What first drew you to music?
I saw some of my seniors play in a band in high school in Pattalung. It was so cool to see them play on stage. It was inspiring. I started playing guitar, taking a short course in classic guitar for two months, before moving on to piano for a few months. I didn’t like playing in the classical way, so I stopped. I just wanted to learn the fundamentals and continue in my own style.

How did you start your bedroom project?
I came to Bangkok to study music (vocals) at Rangsit University, where I met some friends who gave me a book called The Indie Bible. It really was a bible for me. It taught me everything about how to make music and how to distribute it on my own. I was able to produce 200 copies of my first EP on a B1,000 budget. It was so fun staying up all night burning blank CDs and printing out covers. Then I took it to Fat Fest 9 where I made contact with a few record labels, but nothing came of it. The next year I sent my follow-up EP, Superman, in to Fat’s Bedroom project. It was in the charts for 40 weeks! I won Best Bedroom Artist in 2011 and eventually signed to Believe Records. 

Why so long since we last heard from you?
I had a bit of downturn in my life. I still don’t really know what happened. Every time I tried to work with a producer, there would be some disaster leading them to drop me. It happened, like, four to five times. Luckily I’ve found the right one now. Those difficulties taught me another side of making music and how to treat and respect others. As artists and producers, we should talk and work together, rather than shun one another.

What do you do apart from being a singer?
As you know, artists can’t rely on income from downloads these days. So I do lots of work as a composer and voice coach. I work with GMM and Academy Fantasia. I also teach at a music school called Sansilp at Laksi.

What are your tips for new artists?
Music is about doing things repeatedly and putting your heart into it. Practicing is important. I always tell others that you don’t need to rush yourself making music. Doing it gradually will make it beautiful. Do it to please yourself and don’t worry too much about what others think.
Keep up to date with Pavee on facebook.com/paveeo
 

Don’t bring other people’s problems on yourself. My parents separated but I never thought of it as a problem. It was better for them to be apart than be forced to stay together and suffer for my sake.

Music brings me friends. I was sent from Uttaradit to study in Bangkok alone; I started playing in a brass band and I made so many friends. When I told my parents that I wanted to study music at university, they were against it at first as they didn’t see any future in it, but eventually they relented.

Always plan ahead. The good things that happen tomorrow are because of the good things you do today. After I graduated and become a teacher at Srinakharinwirot University, I applied for a master’s scholarship and I secured one in the US.

I hated the US at first. It was just as I had imagined. After I landed in Illinois, I saw cornfields that stretched to the horizon. All the shops closed at 5 or 6pm. I called my mom and said I would be home after two years. But after continuing onto my Ph.D., I got job after job. It has been 13 years now.

Composing a song is like playing a game with no rules. You can put notes anywhere. It’s incredible to hear all the sounds you have in your head brought to life by real instruments.

Humility makes people respect you. People treat me well as I am an artist, and I treat everyone as human beings. I love to talk to random people from the audience after a show. You get the sort of feedback that you never recieve from the critics.

I nearly cried when a disabled concert-goer came up to me in his wheelchair after a show. He said my songs made him feel that he wasn’t in pain anymore. This moment was so precious to me. I never thought that, as a composer, I would ever make anyone feel like that.

Thailand isn’t the place for a full-time classical composer. I used to be branded a traitor for not coming back to work in Thailand. But the truth is our classical music scene is sparse. Personally, I think that by working abroad I can pave the way for future generations.

Classical music in Asia is growing faster than ever. Japan, Korea and now China have all benefited from technology that help audiences access anything they want, including classical music, which has long been seen as the reserve of the upper class. Pop culture, movies and TV series now contain more classical music, too.

There is nothing complicated about music. It’s just a question of whether you like it or not. Many Thais are too afraid to listen to classical music because they’re not familiar with it. But it’s like food: if you don’t like the taste, switch to another. If you don’t like Beethoven, there are a vast number of other composers you may like. The key is just to open your mind.

We don’t need more classical musicians; we just need more of an audience for our music here.

Classical music could be popular here if it was seen as more fun and casual. It doesn’t have to be this serious thing were you get dressed up and sit in a big hall and then remain silent before breaking out in polite applause. It can be hip like going to watch a movie in your T-shirt and jeans, and grabbing a coffee beforehand.

Step out of your comfort zone. Being in the same place for too long means facing less and less challenges. I encourage Thai kids to go abroad to advance their skills.

It’s important that adults pass on their experiences to young people. That’s why I decided to host the Thailand International Composition Festival to gather some of the world’s greatest composers to pass on their knowledge and let kids know there are possibilities outside of Thailand.

Keeping others down doesn’t mean you’re better. Many people try to restrict the opportunities of others by keeping knowledge to themselves instead of sharing it. That sort of outlook doesn’t help anyone. 

Good musicians must have a good attitude towards any type of music. They must get excited to challenge themselves every time they are commissioned to play a different kind of music.

Classical music isn’t better than pop music. There is a misconception among Thai classical musicians that they automatically have a higher status than pop musicians. The truth is we’re all entertainers. There’s no point going around thinking you’re better than anyone. 

2011 was the darkest year in my life. Many of my friends were flood victims. I’d just won an award but couldn’t compose a song for the following six months. It was like I’d gone deaf.

I became depressed and even contemplated committing suicide. These thoughts vanished after my mom told me that if I killed myself, she would do the same.

Not long after, in 2012, I composed a bunch of songs, three of which helped me win the Guggenheim Memorial Foundation Award.

I want to go down in classical music history. I wish to be like Beethoven whose songs are still played today.

I don’t want to be a superstar. I want to be an inspiration.
 

Studying things you hate is a real torment. I ended up having to study business management at ABAC for two years as I couldn’t get into the major I wanted at Chulalongkorn or Thammasat. It’s the most down I’ve been in my life.

Studying at university is the last chance to enjoy your education. That’s why I quit from ABAC and went to study motion pictures at Chulalongkorn as I loved taking photos.

Take failure as the momentum to prove yourself. My first movie, Dek Hor (2006), was badly criticized by people at GTH (movie studio). I went and cried alone in the toilet because it was my first failure in a solo project. But I gathered my strength and told them I wanted to fix it before it was released. It finally got the green light and made B50 million at the box office.

I get bored easily. After making three movies in a row, I got fed up. So I tried to do something else to open up my world, which is why I became chairman of the Thai Film Director Association (TFDA) and directed a lakorn [TV soap] as well as being an acting coach for Academy Fantasia.

I was afraid of losing the instincts of being a moviemaker. I was invited to direct a lakorn called Coffee Prince so I decided to give it a try. But in the end, I realized that I couldn’t work at the fast pace needed to make lakorn.

My world was very narrow before I became chairman of the TFDA. I had been making movies for years but I had never had the chance to meet all these great Thai directors. I was like “What the hell was I doing before?”

Thai moviemakers have huge egos. I’ve learned this as chairman. We are as close as brothers socially but when it comes to work, we have totally different ideas. It prevents us from pushing forward together on big issues like censorship.

Directors and censorship officials live in totally different worlds. It’s like we speak a different language. I was totally shocked when I heard a member of the censorship board (a motion picture teacher at Chulalongkorn) say to Thanwarin, the director of Insects in the Backyard, that she just directed the movie because she wanted to see a naked guy. That’s so low!

There are tons of directors, but not all of them are cool. I found many love being a director just because they love to dominate other people. I think cool people are the ones who have a real passion for their profession, no matter what it is.

True happiness is transforming pictures in your mind into a movie and then finding that the audience feel the same way you do.

I love trial and error. I tried most bad things as a child. I smoked since I was in elementary school, got caught trying to read a porn magazine and played hooky a lot.

I tried ecstasy once because I was curious. I wanted to know what it was going to be like. It made my brain catch every single feeling and I felt surrounded with happiness. I realized how valuable the moment was for me so I grabbed a pen and paper and wrote down everything I felt. The next day was totally painful. I felt really depressed and didn’t want to do anything, not even talk to anyone.

I’m lucky I tried drugs when I was grown up, as I realized what I could lose if there were bad consequences. I could have been thrown out of the movie industry just for taking drugs once. I can’t lose the work that I love most.

To fix a problem, you must accept it first. When I started doing Hormones, I just wanted to portray the reality of teenagers’ lives. But when we did our research, we found that this reality relates to jealousy, sex and drugs. The thing that shocked me most was the fact that girls are the ones who ask guys to have sex with them and that they do it at home with their parents in the house.

Watching girls fight because of men makes me feel down. I can understand why they do drugs and have sex but I don’t get why they have to fight over guys.

Love can fix any problem. I feel those kids who make trouble are hungry for love. If they get the full love of their family then they won’t act out like that, for sure.

I want to have children but not a partner. I know that I will love my kids with all my heart but I’m not sure how long I would love my partner. It would be a disaster if we got a divorce.

I want to have a daughter, even though my heart knows that having a daughter these days is a real headache. I think my daughter can survive all the obstacles on the path to becoming a lady.

No answer about life is 100% correct so I don’t try to put any clear answers in my work. Like Hormones, I just want to unveil the truth and educate adults that this is what our teenagers are like.

People love to listen to those who don’t judge them. I uphold this principle with everyone I know.

How did you get your start in the Lao entertainment business?
Alee: My friends and I, who are all dancers, created a girl group called Shawty about two years ago. We really loved dancing and wanted to become singers. We decided to create our own music to try and get signed to a record label. I am one of the lead singers of the group.
Gig: I won a beauty pageant at my university, RBAC, in 2007 before participating in the Miss Laos pageant, in 2009, which I won. I’ve worked in the entertainment industry ever since.

What’s the entertainment industry like over there?
Gig: Honestly it’s pretty small. Most of our work is as MCs or singers, there aren’t many jobs for actors and actresses. We do have some sit-coms now but there are only a few. We have so many restrictions. Like at the beauty pageants, we can only wear sinh (traditional sarongs), swimsuits are totally prohibited here. Our freedom of speech is so limited.
Alee: We can’t speak freely on any issue. You can’t talk about politics or swear and you have to dress in a certain way. So it’s pretty hard to do interesting movies or TV programs. We only have 4-5 TV channels which air mostly traditional cultural programs or travel programs. So our people prefer to watch Thai TV instead.

So how did this movie come about?
Gig: I normally work as a host for TV programs in Laos so I got to know Jia Pacific (Poomchana Siriwongsa), the famous comedian, who was really behind producing the film. We haven’t had a Lao movie to show in cinemas for decades. He asked me to cast for the role and I said yes. He later asked Alee to cast and she got the role, too. Now he’s doing a second movie.

What does “Huk Aum Lum” mean?
Alee: Mellow Love.

Have you ever worked in Thailand?
Alee: Nearly. My band was hired to play in Udon Thani last year but one of the group got sick so we had to cancel the show.
Gig: My parents do a lot of business in Thailand so I have to travel there a lot.

How do you feel about the way that Thais use the word “Lao” as an insult?
Alee: It’s pretty mean. But I do try to understand that some Thais really don’t mean to insult us. They’re just accustomed to using it. But really, I want Thais to stop doing it. It’s our nationality. It’s not a insult.
Gig: I understand the situation. But I always question why. What’s wrong with being born Laotian? I have patriotic feelings. I want to protect my country. So I would invite Thais to come to our country and get to know us better.
 

Pain is my friend. I’ve learned that, as humans, we need to feel pain to grow up. When I was young and had pneumonia, I’d run to the hospital bed when it was time for my injection, knowing that the pain would help me get better.

Endurance is in my nature. I used to be a gang leader and got expelled from high school twice. It wasn’t that I was good at fighting, but I could hang in there longer than my rivals. I would just wait until they passed out.

Change your life by changing your goals. I’m still the same person I was in high school, but I’ve shifted my focus to studying. My grades in high school were like binary code, one or zero out of four, but I became the number one student when I started studying economics at university.

I didn’t get why our schools were so strict when I was a kid. Why did we have to wear the same uniforms and why couldn’t we have long hair? Now I kind of understand that it was a way of teaching us you can’t always have things the way you want.

Education is not an assembly line. It’s dangerous that our education system can kill creativity. As a lecturer, I used to meet kids who were geniuses but had it trained out of them by the time they went to university. That’s such a pity. Education should let students bloom in their own way.

Don’t be afraid to step out of your comfort zone. My career in entertainment was going really well, but I decided to quit after receiving a royal scholarship from the Ananda Mahidol Foundation. I knew that I would get a second chance in the industry but I wouldn’t get one from the foundation.

Actors are intimidated by the media these days. I noticed this when I returned to the industry last year. The press always distort the truth and people just accept it. It’s just like the boy who cried wolf.

Be honest with yourself. Whenever I get caught up in controversy, like when I was rumored to be sneaking out on my university instructing to do other jobs or when I broke up with Ploy Chermarn, I ask myself “Are you doing the right thing?” If the answer is yes, I know I have nothing to worry about.

People put a low value on entertainment in education circles. I found this out when people gossiped about why I had returned to entertainment despite already having a Ph.D. and being a lecturer. But I see every type of work as having its own value. Even if I didn’t get paid in this industry, I’d still love it. But having to dance like I did when I was 17 years old would be pretty embarrassing!

Having your relationship play out in front of a crowd makes you forget what made it what it was. When I decided to break up with Ploy, I had to consider a lot of consequences. But in the end, I don’t regret it because it was for the best.

Don’t cling to your goals too tightly. I suffered depression while trying to finish my Ph.D. in the US. I was stuck rewriting it over and over again. I had been successful my whole life and thought I was invincible. But when it struck me, I locked myself in my house for three months and didn’t talk to anyone, not even my family.

Family is the best. Even when you think you’re at your worst, you’re still good in their eyes. I was in meltdown when my dad and brother flew over to the US and knocked on my door. They took me home to heal my spirits. I finally got stronger and went back to complete my economics Ph.D. a year later.

Setting targets is just like making up stories. I used to think my biggest goal in life was achieving my Ph.D., but the second I got it, I was like “Yes! What’s next?”

Living in the present is essential.  If you do everything to the best of your ability, take every step brilliantly, the result will always be good.

I love to challenge myself. I love to do new things and see how far I can go. It’s fun to push myself beyond the limit. Next I plan to enter a big triathlon competition later this year.

How did you become a plant vendor?
It was my older brother’s idea. He used to sell flowers, but he switched to selling plants as business was better. He then asked me to join him. Before that, I worked as a maid for ten years. I quit after I got married. I went back to my hometown in Srisaket to raise my children for six years before returning to Bangkok to work with him.

Do you grow these plants?
No. My brother buys them from farms and shops in Bang Yai and Bang Bua Thong in Nonthaburi. My products range from B20-B30 for vegetables to B200-B300 for flowering or beautiful plants. I generally earn about B400-B800 a day. I set off from where I rent a house in Klong Toey at 7:30am and finish up about 3pm. I go out every day except when I return home to see my two kids in Srisaket. I feel too guilty to let the plants just sit on the cart without finding a home for them.

Who are your customers?
Pretty much anyone on the street. I generally stroll around Silom, Phrakanong, Kluaynamthai or Chidlom. I find that it’s much better to sell my plants in these busy areas than in the villages where there are lots of houses. House owners always complain that my plants are too expensive, without seeing the convenience that I offer. They prefer to go to cheaper plant shops.

What are you most popular plants?
My ixora (jungle geranium) are always the first to go. Smaller plants tend to be most popular among those who live in condos. I rotate my plants by season. There are also some plants with auspicious names that people believe will bring them good luck, too. I even have some at home—“Thung Ngern Thung Thong” (money and golden bag) and “Pa Ram Ruay” (bring wealth). They don’t need much sunlight.

Do you have any weird customers?
Not really, but I do have some funny ones who tease me by asking me things like, “Do you have any weed?” Some also ask for ton ngew (a spiky tree that sinners in hell are forced to climb, according to Buddhist belief). I just laugh at them.

It must be really hard pushing your big cart on the streets.
I don’t really have any problems with the condition of the roads. I can push it anywhere, no problem. But I do encounter problems with the tessakij (Bangkok Metropolitan officers) sometimes. They occasionally expel me from the street even though I am a mobile vendor, not a stationary one. One time a tessakij came and told me that I should move my cart from the street and then grabbed one of my plants and walked away. I was stunned.

What’s your dream?
I don’t want to do anything else. I love this job. I also don’t have much money to start something else. But if I do earn more money, I would like to open a plant shop. I love plants!

Selfies Geek

What do you mostly post?

My activities and selfies. Instagram is like a relaxing place where I love to share good stuff with people. Posting my six-pack shows that I love my healthy lifestyle without having to explain it in words.

Why are you so popular?
There’s no one reason. My number of followers grew gradually over many months as my friends tagged me in their photos. It’s called viral feeding. They might love my lifestyle. I’m a landscape photographer, so I always post beautiful places and fun activities.

Do you have any stalkers or annoying followers?
I occasionally get some psycho followers who leave dirty comments like, “What’s the size of your dick?” I delete them all. My parents are also on Instagram and follow me. I don’t want them to see those kind of things.

Are you addicted?
I think so. I post about 3-4 pictures a day. I have so many pictures from my work that I simply feel the need to post.

What are the benefits?
I’ve gotten jobs from followers. It’s also great to know I have friends in other countries, as many of my followers live abroad. I’ve been recognized walking around Taipei and Singapre, where I got taken to pubs and restaurants that only locals know! It’s cool. Instagram also brought me back in contact with friends from kindergarten, too!

See his Instagram feed here.

Student Cutie

Why are you so popular?
I think it might be down to the fact that I’ve been tagged by my friends and people come to my account to follow me, too. Lots of my friends are DJs and actors.

Do you have any stalkers?
Not really. My followers are nice. But some annoying people try to use my photos as a way to promote their shops or products. Also, some foreigners leave comments like “you’re ugly.” I delete them all, though. I don’t want any strangers saying stuff like that.

Are you addicted?
Yes. I must post at least 1-2 photos a day and I check it every 10 minutes if I don’t have anything to do. I know that it’s not good. Sometimes it means I don’t really interact with the people around me or spend my time on more worthwhile things.

What are the benefits?
I’ve had some modeling jobs before, but Instagram definitely helps me get my name out there. I’ve gotten small roles in lakorn or sitcoms through it. Agencies have also contacted me to advertise their products, such as facial creams and supplements. As I have 30,000-plus followers, I charge B7,000-B10,000 depending on the product.

See her Instagram feed here.

Sexy MC

What do you mostly post?
It’s mostly to do with my job as an MC as well as personal activities like hanging out with friends. Many people have the wrong perception about my line of work thinking that we’re all mistresses of rich men. But showing my lifestyle is a way to tell people the truth about what we do. We are just as serious about our job as those who work in offices. I also share beauty and fashion tips with my fans, too. Some of my pics might be sexy but it’s basically just my portfolio showing that I do various jobs.

Do you have any stalkers?
I normally delete any dirty comments. The most disgusting one was probably a guy who said he wanted to have sex with me. But, honestly, dirty comments are really rare. I normally get good feedback from fans. Sometimes it’s a mid-40s office woman who remembered me from when I worked at the motor show. Sometimes it’s a foreigner who tries to impress me by commenting in Thai with words they’ve got from Google Translate. Those make me laugh.

Are you addicted?
Yes. I post 2-4 pictures a day and constantly check my account. It’s pretty annoying for the people around me.

What are the benefits?
Instagram is like my work portfolio with my lifestyle thrown in. I don’t even have to cast for a job these days. I get money from people who want to sell their products on my Instagram. I charge B4,000-B5,000 per picture. But I don’t take all the offers that come my way because I want the focus to be on my lifestyle and getting people to know me more.

See her Instagram feed here.

Insta-Trainer

When did you start Instagramming?
Just six months ago. I wasn’t a part of Thailand’s smartphone craze as I just got back from New Zealand where people aren’t so addicted to social media.

What do you mostly post?
I actually started it for my model toy business but I realized that it didn’t work because my target customers weren’t on Instagram. So, I switched to selling another product, my fitness routine which I’ve done for years and which I promote by posting selfies. I also post fitness tips such as how to eat well or how to lose weight.

Why are you so popular?
It started when I was doing some modeling and the people started tagging the pics with my Instagram account. I think that when people visited my profile, they noticed that my posts provide useful tips for staying fit and healthy—so they decided to follow me. I mainly use Thai and most of my followers are Thai.

Do you have any stalkers or annoying followers?
Nope. There’s only been the case of an online business stealing my photos to promote their products. But I couldn’t be bothered by that. I do sometimes bump into my followers on the street, though, so I have to make sure I dress well before going out!

Are you addicted?
Totally. I post 2-3 photos a day and constantly plan my posts in advance. I want people to remember me whenever they think about fitness. I see it as my job, so it’s a healthy obsession.

What are the benefits?
It’s good for my credibility, for sure. People are more likely to believe in what I say. It also pushes me to do better. There are many talented people out there, so I need to work hard to stay ahead.

See his Instagram feed here.

International Tomboy

Why are you so popular?
I think it’s because of all the [South Koren entertainer] G-Dragon fans—I’m one too! I did my hairdo like his and it seems one of the GD fans spotted me. After that, my followers list grew very fast, at almost 2,000 new followers a day. But now it’s pretty steady.

Do you have any stalkers?
I do. I had no choice but to block some people who repeatedly commented on all my pictures. Often these are gay haters, mostly men. They leave rude comments after seeing my pictures on Instagram’s “explore” popular page. I have to delete them all the time. My girlfriend is also harassed by some of my followers. They’re just jealous of her.

Are you addicted?
Absolutely, but I’m trying to slow down a bit now. It’s really unhealthy. I used to think about posting photos all the time. It left me no time to just be with myself. I’m too tired to follow others.

What are the benefits?
I’ve now got lots of foreign friends, especially in Asia. I’ve made connections for when I want to travel to places like Indonesia or Vietnam. Some people contact me for advice as their country doesn’t accept gay relationships. Some companies contacted me to sell their products on my Instagram account but I turned most of them down. I don’t want to mess up my posts. I already sell products such as shirts, facial cream and supplement ary milk, so I don't want to confuse my followers about where stand.

See her Instagram feed here.

Y-Couple

Why are you so popular?
Gun: We already had lots of followers, but it’s grown really fast as more girls discover we are a gay couple. We call this kind of fan “Y-Girl.” They love to see guys in love with each other. It’s been a trend for a while; they love to imagine their beloved good-looking male singer in love with another guy who is his close friend. They follow us because we are a real-life couple. Also some celebrities like Ploy Chermal have posted our pictures on their accounts—that got us at least 40,000 followers.

Do you have any stalkers?
Gun: As our pictures always pop up on Instagram’s “explore” page, there are many foreigners who leave rude comments like “Fuck Gays,” “Fuck your mother,” or “Shit”—our fans fight back, too, though.

Are you addicted?
Theo: Kind of, but I don’t think it’s too much. We just post photos when we go out to work or to cool places, or if we just want to say hi to our fans. At most, it’s about 3-4 photos a day. Some days we don’t post anything.
Gun: I don’t think I’m addicted. It’s normal to post photos on social networks.

What are the benefits?
Theo: Fans! We get more people who love us and care about us. Our fans range from teenagers to 50-year-old aunties. Of course, we also get more jobs out of it. We’ve been hired to go out and post about events and products. We also have two movie projects coming out. One is due in June, TomGay: Muen Rak Salub Kua, and another, Boy Story, might be out in July.

See their Instagram feeds here (Akira) and here (Korawit).

I’m a walking contradiction with 365 personalities. The people around me have to be so patient.

I’m insecure about my looks. I was told to my face that I wasn’t good looking enough to be an actor when I tried out for a small role. It completely destroyed my confidence. Even to this day, I can’t bear to look at myself brushing my teeth.

The confident Woody is just a shield. Everyone says I’m such a big success, but I still think of myself as Woody the fat kid I was ten years ago. I have an inferiority complex.

Shopping in the supermarket is my favorite moment to be myself. It’s all about choosing what you want without anyone else interfering.

Thais are afraid to be different and prefer to stick together in groups. That’s why we have kids who don’t want to raise their hands – they don’t want to be the black sheep. I came into this industry as someone different and people judged me as over-the-top.

Everything on TV is acting, even reading the news. I dreamed of being an actor since I was very young, so I’ve adjusted my skills to all my TV duties.

I was actually born to listen. Even though my show is named “Born to Talk,” it’s me being a good listener that makes the show more appealing.

I’m not a frank person. I’m so Thai. I say never mind when I do mind. I’m shy, I compromise and I lie.

I’ve struggled, too. People think that I used my connections to get where I am today. But I’ve done it all by myself. I proposed the show myself. I had only a few hundred baht left in my bank account and had to ask for a loan to pay my employees. They needed to feed their families. I don’t sit and wait for people to give me a chance.

I’m a big risk taker. I love to push myself as far as possible. It will be satisfying to see how far I can go before I die.

Showing the bright and the dark sides of this world is my favorite thing as a host. Not everyone gets to meet the most creative people, the greatest liars or swindlers in person, but I can show these people and let the audience decide what or who is good or bad.

Critics are a part of our life. I’m always aware that my character will be criticized. I just take it as a lesson in understanding what’s acceptable in Thai society.

People hate to see bad guys on TV. I learned this when I interviewed Yo (Yossawadee Hassadeevichit) who was accused of having an affair with another woman’s husband. People were mad at me and said I supported this behavior by interviewing her. People even called for the end of my show and insulted my parents. I was so depressed and thought of quitting the industry.

Forgetfulness is both a good and a bad quality of Thais. As time passes, Thai people really don’t give a shit about what you’ve done because they have more important things to concentrate on. Anyway, I have to thank all the critics. If it weren’t for them, I would have missed out on many important lessons.

I regret passing on the chance to interview Justin Bieber three years ago. I gave the opportunity to Chris Horwang while I went and did another job instead. He is so huge today. It would be great to meet him.

I don’t believe in marriage. Whether you’re straight or gay, you don’t need a stamp of approval to say that you’re a couple. A union happens through trust and love, not a piece of paper. I don’t pain on getting married.

I don’t see myself becoming a family man. I just want to travel around the world with the one I love. I plan to go to every single country in the world.

Japan is my favorite place nowadays. I used to think the US was the best, with New York, Los Angeles and Miami, but Tokyo is even better. Their social values, creativity, quietness and gentleness are refreshing. Railway officers will even come to bow and apologize if you’re going through the wrong turnstile. Where else in the world does that happen? Sometimes I even feel like I’m Japanese but born in Thailand.

I see myself as Asian, not Thai. People will probably hate me for saying that. But we live in a region comprising many different cultures. It’s our Asia. In the future, people will proudly say, “I’m Asian.” Anyway, I still cherish the Thai kindness that makes Thailand the most livable country in the world.

I decided to launch the Big Event company because I want to usher in a new wave of creativity in Thailand, not just be another events marketing business. The new generation knows that creativity is what will drive ASEAN and Asia in the future.

Alexander the Great is the person I want to interview most. I want to know what ran through the mind of the young commander who led hundreds of thousands of troops to conquer half the world. I also want to interview King Rama V. I want to follow him around Europe and be there when he made the royal command of the Emancipation Proclamation.

I want to be a movie maker. I’ve been writing a script for 10 years and it will see the light of day in the next few years. It will show a soft and funny side of me that people have never seen.

I’ll be a host until I die. My last question might be, “Who did you have sex with last night?” and then I’ll die in my chair.
 

Why are you here today?
To show that there are some people who are upset about this government, which is led by an incompetent prime minister. There is corruption, injustice and they take advantage of good people. Our ultimate objective is to have the Thai parliament replaced.
 
Is the mask because you’re afraid of people knowing who you are?
I’m not afraid of anything. My name is Wuttipat Krasaesinth, the same name as my Facebook account. I am a Bangkokian, a Thai, and I work in a car firm.  
 
Why use the Guy Fawkes mask?
It’s a universal symbol of the fight against autocrats and those in power who oppress their citizens. There was a movie called V for Vendetta that came out years ago. According to the movie, Fawkes was a freedom fighter who was tired of the government as it oppressed farmers, laborers and citizens. So he put on the mask and protested against the government. The parliament in that movie was similar to ours right now. The ‘V-mask’ is a global symbol now. If the governments of the world governed fairly, there would be no protests. This gathering is meant to tell the world that our government is unable to govern.

Are you a Yellow Shirt? Who makes up your group?
Me, yes. Previously, some of us were yellow shirts, multi-colored shirts, and some also Democratic Party supporters. We come from numerous groups but we have the same goal, to overthrow this government.
 
What makes you different from other protesters?
We just try to express our opinions about society peacefully. We are not hooligans. We are employed—actually, everyone here has a pretty high salary. All of the masks, we bought ourselves. No one paid us to be here. We don’t tap into the city’s electricity. We don’t block roads. We don’t set anything on fire. We’re here to wake Bankokians up from the spell that they’re under, without any violence.
 
Are there no other means of expression for you?
Not really. The mass media is too scared to criticize the government or red shirts so they don’t give us coverage. Facebook is easy to access from anywhere in the country. But if you change your profile picture to the V-mask, you’ll be blocked for two days. This happened to some people here.