Laugh riot breaks out at protest site
More than one foreign news agency has described the anti-government rallies as having a festive atmosphere, but surely a lot of that stemmed from "Art Lane", as a section of Ploenchit Road was renamed last week when entertainers joined the protesters.
Launched at the same time as the Great Bangkok Shutdown, the amusing assembly of street art and music ended on Friday – far too soon for many of the encamped protesters’ liking. It was a quieter area thanks to far less whistling, with soothing music instead. Artists in various fields joined hands to make political statements in a creative way.
At the entrance was a truck bearing a sign that said “Now or Never”, the slogan that Soda Boutique printed on protest-friendly T-shirts. Silpakorn University art students would emblazon any plain tee brought along. You could get the Thai flag painted on your cheek.
A fashion show was held with the flag as its theme and celebrities participating. The music onstage came voluntarily from the likes of J Jetrin, Apartment Khunpa, Buddha Bless, Nga Caravan and Inca.
What folks liked most, though, was getting to laugh out loud at the political satire of actress Pawanrat “Miew” Naksuriya, actor-scriptwriter Kitti “Klua” Chiewwongkul from the sitcom “Pen Tor”, Worarit “Not” Fuengarom, and Sorawit “Dr Gong” Sookbun.
Miew played a news-talk TV show host (not unlike Sorrayuth suthassanajinda) interviewing people involved in the political crisis. Here’s a sample:
Miew: What would you like to tell the protesters?
Klua (playing a Cabinet minister): You go home and quit taking drugs!
Miew: If you say we’re not assembling peacefully, what would you call the demonstrations in 2010?
Klua (as Red Sunday leader Sombat “Bor Kor Lai Jud” Boonnarm-anong): The 2010 rally was a riot so of course buildings were burned, but your protest is not normal!
Klua later pretended to be a weepy caretaker premier who walks off and then starts laughing, thinking she’s out of sight. “Why didn’t she walk a bit further before she started laughing?” Klua wondered.
Turning serious, Miew asked Dr Gong and Not why they oppose holding an election on February 2, but then there were a lot more gags and a whole lot more cheering and whistling from the crowd. “Hey, pals, don’t forget that these people cheered us loudly – but they wouldn’t bail us out of jail!” Klua joked.
Miew announced that she loves PM Yingluck – “just in case the video is shared on a red-shirt page”. And Klua urged some in the crowd to “write down all the names of the people here and their ID numbers”.
The gang took turns making fun of themselves, such as their fear of recording on camera and the sense of intimidation they feel onstage. “I shouldn’t get involved with you guys,” Not kidded.
Bidding farewell, Klua said that if anyone wanted to know whether they’d been hired to perform that night, “I would say, ‘Yes!’” He paused, and then said the government hired them. “They pay me with all the bad things they do!”
The video went viral and was posted on several websites. Soldiers, cops and government officials are all watching it. Only time will tell whether their duties – or the careers of the performers – will take a hit.
