Sunny Burns catches up with Lukkade Metinee to discuss The Face Thailand, dealing with social media and of course the importance of English. 

Sunny: Last year's winner, Sabina Meisinger, described you as ‘mama mentor’. Why were you so hands-on with the contestants? 

 

Lukkade: This year, I’m actually more hands-on with the girls compared to last year. The two new mentors are more dedicated so I’ve had to up my game. 

Sunny:  What's the most important lesson for your girls? 

Lukkade: I don’t only coach them about how to survive on the show but also how to survive after you leave me and the show because in any country the entertainment business is a snake. When you get down to the deep nitty-gitty; it’s cutthroat and they need to know how to survive. It’s a lot harder to survive now because you have social media and you have to be careful of what you say as well. There’s so many things a person needs to know about the industry. 

Sunny:  Which mentor is your biggest threat? 

Lukkade: Every week it changes. At first, it was #teamchris, then after a while you kinda see maybe it's #teambee - They're always changing the game. Last year, I was able to kinda guess what the mentors were going to do but this year there's no chance. It's kinda difficult to guess what game they're going to play.

Sunny:  When I was called a terrorist, I really struggled with the negative social media. How do you deal with it?  

Lukkade: I'm use to it now. People have to hate somebody. I need to be the one that says what people are thinking. I need to be straight and truthful. That’s what Naomi Campbell does. She's a bitch and so am I. I'm strong and powerful plus I don’t give a shit. You just don’t read it. Everyone is human. Read the positive ones because there are people out there who love you. 

 

Sunny: My family struggles with the negative comments. How does your family cope with it?  

 

Lukkade:  We laugh at it. I’ve always had good and bad press in my twenty-three years in the business. As long as my family know how I am and they know that most of the time it’s just for publicity. 

Sunny:  Many girls mistake confidence for arrogance. What are your views on this?

Lukkade:  It’s a very thin line. It’s the way you approach people and the things you say. It’s what you say that personifies who you actually are. 

 

Sunny:  You have a house in Bangkok but live in Phuket. What do you love about the Phuket lifestyle?  

Lukkade:  We actually did the move for our son. What I love about Phuket is the natural life with an outdoor lifestyle. In Bangkok, you’re spending most of the time in your car to go play tennis, swimming training or to do extra classes. So we did the move and I commute every week to Bangkok but it’s not too bad.

Sunny:  To people out there who want to be a model or an actress, why is it important to be able to speak English? 

Lukkade:  It’s important because Thailand is opened up to many international businesses and people come here to shoot movies and TV commercials as well. It’s very important to be able to speak a second language. I think English is important because it’s an universal language. If you’re looking to go far in any career you need to know English.