THE PHENOMENON OF BUPPAESANNIVAS
Last Thursday night, Buppaesannivas ( Love Destiny) achieved huge critical and audience acclaim. More than one month since its premiere, the TV hit has increased the appreciation of Thai culture and heritage among viewers while rekindling an interest in the history of the Ayutthaya Kingdom. One of the effects has been a surging number of tourists flocking to Ayutthaya Historical Park, particularly at Wat Chaiwatthanaram, a landmark in many scenes of the sensational drama set during the reign of King Narai. Moreover, some female visitors dress in traditional Thai costumes, copying the style of Mae Ying Karaket, Buppaesannivas’s protagonist, portrayed by Ranee “Bella’’ Campen. Her co-star, Tanawat “Pope’’ Wattanaputi, charms as Meun Soonthorntheva, who often calls Karaket Aor Jao, a pronoun supposedly used in the Ayutthaya era, and now a trending word among Buppaesannivas fans. Viewers also learn other words such as vej and farangkee, meaning toilet and foreigner, explained in an amusing introduction by Mintita Wattanakul at the beginning of each episode. The production, by Broadcast Thai Television, is adapted from a novel by Rompaeng, or Chanyawee Sompreeda, who has an education background in archaeology. Buppaesannivas is fascinatingly plotted in the past and the present, which has Bella-Ranee assuming a dual role as Karaket as well as Ketsurang, the latter an archeological student, who’s haunted by a spirit in Ayutthaya Historical Park and consequently dies in a car crash. Simultaneously, the malevolent Karaket from the other time period succumbs to a spell cast on her because she’s a suspect behind an intention to kill a rival in winning the heart of Meun Soonthorntheva. They meet in the passage to hell, and Karaket asks Ketsurang to take her physical body and do good deeds to clear her bad karma, before Karaket is dragged into the underworld. Ketsurang fulfils the request but gives the reborn Karaket a lively personality, who speaks weird words and introduces innovations — such as panties, iron pans with slits and water filters — to the amazement of the folks in ancient Ayutthaya. In turn, she explores amazing places and meets historical figures while viewers go back in time with the bubbly protagonist in each riveting episode. No matter what critics say about the accuracy of the historical fiction, Buppaesannivas has revived an interest in our roots, as the engaging show continues to earn high ratings.