the film’s production. It was really a challenge and a lot of pressure. Some people thought I would fail.

I figured that no matter the outcome, if the movie had flopped or if I had failed the exam, I’m still the same person. No one can take my identity away. I should just follow my desire to do the things that I want to do.

Love of Siam was so successful. Its success also made our band, August, famous internationally. Our fans in countries like China, the Philippines or Indonesia loved the movie and they wanted to see us live, so they tried to push organizers to bring us over to their countries.

Meeting fans in other countries made me realize that this isn’t a job you do just for the sake of it. We have a huge audience waiting to listen to our songs, and not just in Thailand.

Now everything is digital and it lives forever. There’s YouTube, Vimeo, etc. If we do things that suck, they will be there forever.

Many famous teen bands abandon their education but we didn’t. It was Madiew that insisted we go to university. If one day we’re not successful anymore, we still have a degree to earn a living.

The future of August is uncertain. We have a huge age gap between members where some are junior high school students some university students. We all have a different focus in life.

Now I focus on my music and acting. I am a producer for the band Sue Krong and I’ve just finished a project with the band 8 of Wands, who let me sing their latest single, “Mai Mee Chan” (Without Me).

I said yes right away when Madiew asked me to act in his new movie, Home, because the story takes place in my hometown, Chiangmai.

The Northern language is cute, and so unique. It has a grammar that is different from the central language. I haven’t had much opportunity to speak Northern Thai as I moved to Bangkok five years ago. I was happy to get to speak it again.

Bangkok and Chiangmai are totally different. Bangkokians are always rushing. But living in Chiangmai, it’s a different vibe. You can absorb and be happy with simple things, like taking your time to eat.

Living in a big city has given me focus. I plan my day before going to bed. Bangkok traffic is so bad, you need to count at least two hours on the road to get anywhere. And I write down what I have to get done before I go out.

Studying in university, I didn’t just study. But I made friends. And it builds your spirit too. At Thammasat, you’re taught that when you do something, you don’t just do it for yourself but also for a wider public. What you do creates waves that will affect society in some way. So you need to be cautious and think before you act.

Conflict is natural. Is there anywhere in this world with no conflict? I don’t think so. I’m fine with the conflicts at Thammasat. Development comes from conflict. It is what makes us see the problem more clearly. Everything has to change.

Try harder to understand others. That is the most important thing in this world.

I’m happy to make new mistakes in the process of creating new things. If something sucks, OK, but at least you tried. It makes your life worth living.

I want to work with talented people because they challenge you, and that can also make you more talented.

Do what you’re happy to do, and do it to the best of your ability. But you will never know what the outcome will be. Let life be.

I’m interested in writing now. I normally compose songs and now I write for a few magazines. I’m also interested in translating and visual arts.

I listen to negative comments only if they can make me look at my work from a different angle. I am thankful for those. But those who just hate my stuff, without reason, I think they’re the ones with a problem, not me.

I don’t care about people gossiping about whether I am gay or not. I’m always myself, and will not try to change myself to make people love me more.

Nothing in life will ever be 100% like you expect, so don’t be afraid of what is going to happen.

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