NO BUTTS ABOUT IT, SOUR NOTE FOR DR POP, PLAKUNG’S ANTI-SUICIDE RANT
Chod refuses to come clean
Senior Grammy executive and TV host Saithip “Chod” Montrikul Na Ayudhaya has a pithy response for netizens urging her to reveal all about her relationship with a man 19 years her junior — it’s private, so butt out.
P Chod, as she is known, says she feels no need to expose her relationship to public scrutiny. She sees no contradiction between that and her role as prodding host of a reveal-all TV show, as the guests who appear on her programme do so willingly.
The presenter, also CEO of GMM Channel Digital TV, came under fire after her TV show dug into the past of two estranged starlets. Netizens, who unearthed relationship sagas from her past in retribution, challenged her to come clean about her own love life.
The fuss follows a recent interview in which actress and singer Sakolrat “Four” Woraurai opened up about the end of her six-year relationship to former boyband singer Pitch “Pitt” Karchai, some five years ago.
Four said her relationship with Pitt ended when she caught him seeing another woman. Her remarks triggered an apparently hostile response from Pitt on social media, though he later apologised. The woman accused of seeing Pitt at the time, actress Nutwara “Mint” Vongvasana, last week broke her silence, insisting they were just friends and Four had misunderstood.
The initial social media fuss was followed by another Twitter storm a few days later in which a netizen challenged Chod to come clean about the younger men in her life, as she was so keen on delving into others’ painful memories.
Chod, 60, is close to former actor and fellow Grammy executive Vorarit “S” Vaijiaranai, who is almost 19 years her junior. The two have known each other for 10 years, according to media reports, and are seen often in public as a couple.
The netizen suggested she invite on to her show S’s former girlfriend, actress Yardthip “Yard” Rachapal to discuss the unhappy end to their relationship amid claims, which Chod denies, that she helped break them up.
Separately, critics accused Chod of acting as a third hand severing the relationship almost seven years ago between singer Marsha Vadhanapanich and TV host and actor Krit Sripoomseth, another young man in Chod’s Grammy stable.
Chod said netizens who abuse others for fun on social media should consider the impact their remarks have on others.
“My mother is 80 and is shocked by some things people have said about me,” she said.
“One thing I cannot accept is claims I broke up Marsha’s relationship. Why would I do such a thing? I revealed the end of their relationship to the public, which my critics appear to have forgotten.”
Marsha herself has no hard feelings, last week posting a picture of her embracing Chod at a Grammy concert where she appeared as a guest performer.
Chod, who says she has no intention of inviting Yard or S onto her show, last week appeared with S at a city function.
S said half-jokingly he had been dragged into Chod’s Club Friday saga and turned into a social media victim.
“If people do a Google search, they will know what happened in the past,” he said.
Trainer Thawara comes under fire
Development trainer and author Thawara Siripipat has come under fire after one of his students, a depression sufferer, claims she was abused and held against her will.
Thawara, known as Dr Pop, is a certified trainer in neuro-linguistic programming, which encourages followers to “unlock their lives”, confront their demons and free the person within.
The philosophy, developed in the US, has come under scrutiny recently after another Thai disciple, entrepreneur and self-help guru Thitinart “Kru Aoy” Na Pattalung, was targeted last month in an internet hate campaign amid claims she persuaded her followers to invest in dodgy sharemarket deals.
The drama surrounding Dr Pop emerged after a netizen posted an account at the Pantip webboard of a recent course in which she says a young friend, whom she accompanied, was subject to harsh treatment by the key speaker.
“They accused her of feigning her depressive illness, and told course participants that if you can’t do anything to help yourselves, you may as well die,” she wrote. The poster said her young friend has a 12-month history of depression, including attempts to take her own life.
“My friend vomited and fainted in the meeting hall, she was so upset. Organisers took her into a storage room behind the stage where the speaker’s mother swore at her and claimed she was a disappointment to her parents. Nong wanted to leave but they held her there until her father came to pick her up,” she wrote.
Dr Pop, who responded on social media, admitted it was his course but claimed it ended in success, with the young woman’s family happy with the outcome. The poster has since taken down her complaint.
“I challenged the young woman as to whether she was acting to find out if she was really depressed as she claims. She showed signs of having the condition and her parents have since agreed to take her to a mental health professional,” he said.
He agreed he was not trained in psychiatry but said courses such as his could still help people “unlock” their lives. He said the young woman, after initially refusing to cooperate, hugged him and his mother before she left.
After the girl fainted, his staff took her to a storeroom at the back of the hall to talk to her further. He admits he and his mother spoke harshly to her but said it was part of a technique to get her to open up.
On the internet, netizens hammered Dr Pop for treating the girl inappropriately, as psychiatrists warned Dr Pop he could have triggered an incident.
Dr Pop says he advises depression sufferers to stay away from his courses. “Those with depression want encouragement and support, but some of what we say is confronting,” he said.
DJ says sorry for attack on dead rock star
City DJ Worachart “DJ Plakung” Tamwijin has apologised for posting an anti-suicide rant after learning of the death of Linkin Park lead singer Chester Bennington.
Plakung, a fan of the singer, wrote on social media he was upset to learn of Chester’s death at his home near Los Angeles on Thursday.
“I know you suffered from depression, but does that mean everyone who gets that illness has to end it this way?” he asked, admitting he was no expert on the topic.
“I can’t respect your decision even in the least. Your latest song has only just come out! And who will be most upset? Those in the background, those who don’t know a thing about it. It’s a public matter, and just not fair.
“Suicide is a sin. In my darkest days I have never thought of taking this step. It’s of no benefit to you or anyone else,” he said, drawing an analogy between Chester’s absence and a band member who refuses to turn up for practice.
Netizens attacked his comments as insensitive.
“Who are you to judge? You have no idea what pressure he was under. Depression expresses itself in different ways,” one wrote.
At first DJ Plakung invited a debate on the topic, but after talking to the admin of a popular website, who is also a doctor, offered an apology. “I admit I am wrong but I won’t take the post down ... let it serve as a lesson,” he said.