MARK HERRAS looks much handsomer now than when he was a teen star. This is the observation of the writers who visited him on the set of “Sa Piling ni Nanay” in Pampanga. Even his co-stars, Yasmien Kurdi and Katrina Halili, believe so.
“Yes, mas gumuwapo nga si Mark nang magka-edad siya,” they say, “Siguro dahil I gained weight,” Mark says. “Kasi noong manalo ako sa Starstruck, ang payat-payat ko. Ngayon, 160 lbs na ako. Mas nagkalaman-laman na ang katawan ko.”
His former GF and ka-love team, Jennylyn Mercado, has left him behind and is now a bonafide box office star and best actress winner. She’s tagged by GMA as the Ultimate Star. What can he say about this? “Deserving naman siya sa title na yan. Pinaghirapan niya whatever success that she has now. Lahat kami sa batch namin, happy and proud of her.”
Doesn’t he dream of having a similar title? “Kasi ako, relaxed lang. Puede bang ako yung Ultimate Relaxed? Ha ha ha! Basta ayokong i-pressure ang sarili ko. Happy lang ako na after 13 years since we won sa Starstruck, hero pa rin ako sa showbiz at magaganda pa rin ang projects na binibigay sa’kin, like ‘Sa Piling ni Nanay’ and ‘Conan My Beautician’. Hindi ako yung tipong nai-insecure sa tagumpay ng mga kasama kong artista.”
Obviously, he looks happy and content because of his relationship with Winwyn Marquez. “Aminado naman akong very positive ang influence niya sa’kin and she helped make me a better man. She made me think in more mature ways, pati sa naisipan niyang magnegosyo ko starting with a food stall sa isang school. Magkasosyo kami with other friends sa tatlong food stalls na click talaga with students. Now, she suggested na mag-solo food stall ako. Hopefully, dahil dito, mas mabilis akong makakaipon.”
Looks like he’s already preparing for their wedding. “Naku, matagal pa yun. Hindi kami nagmamadali. But it’s always nice to prepare for the future, di ba?” He plays the role of Jonas in “Sa Piling ni Nanay”. This week, he and his aunt, Nova Villa as Donya Matilda, will succeed in getting back the child Sofia Cabatay as Maya from her surrogate mother, Yasmien Kurdi as Isabel, who won’t give up easily and will file a case in court to assert her right to Maya since she’s the one who carried her for nine months then gave birth to her.
