While stuck at home during this pandemic, Kapamilya star Michelle Vito found the perfect chance to turn her black thumb green by growing vegetables and herbs. Though her choices are not the common breeds grown mainly for aesthetic purposes, and they require more effort, Michelle finds them practical.

The downside of herbs and vegetable gardening is they are more high maintenance and difficult to grow especially during this rainy season. “Medyo namamatayan pa rin ako kasi ayaw ng herbs na medyo matubig kasi nalulunod sila,” shares Michelle. Nevertheless she thinks her plants like rosemary, lavender, ginger, and pechay are good investments. “Gusto ko kasi ‘pag nag-aalaga ako ng plant, ‘yung maha-harvest ko.” Plus, they offer therapeutic benefits.

Besides gardening, Michelle is into home workouts. She would simply log on to the internet and search for free daily workout sessions online. There are lots of YouTube channels that offer doable and effective fitness programs that last for a minimum of fifteen days.

Michelle wouldn’t deny, though that the stay-at-home phase coupled with the rainy season make her too lazy to exercise. When the cold weather seems pulling her back to her comfy bed, Michelle motivates herself by having the right mind set. “Hassle na nagwo-work out ka tapos ang lamig ng hangin, hindi ka masyadong papawisan. Malalamigan lang ‘yung likod mo. I think importante talaga mag-work out hindi lang para gumanda ‘yung katawan mo but important kasi na alagaan talaga ‘yung health ngayon,” she says.

She knows being stuck at home feels like forever now and the boredom is starting to kick in. Michelle urges the viewers to grab this opportunity to unlock new skills. She mentions there are accessible online classes that can help us discover something new about ourselves and hone our talents.

More importantly, she highlights the power of gratitude. “Siguro maging thankful tayo na safe tayo, healthy tayo at wala tayong sakit. Kahit ang daming nangyayari at ang hirap na ng life, ma-appreciate na lang natin ‘yung nasa harap natin,” adds Michelle. 

 

Ipaglaban Mo “Dalisay”

Included in Michelle’s gratitude list this pandemic is her work life. Besides being part of a groundbreaking Kapamilya teleserye, she’s also busy promoting her Ipaglaban Mo “Dalisay” episode which will be having a replay on Sunday, August 16 on the Kapamilya Channel.

She feels honored and thankful to have her episode be dubbed as one of the long-running legal drama program’s absolute best. Sharing her experience working on this project, Michelle remembers how her co-stars – Aljur Abrenica, Empress Shuck, and Ryle Santiago – made the set light and fun. She says everyone in the cast was easy to get along with, so the tapings didn’t feel like work at all. Their episode was done out of collective effort. They helped each other in shooting heavy scenes.

Ipaglaban Mo “Dalisay” follows the story of Shaira (Michelle Vito)’s aunt, Patricia (Empress Shuck) who fell in love with the street vendor Vince (Aljur Abrenica). The latter proved his love for Patricia by marrying her before she dies. Patricia’s family, however, was doubtful of Vince’s motive. To make sure that Vince wouldn’t inherit Patricia’s wealth, the family decided to take the matter to the court.

The episode imparts lessons on the negative effects of greed and being too cynical. Michelle relates, “I think huwag tayong masyado maging gahaman sa pera. Sa role ko, alam ko na nagmamahalan talaga sila pero naging selfish ako para sa pera at yaman.”

The Star Magic artist adds that we must learn to make decisions for ourselves without neglecting other people’s advice especially that of family and loved ones. “Mahirap din na hindi ka mag-decide para sa sarili mo kasi hindi ka maggo-grow as a person. Pero dapat humihingi din ng advice sa mga taong nagmamahal sa atin kasi gusto nila ‘yung best para sa atin.”

 

Ang Sa Iyo ay Akin

With the crisis spawned by the pandemic, Michelle is just grateful to still receive projects, much more be included in the stellar cast of ABS-CBN’s newest and ground-breaking teleserye Ang Sa Iyo ay Akin.

The Kapamilya beauty feels having a job in this crucial time is a huge blessing in itself. And to work side by side big stars like Maricel Soriano, Iza Calzado, Jodi Sta. Maria, and Sam Milby doubles her happiness. For Michelle, working with seasoned actors is always a golden opportunity to improve her acting chops.

Michelle is eager to learn from the best and she takes down notes from her senior co-stars. “Si Miss Maricel, sinasabi niya palagi na ‘yung character mo, damdamin mo at isipin mo na ikaw talaga ‘yun. ‘Yung emotions mo especially sa drama scenes, talagang i-process mo, huwag mong madaliin.”

The young actress plays the role of Sam Milby’s niece. She and on-screen partner Paulo Angeles will serve as the breather from the heavy dramatic scenes courtesy of the key players in the story. Intense feud peppers the plot and Michelle can be found in the camp of Iza’s character.

Watch out for the pilot episode of Ang Sa Iyo ay Akin, the first full-length local teleserye to be launched on Kapamilya Online Live on August 17.

 

Love from Home

The Star Magic roster of talents share what their quarantine life looks like via the talent agency’s digital catalogue which aims to help Filipino families this pandemic in partnership with the ABS-CBN Pantawid ng Pag-Ibig campaign.

The artists were tasked to do their own pictorials at home sans the glam team and creatives. Michelle wanted her photo to stand out and radiate self-love. So, she ditched the usual quarantine activities like cooking, reading, and coffee breaks for something more unique and chill – soaking in the bathtub.

This special project is far from the past Star Magic catalogues wherein artists are photographed all glammed-up with the help of an entire production team. This time, they’re giving fans a closer and more personal view of their lives off cam.

But as they say, the struggle is real. Without the usual creative team helping her out, Michelle found the DIY treatment a real challenge. And since she opted for the bathroom as location, they had to deal with the indoor heat. Well, that makes her photo a real product of hard work, creativity, and sweat – literally. Her mom acted as the photographer.

“Medyo mahirap siya kasi ‘yung concept ko is sa bathtub, so medyo basa-basa. ‘Pag nag picture ako matagal talaga kasi gusto madaming shots. Si Mommy nag-photoshoot sa akin, so sa CR init na init na kami,” Michelle narrates.

For someone like Michelle who isn’t a big fan of photography (she does not even care about her Instagram feed’s aesthetics), the DIY Star Magic “Love from Home” pictorial is a new and exciting experience.

 

Sandwich ala Michelle

In this interview, Michelle reveals that she has a sweet tooth and she can’t resist chocolates. “Kaya kong hindi mag-carbs pero ‘pag tatanggalin ‘yung sweets, ‘yun ang hindi ko kaya,” she says.

There are lots of desserts and other chocolate-flavored goodies to choose from, especially now that the pandemic spawned changes in the landscape of food business and online selling. But somehow, Michelle’s taste buds always find comfort in the humble Nutella sandwich.

We can’t blame her, though. Sandwiches are easy to make; and when paired with one of the best palaman on earth, the finished product always makes a filling meal. For Michelle, the sweeter, the better! Sandwiches can also be served for breakfast, merienda, midnight snack, and for Michelle’s case, as dessert after lunch.

The Ang Sa Iyo ay Akin star loves to indulge in her Nutella sandwich by munching down the crust first. Besides sandwiches, Michelle’s all-time fave is the classic Pinoy merienda biko. But if she gets the chance, she would like to learn how to make another staple Filipino snack palabok.

 

Prank call

Michelle fell victim to Elisse Joson’s prank call during the latter’s recent Kapamilya Chat interview. She was playing Mobile Legends when she got the call from a problematic Elisse, leading to her character’s defeat. Now, it’s Michelle’s turn to get even.

It’s payback time! Michelle would pretend running to Elisse for refuge after having been forbidden to attend the birthday party of someone she didn’t name, leading in a heated argument with her mother. She sounded wanting to run away from home, and Elisse was willing to take her in.

In the middle of the conversation, however, Elisse had an inkling of her friend’s little mischief. The victim sensed the prank behind Michelle’s convincing acting!

Do you think you know whose birthday Michelle was referring to? Play this video for the full prank!