When Jen asked her if there were actors who tried to woo her in the course of her long career, she said: “Marami. Nasa sa’yo naman yun kung makakalusot. Normal yan, nasa babae na rin kung palulusutin niya. Ikaw ba, si Lucky, pinalusot mo?” This made Jen laugh out loud.
She has made more than 200 films. Jen asked: Alin ang tumatak sa puso nyo? “Marami. ‘Trudis Liit’, my first movie, title role ako, nanalo kong best child actress sa Famas. ‘Darna’. ‘Burlesk Queen’, turning point ng career ko. I’m lucky sa latter part ng career ko, I was given the chance to do relevant films like ‘Relasyon’ about mistresses, ‘Ipagpatawad Mo’ about autism and ‘Dolzura Cortez’ about AIDS.”
What are your favorite lines from your movies? “Marami rin. ‘Si Val, si Val, si Val, palagi na lang si Val.’ (from ‘Saan Nagtatago ang Pag-ibig?’) ‘Para kang karinderiang bukas sa lahat ng gustong kumain’ from ‘Palimos ng Pag-ibig’. From ‘Sister Stella L’, ‘Kundi tayo ang kikilos, sinong kikilos? Kundi ngayon, kailan pa? Katarungan para kay Ka Dencio!’”
She was asked about her rivalry with Nora Aunor. “Noon, talagang nag-aaway ang fans namin. Patayan. Batuhan ng silya, ng basag na bote. It helped us to see kung paano kami minahal ng fans namin. Pero nag-mature na kami, so sana nag-mature na rin yung fans namin. But the rivalry will always be there. Pero kami, magkumare talaga. Inaanak ko ang anak niyang si Kiko. Kaya kumare ang tawagan namin.”
Jen wants to know: Anong pinakamatinding intrigang dumating sa inyo? “Marami rin. Like yung Betamax Queen. I was really affected by that. Nabalita pang nagpakamatay raw ako dahil dun. Pero matapang ka pag alam mong di totoo. It helped make me a stronger person. Now, pinipili ko na lang ang giyerang pinapatulan ko.”
What more can a Vilma Santos wish for on her birthday on November 3? “Oo nga. Magti-36 na ko,” she said smiling. “O, bakit kayo tumatawa? 37 ako last year, 36 na ko ngayon, paatras na. Wala na kong mahihiling pa kundi more on pasalamat na lang, kasi di lahat ng tao, nabigyan ng blessings na natanggap ko. I’m not aiming for anything more. This birthday, I’ll just give it to my family kasi lately talagang all work lang ako and it’s physically and emotionally draining. I’ll have a two-week vacation with them, parang breaker, to unwind, then later when we return, I’ll have a get together with some friends.”
How would she want to be remembered? “As an actress, as someone na nagbigay ng magandang contribution sa pelikula. As a public servant, naibinalik ko ang tiwalang ibinigay sa akin ng mga Batangueno. As a mother, alam na yung ng mga anak ko.”
