Andrea Brillantes during the “Star Magic: Spotlight” press conference. Image: Courtesy of Star Magic
Andrea Brillantes is owing up to being named 2024’s “Most Beautiful Face” by TC Candler in December of last year, but she would be the first one to admit that being beautiful comes with a price — or a curse.
During a Star Magic Spotlight press conference, Brillantes recalled the time in her youth when she struggled to make friends, and was bullied and isolated due to her looks. She, however, clarified that she has moved forward since she dealt with it when she was still young.
“I feel like when you’re under the curse [of being beautiful], hindi mo mare-recognize that you are. Noong nursery to grade school, hirap akong magkaroon ng friends. Hirap ako makapili ng friends. Lagi nila akong binu-bully,” she recalled.
“Hindi ko talaga naramdaman na maganda ako. Hindi talaga ‘yun ang sinasabi sa’kin. Laging [pinaparamdam] sa’kin na hindi ako enough for them. Hindi ako makahanap ng [friend] community sa girls,” she added.
(I feel like when you’re under the curse of being beautiful, you wouldn’t recognize that you are. From nursery to grade school, I struggled to make friends. It was hard for me to have friends. I was bullied. I never felt that I was beautiful because it was mentioned to me. I always felt that I was not enough for them. It was hard for me to find a female friend community.)
Brillantes then turned to making friends with boys, noting that being beautiful might lead to others getting envious of them for no reason. “Gagawin kong tibo ang sarili ko and d’un ako sa mga boys, hindi ito pagiging ‘pick-me’ (I will make myself more boyish and make friends with boys. This is not about being a pick-me).”
“I think that’s one of the curses of being pretty, merong maiinis and maiinggit sa’yo,” she continued. “Pero maayos na ang relationship ko sa school. The first few years [ko lang na-experience] ‘yung heated sila sa’kin, pero friends na kaming lahat. Bata pa kaming lahat n’un eh.”
(I think that’s one of the curses of being pretty. People will be annoyed and jealous of you for no reason. But I’m on better terms with the people at school. It was only in the first few years that I experienced them getting heated with me. But we’re friends now. We were younger then.)
Andrea Brillantes during the “Star Magic: Spotlight” press conference. Image: Courtesy of Star Magic
Self-confidence
With this in mind, Brillantes eventually realizes that she doesn’t have to prove her worth when it comes to making friends.
“Kapag gan’un kasi ang standard nila [in terms of friendship], hindi ko na siya ipinaglalaban. Hindi ko na kailangang i-prove ang worth ko. Beauty is subjective. Kung ‘yun ang magiging tingin mo sa’kin, ‘yun ang magiging tingin mo sa’kin. Hindi na siya worth fighting for. Hahanap ako ng mga tao with the right eyes to see and know me,” she said.
(If that is their standard in terms of friendship, I’m not going to fight for it anymore. I don’t need to prove my worth. Beauty is subjective. If that’s how you see me, it will stay that way. It’s not worth fighting for. I will look for people with the right eyes to see and know me.)
The actress also learned to be the “bigger person” whenever she gets hated for her looks.
“Minsan, kapag naiinis sila kasi maganda ako, mas lalo ko lang pinapakita na pretty ako. Ngayong mas mature ako, alam ko na ang nambabash sa’kin ng kung ano, alam kong hindi niyo masabi na pangit ako,” she said while laughing. “Kapag naiinis ako, wala na akong ginagawa. I try my best to be the bigger person.”
(Sometimes, when people are annoyed at me because I’m beautiful, I show it off more. Now that I matured, I know that bashers wouldn’t say I’m ugly. When I’m annoyed at them, I don’t do anything anymore. I try my best to be the bigger person.)
Aside from Brillantes, other Filipinas who entered TC Candler’s “Most Beautiful Faces of 2024” list were Janine Gutierrez, Belle Mariano, Ivana Alawi, Gehlee Dangca of K-pop girl group UNIS and Aiah Arceta of BINI.
The actress was also part of the UK-based rankings list in 2023, where she was on the 16th spot.