shaina sweet with rayver

Heart-to-heart with Shaina Magdayao

BY WALDEN SADIRIFor 17-year-old actress, singer and dancer Shaina Magdayao, everything positive is going her career’s way. Her latest and a milestone in her young successful showbiz career is Regal Entertainment’s launching movie for her and love team partner Rayver Cruz entitled "Happy Hearts" which is directed by award winning filmmaker Joel Lamangan.
"Happy Hearts" officially launches the Shaina-Rayver (or Shai-Ver) tandem on the silver screen. It’s not surprising to know that the tandem of Shaina and Rayver has been chosen by no less than Regal Entertainment’s matriarch Mother Lily Montverde. Mother, as she is fondly called, always has an eye in discovering and pairing the right actors and turning them into stars. And such could be the fate of Shaina and Rayver in "Happy Hearts."
Moreover, the love team of Shaina and Rayver is one of or even is the hottest and much followed love team at the moment. Their various shows speak for them being an in demand couple on TV – they are in the upcoming action-sci-fi series "Rounin," "ASAP’s Ultimate Dance 4," "Star Magic Presents: About Your Love" and they are currently on mall tours to promote their Star Records dance album.
According to Shaina, no words could describe how overwhelmed she is with the good breaks she’s getting in the entertainment industry. And she’s keeping her fingers crossed for their film "Happy Heart" which will be released this March because she’d it to be a big success too. And she is grateful that Mother Lily gave them "Happy Hearts."
The actress also believes that "Happy Hearts" is something their fans will definitely enjoy because it’s different, funny and they can fall in love with it.
The story tells about the character of Rayver who upon returning to the Philippines discovers that his father who’s a university professor, played by Rustom Padilla, is a closet gay. Complicating matters is the fact that his father has a live-in partner (Wendell Ramos). Devastated, he chanced upon Shaina’s character and falls in love with her. The catch is that she’s the daughter of the owner of the university played by Tirso Cruz III. Whether they’d end up together will be all up to Rayver since Shaina is also being matched with a rich boy portrayed by Alwyn Uytingco and that his mother played by Jean Garcia is now looking for a new husband. Now how happy Shaina and Rayver’s life going to be?
Despite the complications of their situations in "Happy Hearts," it is a far cry from their personal relationship. They both described themselves as having "happy hearts." This is mainly because they have been nurturing a special friendship between them. Rayver even described it as being "synchronized" with each other during the press conference of the said movie recently.
Moreover, smoothly reaching one year as a love team without intrigues or career threatening rumors is a good example of how synchronized their relationship is especially in showbiz.
"Like what I have said, it’s really an advantage na yung ka-love team mo ay hindi lang pang-acting. Kasi may mga ganun po na iba yung partner mo sa acting, iba yung partner mo sa dancing. With him, we can explore things together. We are dancing and singing together and acting too," explained Shaina proudly of Rayver.
Shaina added that in that one year, she discovered that Rayver is really passionate about dancing, that she’d just see him suddenly doing dance moves. Plus, Rayver has become more expressive and caring. Unlike when they were just starting, Rayver was just quiet and reserved.
"Happy Hearts" is a test of their tandem and their professional stamina as a love team in Phlippine Cinema. Whatever the outcome though, everyone hopes it will be a good one for them, and that the Shai-Ver love team would be a box office hit. And below is a happy heart to heart talk with Shaina – her bid to be more than just a millionaire, the women she looks up to, her love life and her fears!
Q: Where are you right now with Rayver?
A: Before po talaga getting to know stage. But now mas inakyat na ng isang level kasi officially he is courting me na.
Q: What’s keeping you from getting into a relationship with Rayver since it’s uso for others to have relationships early?
A: Yun nga po ang problema ko kasi uso when it comes to them. Pero for me ayaw ko naman po yun na kakaligaw pa lang sagot agad. And if ever it would be my first relationship so I’m treating it with importance. I don’t want to become just one of the girls. I want guys to respect me also, not only Rayver.
Q: What’s your fear in showbiz?
A: My fear is if ever I can’t fulfill the expectations of the people who got me here in showbiz and who trusted me. For example, Mother Lily who trusted and gave us our launching movie.
Q: What’s your fear about your friendship with Rayver?
A: My fear is if we take each other for granted because we are always together. We are together everyday. I hope the respect will always be there.
Q: What do you like about him?
A: He takes care of me. He is thoughtful and sweet. Whenever I’d tell him that I’m hungry, there’ll be food coming. I feel like a princess. One more thing also is that he’s very close to his family. And I’m also very close to my family.
Q: How do you reciprocate his kindness?
A: I show him that whenever magulo ang hair niya or ayaw ko ang suot niya, I tell him because I always want him to look handsome to everyone.
Q: What do you think is the sweetest text message you’ve sent Rayver?
A: (Smiling) I have a problem with controlling myself since ayaw kong ibigay lahat lahat. So I’d just text him "Have you eaten? Please don’t forget to eat."
Q: How about you, what text messages to you like getting from Rayver?
A: Yung mga "How are you?" and "Are you sure you’re okay?" Those small things I like.
Q: What do you like in Rayver?
A: He makes me laugh. I’m a very moody person. And nakukuha niya ang kiliti ko.
Q: There’s no doubt that you’re close friends and you have a good chemistry together. But did you ever talk about how it’s going to be once you guys are officially together?
A: Well, we haven’t been in that stage yet. We are at a stage where I am comfortable saying anything that I want. Parang nabobola ko siya, "O ikaw pahihirapan muna kita" without him misunderstanding what I’m trying to say. If I say that to another person siguradong ma-misinterpret niya ako kasi hindi niya ako kilala.
Q: How does it feel that you were given a launching movie?
A: We are pressured but at the same time happy and honored.
WS: What’s the challenge in "Happy Hearts?"
A: It’s more mature than our tweetums role. We both have issues with our family and my most challenging scene here was my confrontation with my father played by Tirso Cruz III. Kinabahan talaga ako doon.
Q: How was it working with Joel Lamangan?
A: Ibang atake gusto niya. Unlike sa sopa opera na sumisigaw ka, gusto niya dito a notch lower and inside you. Mababa pero may meaning…siyempre at first I was nervous working with a director of his caliber. But he is fun to work with and he is very serious.
Q: Where does this drive to be a millionaire coming from?
A: Kasi buong pamilya ko talaga business-minded. Yung sisters ko nga sila lahat namamahala ng Ystilo siyempre I want to be like them. And at the same time yung kinikita ko gusto ko may pupuntahan. Yun nga the apartments doon po pumunta yung mga savings ko. Isang apartment pa lang pero 20 doors along Visayas Ave. (SGM Corp.) na si Ate Vina. Also I only have one branch of Ystilo so hopefully our family could open more branches and more business entities in the near future.
Q: Any plans for your debut this Nov. 6?
A: I don’t want a formal debut party wherein you’ll spend P1 million for one night. It’s impractical. I also don’t want my friends to be stiff in my party. Hindi spontaneous ang dating. I’d rather go on a tour in Europe.
Q: When you reach 18, will you be on the cover of men’s magazine like Maxim?
A: No. Even if I’m 18, I’d still seek my parents’ approval. And I know they won’t like it. I have nothing against them but I don’t want to be one of them.
Q: What’s keeping you here in showbiz?
A: It’s my passion that’s keeping me here. I also want to reach out to my fellow teenagers through my passion and craft. I want to touch people’s lives.
Q: Who are the women you look up to in life?
A: My mom and sisters. My parents and sisters were very vocal that they were okay in Cebu but they left everything to come here to support my sister. They also tried it here in Manila na walang alam kung anong mangyayari and they succeeded! I want to be like my sister Shiela who handles Ystilo and who has a happy family, Vina who has contributed a lot in showbiz when it comes to performing. She’s the main reason why I entered showbiz. Si Sheryl naman doon ako pinaka-close kasi kasama ko sa house. I see how responsible she is especially when our parents are not here.