Food For Thought 8 [Rise of Thai Dramas]

Korea is out to challenge Hollywood's monopoly on the global entertainment market. Will there be anyone else to follow the meteoric rise of the Hallyu wave? Will Thailand (home of Blackpink's Lisa, 2PM's Nichkhun and GOT7's Bambam) rise to the occasion?

Even during my university days 10 years ago, Thai commercials form part of our case studies for marketing modules. After multiple trips to Thailand, I can also attest to the creativity of the people, as evident even in the souvenirs and snacks we bring back home.  Movies and dramas are putting effort to break out of the stereotype that their remarkable work is only in horror. Video-sharing platforms contributed to breaking down language barriers of non-Thai speaking fans.  Another unique aspect of the Thai entertainment industry is an abundance of mixed blood stars with their desirable, attractive features as well as the command of the English language to transcend communication barriers which allow them to easily connect with international fans. Social media is also helping stars to keep in touch with their fans directly. So, will we witness the rise of Thailand as Asia's next soft power?

Especially for international fans like me, when it comes to TV dramas, our focus is on Korean, Taiwanese and Japanese shows.  We don't have an inkling on what to make of Thai dramas or lakorns as they are called. Will the shows be too over the top with cartonnish characters? Are the storylines interesting enough to pull us in till the end? Will there be enough eye candies? Well, some dramas do have cartoonish characters and ear shattering screeches, especially from supporting cast. But there are a wide range of storylines to meet everyone's tastes.  As for eye candies, you have nothing to worry about in that department. If you don't believe me, just click on below links of my favourite actors / actresses. Some of them have sizzling chemistry that we couldn't help but wish for them to date in real life like James Ma-Kimmy, James Ji-Bella and Nadech-Yaya.

James Ma 
Kimmy 
James Ji 
Bella 
Nadech 
Yaya 
Mik 
Baifern 

My favourite shipped couple 1: James Ma & Kimmy

Food For Thought 7 [Asian Entertainment Industry & Its Soft Power]

With the current COVID19 situation, our daily lives have grounded to a halt, or at least slowed down to various extents. Travel plans were cancelled, non-essential services shut down, office workers were recommended to work from home and parents had to homeschool their children. But of course, this post is not about COVID19. We would actually like to escape from the barrage of virus-related news articles, bombarding us from various channels.

Personally, I no longer have to wake up early as my yoga studio is closed. Due to the mandate to work from home, there was no need to commute to and from office during peak hours.  House renovations were going at a turtle pace in order to avoid crowd of workers. In any case, government approval for our new house was taking longer than usual since workforce was cut down to around 50%. So, my weekend errands were cut down and you can imagine how much time I suddenly have at my disposal.

If left to my own devices, I probably would be in pyjamas all day, sitting on a couch, working on my macbook without regular meal times compared to being dictated by a more structured day in office. But fret not, I have my own guardian who ensured I wake up by 8am and get ready for the day as well as eat meals at proper times. 

Anyway, back with the issue of dealing with extra time, what do you guys do to occupy your day, especially if you do not have children or pets to take care of?  Other than working from home and doing yoga, I have been indulging myself by watching dramas! You thought wrong if I meant Korean dramas, as the current phase I am in means I can't get enough of Thai Lakorns (dramas / soap operas). 

When my hubby remarked on my change in taste, it got me thinking about Asian soft power.  Hollywood has always dominated entertainment industry. What about Asia with our vastly diverse yet nonetheless intriguing cultures? Culture has bearings on dramas, movies, songs and artists which are essentially products of entertainment industry, wielding soft power, not just domestically but internationally upon export.  

Food for Thought 6 [COVID19 - Blessings in Life]

COVID19

Coronavirus

Novel Corona

There is an avalanche of news articles about this pandemic so I believe we don’t need another introduction. This outbreak has affected our daily lives as we know it. 

Suddenly, simple pleasure of taking a walk in the park could become a criminal offence, punishable with both fine and jail term. 

Governments around the world recommended us to observe social distancing and to stay at home as much as we can. #StayHome is a trending hashtag all over social media. There are ardent advocates for lockdown to prevent further spread of this infectious yet invisible nemesis. Healthcare professionals stay at work for us so we have to stay home for them.

Food for Thought 5 [Hallyu Wave - from a Fan's perspective]

[Disclaimer: all images used in this post are obtained from Google image search.  None of these are my own.  For my personal encounter with stars and respective filming location visits, I will upload my own photos in another post.]

Once we mention the word "Hallyu Wave", many of us already knows its meaning - Korean Wave - the increase in global popularity of South Korean culture through performing arts such as drama, movie and music. There has been many researches and articles already written on this phenomenon since its such an unexpected development with the potential to challenge the monopoly dominance that Hollywood was enjoying in the entertainment industry, at least in Asia. 

BUT I wouldn't bore you with all these academic arguments. Instead, I will be reminiscing about my love affair with the Korean entertainment. I am actually surprised and glad to have witnessed the beginning of Hallyu Wave myself.

Food for Thought 4 [Greatest Pop Music from My Pre-Teen Years]

The other day, I was browsing through our old stash of CDs as my car only had built-in 30-pin Apple cable and CD player.  It totally made me feel like I had traveled back in time. 

(Credit: Britney Spears Official Vevo)

Way before the popularity of iPod and iPhone, we didn't enjoy the convenience that iTunes offers - an avenue to download your favorite songs for 99 cents each.  Instead, we had to physically bring our lazy asses to the music store  in those days!  

Food For Thought 2 [Motivational Article from Knowledge for Men]

Having been socialized into the age of smartphone, the way I pass time on the long bus journey is to use my iPhone.   As I was scrolling through the Newsfeed on Facebook, I came across this article called "The 10 Reasons Why No One Knows What They're Doing In Their 20s" shared by my Facebook friends.  The title was interesting enough.  I am currently in my 20s and I was bored during the long bus ride to work so why not give it a try?  

This article is from the Knowledge For Men website ( http://www.knowledgeformen.com/10-reasons-why-no-one-knows-what-theyre-doing-in-their-20s/ ) and it was really a great read. As I was reading through the article, I could actually relate to the points made by the author. However, by no means, arguments in this article are not absolute truth.  They are just opinions of their author.  Nonetheless, if it can make you think, whether you agree or disagree, it is worth a read yea?  So let me just share my thoughts on it.

The 10 Reasons Why No One Knows What They're Doing In Their 20s

1. You didn't take advantage of your college years

2. You live for the future

3. Your parents control you

4. Your environment is holding you back

5. You have taken the wrong path

6. You stopped learning

7. You do the same thing everyday

8. You've escaped to grad school

9. You're not pushing yourself

10. You're a walking stimulus junkie

Bonus. You're in the wrong relationship

Food For Thought 1 [Graduation - 6 July 2012]

Since we were about 4 years old till our university graduation, we were students, hating schools and counting down the days to graduation (most of us anyway).  We thought we would be free from exams, assignments, classes and we would be able to enjoy more freedom with the money we earned.  Whenever our seniors who were already working told us to treasure our student life, we were quick to argue with them.  Up till that point, our goals (again, most of us) were to fit in with the crowd, do well in exams, get a high CAP score, and secure a well-paying job, preferably in banks. With our first class honor or second upper honor, we fantasize about working in an important role which can make a difference to the corporation.