"Khru" Ploy learns her new role swimmingly

You’d think that an actress who wears swimsuits on magazine covers would be a duck in water, but Ploy has been terrified of the stuff ever since she had a ghastly experience as a child – nearly drowning while on a trip with her father.

That has somehow not stopped jet-skiing from becoming one of her favourite sports. “What’s up with that?” her co-star, Sukrit “Bie” Wisetkaew teased her, reducing Ploy to giggles. The life vest makes all the difference in the world, she explained.

Initially Ploy adamantly refused director Nithiwat Tharatorn’s pleas to get in the water (without a swimsuit, never mind a life vest). But she eventually agreed to undergo two weeks of swimming instructions and discovered the secrets of treading water and floating on the surface.

Ploy has thanked the staff at GTH and the film crew and publicists who cheered her on during the lessons. She feels like a completely new person now that she’s almost overcome the aquaphobia, and says that maybe this summer we’ll see her on a magazine cover in a swimsuit somewhere slightly wetter than the actual beach.

 

First to pop

Being first in anything obviously has its rewards, and not just the athletes claiming trophies and medals. There are those who go for the glory of holding a world record – or a very local one, as when Kanawat Indapanya garnered headlines for being the first person to buy Krispy Kreme doughnuts in Thailand when the American chain debuted here in 2011. Kanawat’s prize for waiting at the head of the queue since 5am the previous day was a dozen doughnuts every week for a year. 

Now the Chicago-based popcorn chain Garrett has entered the Thai market, but being its first customer wasn’t quite as strenuous for Varameth Mantasoot. He didn’t even have to spend the night at Siam Paragon (although quite a few anti-government protesters do that every day). 

Varameth moseyed into position at 8.30am, a couple of hours before the store opened, and formed an orderly single-person line. Since he didn’t expend a huge amount of effort, it seems only fitting that he didn’t win a year’s supply. But the firm’s CEO was there to personally pay for his selection – Varameth went for the limit of two bags and two tins. 

Still, the fact that the popcorn was on the house was a blessing. Those humble kernels of corn become as expensive as gold once Garrett is finished processing them. And Varameth was doubly lucky: The next customers to show up said they’d heard nothing about the reward for being first. That queue might have been a lot longer.