Soop Sip

The Nation published on May 26, 2005

How far can a TV reality show go? Well, starting today, Channel 7's "Jor Jai" has a popular actress spend seven days as a "blind" person.

Simply blindfolding Siriyakorn "Um" Pukkaves seemed too easy, so the producers are making her earn a living by selling lottery tickets and singing with blind buskers. She also has to do some baking and find her way around the beach.

On her first day in the dark, Um has a coach with her, but after that she's on her own, finding out how difficult it is just to ride a bus and cross a pedestrian bridge, among other daily challenges.

And, no, she quickly discovers, it's not easy. She's always bumping into things for a start, and by the end of each day she's in tears with all the frustration, though Soopsip can't spill the beans by explaining exactly why in advance.

Here's a thought, though: Maybe next time the producers should consider letting a blind person live the life of a millionaire or a superstar. How about that?

'Mu' goes it alone on the hi-so ladder

When he came back from New York last year, Polpat "Mu" Asawaprapa made his society debut as a good buddy of Inthira "Ann" Thanawisut, who owns Hisoparty.com, the website and the magazine.

They were often photographed together at social events, but a year on, Mu is no longer being referred to in the press as "Ann's friend" - he's become an interesting media topic unto himself.

Polpat is featured in the May issue of Lips magazine, where he talks about his valuable experience in the Big Apple, where he got to work with Marc Jacobs, meet Madonna and dine at top restaurants. His last position there was as fashion director for Max Mara.

Polpat also poses for the new edition of Volume magazine. No, that's not him on the cover - he's inside, in a floral-pattern Zenith shirt and looks very relaxed in his sandals, but the CEO of Toyota PS Enterprise Co isn't all that casual - the sandals are trendy Miu Mius.

We won't be surprised to see him in loads more magazine spreads as he's welcomed higher into hi-so heaven. Welcome aboard, freshie!

veen@nationgroup.com