Comedian Bayani Agbayani is about to celebrate another milestone in showbiz!
Bayani announced that he’s getting ready for his directorial debut. He did not divulge others details for his upcoming project, but said it’s a comedy film.
"Baka mag-direk ako," said Bayani, during a studio visit at the Lunch Out Loud (LOL) Studio in Quezon City recently. He said that he will resume talks with Viva Films now that the restrictions are slowly being lifted.
Bayani, 53, promises to be a good director once the project starts. "Magiging mabait akong director pero disciplinarian. Kasi pagkapwa mo artista ang kausap mo, alam mo na kung bakit siya malungkot or kung bakit siya ganito. Kahit papaano, may alam ka na, so kailangang hindi ka magalit."
When he joined the entertainment industry, being a director was never part of his original plan. His ultimate showbiz dream is to become an executive producer.
"Ang pangarap ko talaga ay maging executive producer. Pero noong naging artista na ako, sabi ko konti na lang. But I believe in destiny. Lahat ng nangyayari sa akin dito sa showbiz ay bigay ng Diyos. Pangarap ko rin talagang maging director. Andito na ako eh. Naging writer na ako at artista. Naging PA na rin ako at propman. Set and props coordinator ako sa Broadway (Quezon City). Ako yung pinaka head ng mga propman," Bayani said.
Bayani said that he is thankful for having a wonderful wife Lenlen and four children. "Si Thalia, ang napangasawa niya ay kapatid ni Bea Alonzo na si James. Si Rosalinda Marie naman, taking up tourism sa UST and running for summa cum laude. Yung isa naman architecture ang kinukuha sa La Salle. Ang galing mag piano, black belt ng taekwondo, magaling mag-gitara at mag-drawing."
With Covid-19 restrictions easing, Bayani said he hopes to go on a Caribbean cruise with his wife soon. He was supposed to do a project for Viva called "Sanggano, Sanggago at Sanggwapo" but he didn't accept it due to conflicts in schedules. "Yung part ko napunta kay Juliana Parizvova Segovia."
"Ayoko na muna mag soap. May pandemic pa. Ayoko ng daily lock-in taping. Commitment kasi yun eh. Marami akong tinanggihan noong pandemic dahil inaalala ko paguwi ko ng bahay, baka may virus akong dala. Kawawa naman yung mga bata," he said.
* Bayani unfazed
The comedian said he is not affected by rumors that LOL will be canceled.
"Three months lang daw ang itatagal namin. Awa ng Diyos, more than one-year na kami. Kasama talaga sa laban ng buhay yan eh. Kahit saang estado. Pero ang mahalaga kasi, kung ano ang trabaho mo, pagbutihin mo. Visayas at Mindanao, mataas kami," he said.
Asked if he was demoralized by rumors, Bayani said: "Ako sanay na. Sa tagal ko sa industriya, alam ko na yung mga ganyan. Kaya nga sinasabi ko sa kanila, kailangan din nating pagbutihin ito dahil may manira man sa atin na mawawala tayo o wala, pag mahina ang rating natin, mawawala tayo. Kaya ang labanan dito, pag-igihan natin, i-capture natin ang audience, at akitin natin sa show. Ganun lang naman ang labanan."
"Nag-umpisa ako sa Lunch Date, Katok Mga Misis, Salu-Salo Together. And then napunta pa ako ng Channel 2, Sa Linggo Na'Po Sila, Magandang Tanghali Bayan, Esep-Esep. So nakita ko na ang industry ng noontime show. Ngayong 53 na ako, nasa Lunch Out Loud naman ako. So alam ko na ang barometer ng noontime show.
"Nakita nila ang 'Eat Bulaga.' Pamilya sila. Iba yung camaraderie nila. Nakikita ko rin yun dito. Ang 'It's Showtime' ganun din. Ang sabi ko sa kanila wag nating itigil yung camaraderie natin na para tayong isang pamilya or magkakapatid. Nakikita ng tao at nararamdaman nila yan. Pagnaramdaman ng mga tao yan, tatagal tayo sa industriya. Ang mga staff namin hindi naman baguhan ang mga ito. Galing sa GMA-7, ABS-CBN, at TV5. Mga beterano na. So hindi na bago ito sa amin. Kaya namin itong itawid at kaya namin itong panindigan," Bayani said.
Bayani recalled how he was cast on LOL. In the barbershop, he saw a friend who told him about a scheduled meeting with Albee Benitez, producer of LOL. Unaware of the meeting, Bayani called Albee to confirm the meetup. Albee instructed Bayani to go to his office in Quezon City. There he was told that he would be part of the noontime show. Bayani asked his former manager Boy Abunda to finalize the details of the contract. “Yung meeting namin Thursday. Sabado nasa LOL na ako. May show talaga dapat kami ni Mayor Isko Moreno sa TV5. Game show ‘yun at plantsado na pero hindi pa natuloy.”
Just recently, Bayani also joined as detective judge for the reality show "Masked Singer Pilipinas" on TV5. Hosted by Billy Crawford, Bayani joins the musical game show in addition to Aga Muhlach, Cristine Reyes, Matteo Guidicelli, and Kim Molina.
*Being with the Dutertes
Many may not know it but Bayani is a close friend of the Dutertes.
"Si Paolo Duterte, ninong ng anak ko. Vice Mayor pa lang si tatay Digong, magkakaibigan na kami. Yung pagsuporta ko, hindi na talaga mag-iiba. Sa Davao ako nag Christmas at New Year. Nagkita kami nila Sen. Bong Go, Paulo pero hindi ko na meet sila Inday Sara at Tatay Digong. Nagkita na kami sa Cebu. So nagdinner sila, sinama na kami. Hindi talaga ako vocal na naglalagay sa Facebook na kasama ko si ganito, si ganyan, kasi low profile lang talaga ako. Basta yung pagsuporta ko sa kanila, bukal sa puso ko. Basta kay Inday Sara, all-out ang suporta ko. Tinetext ko siya eh. Sabi ko Inday, kailangan mo ba ang tulong ko? Sabi niya, trabaho ka lang dyan. For the love ito. Si Bong Go, nuon ginamit niya yung Otso-Otso ko. Pero nung nanalo siya, hindi ako yung susunod-sunod. Tinetext ko lang siya na kumusta na po. Tapos minsan iniimbita kami sa Malacanang para kumain. Nagtatrabaho ako sa kanila ng walang bayad, Bayani also said.
Bayani said that he chooses to be quiet about his picks for the 2022 national elections, adding that he respects the choices of other people.
"Maaaring magkakaibigan tayo pero may kanya-kanya tayong paniniwala at may choice tayo. Pero dapat nating igalang yun dahil at the end of the day, kung sino man yang maupo bilang presidente at vice president, dapat magsama sama tayo muli at tulungan natin," he said.
Bayani also frowns at online users who unfriend their social media friends because of political differences. “Dapat hindi ganun. Ang igsi-igsi na ng buhay, magbabawas pa tayo ng kaibigan."