From Gucci to gardening, Nampung finds right balance
Actress-turned-farmer Natrika "Nampung" Thampridanant has been in the limelight for almost half of her 37 years, but it took a long time for the important aspects of life to become truly illuminated for her.
An overnight star at age 14, she admits she was too young to cope with fame. “I was silly and hot-headed,” she says. “Everywhere I went there were adoring fans. I felt I was so popular that I should get whatever I wanted and everybody was obliged to meet my demands. I’d wear only brand-name clothes and accessories and for shopping sprees I’d just go overseas. The beautiful, expensive bag I got six months earlier became ‘obsolete’ as soon as the new collection was released.”
This heady lifestyle carried on well into her 20s, but then Nampung began to realise that all the fame and fortune still left her unsatisfied. “It was just a hectic cycle of need and I got bored with it. I was unhappy,” she says.
Nature and the Buddhist faith came to her rescue, affording a peace of mind and inner balance that Gucci and Prada just couldn’t deliver. Her mother, who’s Lao and hails from Luang Prabang, pointed her in Mother Nature’s direction.
“She’s my biggest inspiration. She loves greenery and the simple life. Our place in Lat Phrao has more plants and trees than any other house in the area. When I was young she’d let my siblings and I climb the mango tree to pick the fruit and eat it up there. When we gave alms to the monks we’d also put balls of sticky rice along on the fence for snails and other creatures. I felt like we were living in the countryside instead of Bangkok because we were so close to nature.”
Nampung also owns properties in Chiang Mai and Trang where she grows herbs, vegetables and fruit and shelters animals rescued from labs and slaughterhouses. All of her gardens are referred to as “Gardens of Peace”.
Her introduction to the guiding path of dharma came courtesy of her boyfriend. “He suggested I read the books by Buddhadasa Bhikkhu. I had a look and became fascinated. I finally found peace of mind through helping others. Realising that I could help other people in their lives was the greatest gift of all.”
And farming fills her cup of happiness to the brim. “I feel the warmth in my heart when I’m with nature and working among the farmers. I try to get my friends in touch with nature too,” Nampung says. “Agriculture is the backbone of the country. Thailand is blessed – just throw seeds on the ground and they’ll grow.”
And the fancy frocks? “I still wear brand-name accessories and clothes, but I’m not a fashion freak anymore. I’ve stopped running after fashion.”
