AIKO MELENDEZ surprised us in the trailer of “Prima Donnas Book 2”. In Book 1, she has won two best supporting actress awards for her role as the villainous Kendra.
Now, she still plays Kendra in Book 2, but with a twist. She is now confined in a mental hospital and has completely lost her mind.
“Hirap na hirap ako sa role ko,” she says. “Mas challenging siya kaysa Book 1. There were days na nawawala ako, kasi andami ko ring ginagawa ko sa labas as I am running for congress sa election.”
So how did she cope with the demands of her role?
“First of all, I want to thank DIrek Gina Alajar kasi inalalayan niya talaga ako. When I was watching the trailer nga and I saw myself in the baliw scenes, hindi ako makapaniwala. Nagawa ko ba talaga yun?
"Pero ang ganda talaga ng journey ni Kendra but mahirap, mahirap siya gawin. Sa last day ko sa taping, humahagulgol ako kasi we have all built a family ng mga co-stars ko. Bihira ang soap na inaabot ng ganito katagal.”
Direk Gina is all praises for her performance.
“Aiko really surpassed herself. Nalampasan niya ang acting niya sa Book One. Bago nag-start ang taping, pinag-usapan namin muna ng co-director kong si direk Phillip Lazaro. Mula sa ending ng Book One, ano na mangyayari kay Kendra? Gusto naming maiba.”
They had to plot out with the writers as to where Kendra’s character will be going.
“And yes, we thought it’s best na sa Book Two, ipapaliwanag natin ang pinanggagalingan ng galit ni Kendra. Kung bakit matindi ang gusto niyang makuha ang pagmamahal ni Wendell Ramos as Jaime at ang crown ni Chanda Romero as Lady Prima. So inisa-isa namin ang mangyayari sa kanya. until she loses her sanity.”
And they are so pleased with the final results.
“You know, sa totoo lang, we are very happy sa acting ni Aiko, kasi nabigyang justice niya talaga what we had in mind for the character. And also, ang maganda, she did it na walang ka-effort-effort.
"Walang pagta-trying hard. You know it’s coming from within her, from her heart. She really did it with flying colors and we won’t be surprised if she’d win more awards for her performance here.”
The recap of “Prima Donnas Book 1” is now going on. By next week, they will start airing the fresh new episodes of Book 2 with the return of Sofia Pablo’s character who went missing in Book 1.
