Prince Tao gets royal treatment in Manila
Published Sep 24, 2018 11:43 am
Thanks to his starring role in the remake of the 2006 hit Korean drama “Princess Hours,” Thai actor and singer Sattaphong “Tao” Phiangphor is popular in the Philippines.
Tao does the finger hearts as show of love
In the Thai remake, which aired on GMA Network, Tao played the role of Crown Prince Ian, the heir to the throne in the fictional kingdom of Bhutin, which was the counterpart role of Crown Prince Lee Shin played by Korean actor Ju Ji-hoon in the original series.
With his surging popularity in the Philippines, the 28-year-old star from Kalasin, Thailand, met with his Pinoy fans recently. His “Prince Tao: The Royal Fan Convention” was held on Sept. 23 at Cinema 6 of SM City North EDSA.
The night before the event, the actor held a press conference at Novotel Manila Araneta Center where he talked about his career and newfound popularity in the country. Royal Thai Embassy in Manila’s Charge d’Affaires Urawadee Sriphiromya and First Secretary Thassarany Noivong were present to give Tao support.
Tao competed as a singer in the Thai reality show “Academy Fantasia” in 2011 and starred in the Thai remake of the popular Korean drama “Coffee Prince” in 2012. Since then, he has continued his career as a singer and actor in Thailand.
“I started singing at age 20. I didn’t learn it professionally. But I joined ‘Academy Fantasia.’ At the contest, there were three months of training. That’s how I was able to train. Acting in lakorn (Thai soap opera) is also hard. I also had to study,” he said.
“Princess Hours” started airing in the Philippines in July and Tao said he was surprised when it became popular in the country.
“At first I didn’t expect that it would catch on. I was tagged on Instagram by fans. I followed the tags and I started to see that the ratings in the Philippines started to rise. That was when it dawned on me and I said, ‘Oh my goodness.’ I felt proud. I’m really, really happy to be here,” he said.
When he arrived in the country on Sept. 22, fans were waiting for him at the airport.
“I was happy and excited. I was happy with the welcome. It felt good,” he said.
This was his first visit to the Philippines and among the things in the country, he said, “I wanted to see the jeepneys and I got to see it.” More importantly, he really wanted to see his Pinoy fans at the convention.
Throughout his career, he has played many roles and he considers Prince Ian as the “most challenging because I’ve never been a prince before.”
But he pointed out that there are no similarities at all between Prince Ian and his own personality, saying that “my character in the series is quiet and serious. I’m not like that.”
For the role of Prince Ian, Tao said “I had to make his own style. I watched the Korean TV series” and portrayed the character in his unique way.
“Most of the characters I have played are really far from the way I am in real life. Probably when I started seven years ago, the characters that I played were more similar to my real personality. But now, I play characters that are not me,” he explained.
In his career, Tao said he is “more comfortable with singing and acting” and hopes to play roles that involve sports and in action films in the future.
He’s also willing to do a project in the Philippines given the chance. He is currently working on a new song that will be released soon.
Tao credits his dad for being his role model.
“My inspiration for being an artist is my father. He plays the guitar and sings,” he said.
Tao has no dream role, explaining that “my job as an actor and artist is to play each role to the best, to bring out each character, each facet of the personality of that character.”
“Prince Tao: The Royal Fan Convention” was presented by CDM Entertainment and Star Hunter Studios.
Tao does the finger hearts as show of love
In the Thai remake, which aired on GMA Network, Tao played the role of Crown Prince Ian, the heir to the throne in the fictional kingdom of Bhutin, which was the counterpart role of Crown Prince Lee Shin played by Korean actor Ju Ji-hoon in the original series.
With his surging popularity in the Philippines, the 28-year-old star from Kalasin, Thailand, met with his Pinoy fans recently. His “Prince Tao: The Royal Fan Convention” was held on Sept. 23 at Cinema 6 of SM City North EDSA.
The night before the event, the actor held a press conference at Novotel Manila Araneta Center where he talked about his career and newfound popularity in the country. Royal Thai Embassy in Manila’s Charge d’Affaires Urawadee Sriphiromya and First Secretary Thassarany Noivong were present to give Tao support.
Tao competed as a singer in the Thai reality show “Academy Fantasia” in 2011 and starred in the Thai remake of the popular Korean drama “Coffee Prince” in 2012. Since then, he has continued his career as a singer and actor in Thailand.
“I started singing at age 20. I didn’t learn it professionally. But I joined ‘Academy Fantasia.’ At the contest, there were three months of training. That’s how I was able to train. Acting in lakorn (Thai soap opera) is also hard. I also had to study,” he said.
“Princess Hours” started airing in the Philippines in July and Tao said he was surprised when it became popular in the country.
“At first I didn’t expect that it would catch on. I was tagged on Instagram by fans. I followed the tags and I started to see that the ratings in the Philippines started to rise. That was when it dawned on me and I said, ‘Oh my goodness.’ I felt proud. I’m really, really happy to be here,” he said.
When he arrived in the country on Sept. 22, fans were waiting for him at the airport.
“I was happy and excited. I was happy with the welcome. It felt good,” he said.
This was his first visit to the Philippines and among the things in the country, he said, “I wanted to see the jeepneys and I got to see it.” More importantly, he really wanted to see his Pinoy fans at the convention.
Throughout his career, he has played many roles and he considers Prince Ian as the “most challenging because I’ve never been a prince before.”
But he pointed out that there are no similarities at all between Prince Ian and his own personality, saying that “my character in the series is quiet and serious. I’m not like that.”
For the role of Prince Ian, Tao said “I had to make his own style. I watched the Korean TV series” and portrayed the character in his unique way.
“Most of the characters I have played are really far from the way I am in real life. Probably when I started seven years ago, the characters that I played were more similar to my real personality. But now, I play characters that are not me,” he explained.
In his career, Tao said he is “more comfortable with singing and acting” and hopes to play roles that involve sports and in action films in the future.
He’s also willing to do a project in the Philippines given the chance. He is currently working on a new song that will be released soon.
Tao credits his dad for being his role model.
“My inspiration for being an artist is my father. He plays the guitar and sings,” he said.
Tao has no dream role, explaining that “my job as an actor and artist is to play each role to the best, to bring out each character, each facet of the personality of that character.”
“Prince Tao: The Royal Fan Convention” was presented by CDM Entertainment and Star Hunter Studios.