When Cheer Thikamporn, the close sister of Boen Pathumrat, opened up on the show Boen AM, it was hilarious and the whole studio was full of jokes. She also revealed her new look by cutting her hair short, which made everyone think she was a tomboy. She clearly answered whether she was dating both men and women and revealed that she had her work canceled because she was seen as a tomboy!?
Why do you cut your hair short these days? Is it true that right now, your heart can be either a woman or a man?
Cheer: If we’re being serious, looks and heart are two different things. But I don’t understand why some people have to consider them to be the same thing. Looks are just a style. One day, you might want to shave your head or grow long hair. For example, if Ble grows long hair and then starts liking guys, that’s not right.
It’s really a different story. You didn’t change your look because this feeling has nothing to do with it?
Cheer: It’s not really related. It’s about the heart. We just open our minds to talk to whoever we feel comfortable with. If that person is a woman, we’re happy. Or if that person is a man, it’s just that we’re looking for someone who is comfortable talking to. It’s not like, “No women only, no.” Before, I was dating a man and it didn’t work out, so I wanted to date a woman. It’s like, “Can you just take medicine for a cold and it’ll go away?” It’s not like suddenly changing your taste in love to that extent.
When Phi Cheer was dating, I even thought about marriage. Why did they have to break up?
Cheer: In the matter of love’s incongruence, sometimes you just have to understand that it’s like it doesn’t go together. Just understand that there’s no need to hate each other for me.
How did you first get into the entertainment industry?
Cheer: Miss Teen contest, first drama Benja Keeta Karmaakarn, that was my first drama. At that time, I was still studying, I was only in Mathayom 4. I have to say that Benja is a drama that I am very proud of because it’s a drama that I didn’t know how to act in at all. But even now, 22 years have passed, whenever we meet kids anywhere, they all talk about Benja and say, “I grew up with this drama. It’s a very proud thing to do, to have a drama that has ended 20 years ago and people still come up to us and tell us that they liked it.”
Have you ever been in a drama and been insulted or pressured?
Cheer: Yes, I am the kind of person who is determined. If I do it, like acting, I am determined. I do my homework. I do everything to make the work the best. But there was one word that came to my ears from someone close to me. But it was heard in a roundabout way, like it was said to someone else. It was someone who might have conveyed to me that Cheer is not suitable to be an actress. But in any case, I am not angry at him. I am not angry at him. But when he said it, I was so sad. I was so disappointed. Because what he said didn’t come during the beginning that I acted. It passed until like the last story that I was with Channel 7. I mean, it’s been almost 10 years that I’ve acted in dramas. I’ve been acting.
But suddenly, it was an actor’s perspective that was like, did he talk about us like that? We were in tears at that time. We were disappointed for a while, but it affected our work. We would feel that if we were disappointed, people wouldn’t feel it. In the end, we didn’t do a good job. What would come out on screen was people watching us. So, if we didn’t do it better, it would probably be like what he said. It was just proving his words that it wasn’t right. There was a time when we had a lot of concert tours and we still didn’t know how to plan our schedule. Our concert shows weren’t strong yet. There were both the impact of words, body language, and social media. There was a point where I thought about leaving the singing industry.
Phi Chear is a person who doesn’t have many problems. Currently, he is very sensitive. How do you view even a little bit of news? If you post something wrong or right, the reporters will take it and make the media report it in a different way. How do you solve this problem?
Cheer: It’s just being careful of ourselves. The space for expression has just changed, but we haven’t changed. Because in the past, there might not have been anything to post as easily as this, but nowadays it’s just posting. It’s like just changing the method of expression to social media. But personally, I’m not someone who likes to talk or do things that 1. I have to risk being talked about. 2. I don’t really like to talk about personal matters. Suddenly, I come across love stories, talk about love stories, or one day we break up with someone. We have to sit down and answer that we broke up with someone, even though it’s a painful matter.
But there’s no way to avoid it. Point 1 is that nature can’t avoid it. To put it simply, it’s similar to something, you know what? Being a tomboy. It’s like Cheer and the word tom have been together since entering the industry. I just said that I’m not one, but there will be people who are like, “Really?” or something like that. I just feel like I know myself well. Point 2 is, if we have an explanation or something, if other people still think the same thing, just let it go. There’s nothing that can be done.
And is it true that they said that right now men and women can date, depending on what makes them comfortable?
Cheer: I think that these days everyone is just looking for comfort. There’s one thing that’s really strange. I never thought that this word, which doesn’t have any effect on us, you know? Because we know ourselves, we know ourselves, what we’re like. But I just found out how this word has an effect. Recently, there was one time when I was interviewed about love, I said that I was open-minded, ready to talk to someone, even if they were a woman. But it’s about comfort. It’s not about gender or anything.
Today, even if that person is a man, we are comfortable talking to them, we are happy to open up and talk to them as well. You spoke very clearly. And there was another job that contacted us. It just so happened that I found out and it was like an adult, like looking at this job or something. He said that he didn’t want me because I’m a tomboy, he would cancel it. It was just one interview that I had. So I just don’t understand how to value work or value people. If today you really cancel the cheering job because of something like this, it doesn’t bother me at all. But I would like to leave something for you.
I just feel that if one day, your own children or people you know are going to have their jobs canceled or not given a job opportunity because they are tomboys or diverse, gay or something else, I just want them to think a little bit about whether it is something they deserve or not, or whether it is something that needs to be used to decide whether to do something or not. Because I don’t agree with this idea.
What is Cheer’s perspective on gender equality today?
Cheer: It’s similar to what I said earlier, being different doesn’t mean it’s strange. Now it’s becoming that just because he’s different from you or not the way you think, is it wrong? It’s like being LGBTQ is not good. How can that be? It has to be separated first. I’m glad that the world today is so open. Or even marriage equality has passed.
It’s one sign that shows that understanding is really being communicated. There’s so much diversity, too much for me to even understand. But I think one understanding is beauty. It’s the happiness of being able to be something and not causing anyone any trouble. It’s the color of this world. But it turns out that there might be some people who don’t understand, which is very easy. Just try to imagine it’s someone close to you. Today, that person you love, your child or grandchild or whoever you love.
He just has this kind of taste. He’s just happy being himself. But that doesn’t mean that his thoughts are strange or that he’s a bad person. They just have to be separated. Actually, I’m happy. I feel that the area of diversity seems to be getting happier and it seems to inspire me. It inspires me because I feel that when we see diversity coming together and being in love, it’s such a lucky thing.
Now, are you thinking of opening your heart to a new love?
Cheer: Open your mind, let’s talk.
Female or male?
Cheer: I’m a woman.
Why did you decide to talk to women?
Cheer: I didn’t think about whether it was a woman or a man, but I was just comfortable.
