Tom Rodriguez Learns To Speak Mandarin In His Role As A Chinese Mestizo In 'Dragon Lady"

TOM RODRIGUEZ is paired with Janine Gutierrez in “Dragon Lady” but the first thing reporters interviewing him at the presscon asked of him at the show’s presscon is if it’s true he has formally proposed to his girlfriend, Carla Abellana. “Masyado naman po kayong advanced,” he says. “Wala pa pong proposal na nangyayari. But I’m looking forward to it, pero paghahandaan muna namin. We have a lot na so gusto ko, we build a house first.”

Is he ready to be a dad? “Yes, I’m fond of children but then, kailangan, wedding muna before we start our own family. So, please don’t rush us. There’s a right time for everything naman, di ba? We want to be fully ready and prepared muna.”

He’s just thankful to GMA-7 for always giving him a good project. After “The Cure” where he was paired with Jennylyn Mercado, he’s now paired with Janine in “Dragon Lady” that now airs on Afternoon Prime after “Eat Bulaga”, Monday to Saturday.

So how is it working with Janine for the first time?

“I’ll be honest. First time kaming nagkasama in an episode of ‘Magpakailanman’ and I had a great time because she made it look lik a breeze. Okay na okay siyang kaeksena. I’m actually excited by my role in ‘Dragon Lady’ as Michael Chan, a Filipino Chinese mestizo. I have to learn how to speak Mandarin and we have a coach to teach us how to pronounce our Chinese lines correctly. May consultants kami on the set for our scenes as a Chinese family. I also trained for a scene where I participate in a dragon boat race.”

Someone wanted to ask Tom if Carla doesn’t get jealous of Janine at all and we said no need to ask that since it’s common knowledge that Janine now has Rayver Cruz in her life, so they’re both already taken.