Since landing her first-ever teleserye role in 2021, Kaila Estrada has been unstoppable at sharing her sensational acting prowess. And a big part of her expanding repertoire as an actress is Maalaala Mo Kaya, which she is tasked to conclude via a three-part episode titled “Scarlet Women."
In MMK “Scarlet Women,”, Kaila carries the torch as Abby, a victim of human trafficking in Cyprus. She was forced into prostitution in a club, where she met the other Filipina recruits who would play a huge part in her journey. It is a story mirroring the realities some Pinays go through abroad in an attempt to lift their families out of poverty.
The first and second episode ripped our hearts into pieces. In her interview with Kapamilya Chat, Kaila revealed her mom Janice de Belen had the same reaction. “Iyak siya nang iyak. Nag-message siya sa akin kasi wala ako sa bahay nu’ng time na ‘yun. Nag-message siya sa akin na, ‘Grabe pala ‘tong episode na ‘to. It’s so painful to watch.’” She mentioned that Janice was very supportive of her in this project and the advice she got from her mom was “trust your instinct.”
Along with netizens, we applaud Kaila for blessing us with such a riveting portrayal. Asked how she switched it on, she credits the entire MMK team, especially the research department for providing her with in-depth materials about the character.
“I really thoroughly read that research to get into the character and sort of process how she was feeling going through all that, try to understand where she’s coming from – from her being so warm and so loving to her being really cold to finding that warmth again to going back to being that loving person that she really is at her core,” shared the model-turned-actress.
She also acknowledged Director Dado Lumibao and his approach that pushed her to her limits. Even her co-stars were all team players.
She imparted the greatest lesson she picked up from MMK “Scarlet Women,” which is that one can ask for help when needed. “It’s not bad to be independent. It’s actually a great personality to be independent.” She faced the camera, “But when we need help, we should not feel bad for asking for help, for emotional support from our family, from the people we love, the people we know love us and has our best interest at heart.” She thinks some parts of Abby’s story could’ve changed had she been more open to her family.
Kaila also hopes MMK’s 31st-anniversary offering teaches people to stop demeaning women. “I feel like in this day and age, we need to realize women are not objects. We should not objectify women. Women are powerful and we should be free. And we should end violence against women,” she said, lifting the female pack.
Catch the last episode of MMK “Scarlet Women,” this Saturday, December 10, on Kapamilya Channel, Kapamilya Online Live, and A2Z.