Family affair
Celebrities and their kids bond in Oh My Family!
THE second season of Oh My Family! gets out of the big city and into the wild.
The reality series, which debuted April this year, follows the lives of five celebrity families as they perform tasks aimed at strengthening family bonds.
The first season, set within the Klang Valley, was so well received, a second one is now here – but with a twist.
Oh My Family! will have a change of scenery, taking the families to natural locations such as islands, forests and mountains.
Its second season features a fresh line-up comprising the family of local celebs Nabil Ahmad, Shuib Sepahtu, Sharifah Shahirah, Black Hanifah, Indonesian stars Ussy Sulistiawaty and Andhika Pratama.
“My kids loved the experience because they usually just go to shopping malls,” says comedienne and Suria announcer Sharifah Shahirah of her children Airra, 10, and Audrra, eight, at a press event promoting the show.
Meanwhile, Andhika was initially afraid his six-year-old daughter Shakeela Eleanor Ameera wouldn’t be accustomed to living so close to nature.
“At first we thought it would be hard for our daughter to fulfil these tasks especially when it has to do with the outdoors because she’s not used to it in Jakarta, but everything ended up going safely and smoothly. She even helped with bathing an elephant and feeding it,” he says.
“She’s known to be shy, not very talkative and usually doesn’t smile much, but on this show, she steps out of her shell.”
The addition of the Indonesian family is part of the show’s plans to take it outside of Malaysia.
The couple lends some major star power to the show. Ussy and Andhika have 9.2 million and 6.5 million Instagram followers respectively, bringing the total number of Instagram followers to around 21 million collectively between the five celebrity families.
While Shakeela may be a little camera-shy, comedian Shuib’s children Uwais Alqarni, seven, and Dzahira Talita, five, enjoy being in front of the camera.
“Before this, my kids were on another TV programme and ever since then, they have been asking me when can they do it again.
“So when I told them about Oh My Family!, they got really excited,” Shuib shares.
Another tiny tot who inherited their parents’ showbiz streak is Black’s son Khaleef Dayyan. The three-year-old is a natural entertainer, confidently belting out a tune at the press event.
Singer Black shares his thoughts about exposing his child to showbiz at a young age: “Different families have different ways of approaching this ... Right now, I ask myself, ‘What does he like to do?’
“I will encourage him to do what he likes, but of course, there’s a limit. I also won’t push him into anything. What I can see now is he loves music and he’s not camera-shy. My blood is in him.”
Oh My Family! Season Two airs every Wednesday at 9pm on Astro Ria (Ch 104) and Astro Ceria (Ch 611).