How Dina met her beloved

"I became depressed because of that," she says. "So I prayed, ‘Lord, I hope you’ll give me someone else, show me a sign who it is that I am to love’. Then I met Habib and asked him his name. He said, ‘Habib.’ I asked him what it means and he said, ‘The Beloved.’ I was surprised and told myself: Oh my God! My prayer asked for a sign who I am to love and his name means ‘The Beloved.’ And so far, so good. I can feel he really loves me at nagmamahalan talaga kami. But then, he also reacts kasi dahil daw lagi siyang nababanggit, when he says his name, people would say, ‘So, you’re the boyfriend of Dina’."

Has Habib met her ex-hubby Vic Sotto? "Ilang beses na. Nag-dinner pa kami na kasama naman ni Vic si Pia Guanio noong last birthday ni Oyo. Okay sila ni Habib in the same way na okay rin kami ni Pia."

She’s happy that after she did "Hiram" and "Walang Kapalit" with ABS-CBN, GMA-7 got her again to play an important role in "Babangon Ako." "Super ganda ang role ko as Evita and I’d like to thank GMA and director Joel Lamangan as I haven’t done a role as challenging as this one for sometime now. Acting piece talaga ito."

We saw the pilot episode of "Babangon Ako’t Dudurugin Kita" and it’s very absorbing. As Evita, Dina has been married for a year to Emilio Garcia and is pregnant with their first child. They’re having a big party at their huge mansion when henchmen of their enemies (Roi Vinzon and Glydel Mercado) come on board a helicopter and start shooting indiscriminately. Emilio is killed.

Dina learns from Emilio’s right hand man, Django (Tonton Gutierrez), the truth that Emilio is a jueteng lord. She faints and nearly loses her baby, which she delivers prematurely. Glydel orders her cohorts to kills Dina but she manages to escape and it’s her parents who get killed by a car bomb. Dina becomes ruthless in her quest for vengeance and takes over her husband’s syndicate. She starts learning how to fire a gun so she can liquidate their enemies herself. She’s the first character who delivers the show’s title, saying this in front of her baby who will grow up to be Yasmien Kurdi and who’ll also deliver the title later when she herself gets abused by Marvin Agustin and other villains.

***

"Showbiz Central" last Sunday showed the training in swimming that Marian Rivera and co-stars Alfred Vargas, Michelle Madrigal and Paolo Ballesteros are currently taking before they start taping "Dyesebel." This was held in a resort in Los Baños, Laguna, to prepare them for the rigorous underwater scenes of the show that will start its taping at the virgin beaches of Palawan next week. It will start airing on the third week of April.

"We’re being taught how to breathe properly, how to smile and how to swim like a fish with our tails on while we’re underwater," says Marian. "It’s not easy kasi you can’t move your legs freely, pero gusto kong pagbutihan nang husto ang performance ko as Dyesebel kasi tiyak na malaki ang pressure. People will anticipate if this would be as successful as ‘Marimar’, which is really one tough act to follow. I’m sure people will expect that this will be a better and bigger show and we don’t want to disappoint them kaya dibdiban talaga ang training naming mga gumaganap dito bilang mermaid and merman."

Marian got high marks from their trainer-instructor, Louie Barrios. "She’s a diligent student and learns easily. She’ll surely make a good mermaid."

***

Hunky Marc Nelson says he’s very lucky to be given the chance to work with the country’s two top networks. He’s hosting "Sports Unlimited" for ABS-CBN and now, with GMA Network, he’s hosting a new reality show for Q-11, "The Debutante." "Not everyone has the same kind of opportunity so I feel very blessed, especially now that I get to meet the 18 lovely contestants of ‘The Debutante’," he adds.

The 18 lasses will compete with each other in the spirit of traditional debuts where girls who come of age are formally introduced to society. They will all face exciting challenges that will turn them into a total woman of substance and style. The show will start on April 7, Monday, and will run for 13 weeks. Some girls will be eliminated each week and the lone survivor will be the "Ultimate IT Girl" and proclaimed as "The Debutante. "

The aspiring debutantes are Schinina Juban (The Sassy Cheerleader), Danielle Lee (Dynamic Heiress), Sophia Ahmed (Coffee Princess), Samantha Gamboa (Lively Ballerina), Bianca Bauer (German Pinay), Joy Velasco (Teen Beauty Queen), Bea Candaza (Cheerful Baby, Mishi Casal (Petit Performer), Kate Bautista (Fiery Mannequin), KC Hollman (Charming Sister), Bebs Hollman (Dutiful Guardian), Istara Bon Gundry (Vegan Activist), Miki Hahn (Sultry Singer), Michelle Paloma (Independent Model), Aby Adao (Beauty & Brains), Chrizenda Cecilio (Cover Girl), Denisse Oca (Chick Flicks Fanatic, daughter of actress Melissa Mendez), and Rachel Tan (Feisty Artist).

The judges are philanthropist Fortune Ledesma, beauty queen Abbygale Arenas, "IT Girl" Vivienne Tan and Dr. Maritess Gozon-Viterbo.

In its first episode, the viewers get to see the girls up close as they walk their way down the red carpet in a New York Fashion Week-inspired setting at the Alchemy Club. Later, they get to show their dancing skills with their gorgeous partners. They will also be treated to a fine dining experience with the judges watching who has the best table manners and who’s the most articulate in carrying a conversation.

***

Luis Manzano proved to be a very competent host in "PBB Teens Plus" last Sunday night. Actually, he just returned that morning from Bangkok, where he spent Maundy Thursday to Black Saturday with rumored girlfriend Angel Locsin. Luis used to spend Holy Week in Boracay, but this year, he opted to spend it with Angel in Thailand. But still, he won’t talk about his relationship with Angel and chooses to remain mysterious about it.

Luis toured viewers around the 1,500 sq. m. PBB house that’s been renovated for its teen housemates. It now has Moroccan-inspired interiors with its huge doors with elaborate ornamental carvings, the tastefully designed spacious sala with terra cotta tiles and lounge chairs in colorful Moroccan textiles, dining room with a mosaic-top table all designed by Aiza Sta. Maria and Jezer Madocdoc. The swimming pool is also now much bigger and there is also a fully equipped gym for physical fitness. The ambiance of the garden is very tropical and summery and while the bedrooms are Mexican style for the boys and English country home style for the girls with pink canopies. It’s like the 14 housemates are taking a plush vacation in style.

The deaf housemate, Priscilla from Davao, has been given by Kuya a special privilege. Since she’s hearing impaired and can only read lips, she has the chance to see Kuya talking through a small hole in the wall, so she can read his lips.

Their first day together proved to be a happy one for the 14 housemates. They got to frolic in the swimming pool and showed to viewers that some of them have really good bodies. Don’t miss the latest happenings with the teen in "PBB Teen Edition Uber" at 5:30 p.m., hosted by Mariel Rodriguez, "PBB Teen Primetime" after "Lobo" hosted by Toni Gonzaga, and "PBB Uplate" at past midnight, hosted by Bianca Gonzalez. You can also watch them 24/7 online via TFCNow Live Steam at www.abs-cbnnow.com.

***

Richard Gutierrez and Jewel Mische were together in a show in Japan for colleague Aster Amoyo. Doesn’t Jewel feel insecure now that Richard is now longer linked to her but with KC Concepcion?

"Hindi po, kasi never naman talaga kaming naging on ni Richard," she says. "Co-stars lang talaga kami sa ‘Kamandag’ where I play Jenny, na inapi-api ni Mark Anthony Fernandez as Lucero."

This week, Jewel manages to escape from the clutches of Lucero and his dad Abdon (Ariel Rivera) and tells the police about their evil deeds. Will this signal the end of the villainy of Lucero and Abdon?

Vergel or Kamandag (Richard) is surprised when former enemy Haring Gulag (Zoren Legaspi) decides to be his ally in their fight against his own sister, Ditas (Ehra Madrigal). Meantime, Maxene Magalona feels sad now that Richard just considers her as a mere friend and they’ll no longer be romantically involved.

***

Comedian Chokoleit is noted for his fearless way of making people laugh as a performer and emcee in sing-along bars. "’Yun bang walang takot talaga kahit mapahiya ka," he says. "You have to take risks talaga para mapatawa ang tao and you have to be ready to make fun of yourself."

But there’s one instance when the irrepressible funnyman, who has won a best supporting actor award for his role as they gay sidekick in "Zsa Zsa Zaturnnah," suddenly became serious and quiet. And that’s when he joined the popular quiz show, "1 Vs. 100," hosted by Edu Manzano. What’s his initial reaction when he was invited to join the contest?

"At first, scared ako kasi this isn’t just a game of chance na manghuhula ka ng laman ng isang briefcase o magpapaikot ka lang ng roleta. You have to really think and strategize to be able to answer the questions correctly and to outwit the mob of 100 opponents. Tapos, may 10 Picks pa na pipiliin mo from among the mob members and then you have to defeat them all before you can get a chance to win the P2 million jackpot prize. Mas mahirap talaga. But then, naisip ko, I should not back out from the challenge. Baka ‘pag tinanggihan ko, I might just regret it for the rest of my life dahil not everyone naman is given the opportunity to join this very exciting game show. Isa pa, chance ko nang makaharap uli si Mr. Edu Manzano, na long-time crush ko, ‘no? So, join na rin ako, pikit-mata."

So, will Chokoleit, who’s now in "Prinsesa ng Banyera" as the town gossip, win the jackpot or will he be outwitted by the mob? Find out in "1 Vs. 100" tomorrow at 7:30 p.m. on ABS-CBN.