THRILLMAKER: Doesn’t she remind you of her mom?

by Joee Guilas, Manila Bulletin

That’s the first comment I heard about her when one of my team members spotted her as among the featured models in the “Denim Daze” fashion show at the Newport Mall Plaza recently.

“Which girl is that?” I asked, looking at the sea of models rehearsing at the Plaza.  “That one!” My assistant whispered, pointing to a girl wearing her standout natural Afro locks.  Now zooming in to a gaze, I easily saw her resemblance to one of the country’s most recognizable supermodels.     

19-year-old Asiana Doesnt need not explain where she got her looks and natural strut.  She grew up being known as Wilma Doesnt’s daughter, and she looks and moves it.

“That’s very flattering for me kasi mom’s pretty.  She really is.  She’s a supermodel.  Someone comparing me to a supermodel is wow,” she exclaimed when I finally got to chat with her and noted how much she looks like her famous mother.

Now an incoming second year Legal Management student at San Beda Alabang, the young stunner is slowly following in her mom’s footsteps and has already been getting her taste of the runway for about a year now.  Asked about her plans to take modeling seriously, her quick response was: “I’d rather take my studies more seriously,” but adds: “but this is an opportunity, and I’m gonna grab it every time it is offered to me.”

As a kid, she claims to have never really known much about her mother’s celebrity status.  She only realized how big her mom really is when she got to see one of her fashion shows: “I remember being so shocked by her ‘cause you know as a kid you don’t really see your mom dressed up like that every day and there you see her walking in the runway, she’s a superstar.”

And just when you thought, this daughter would have things a bit easier for her in the modeling world, Asiana clarifies that Wilma’s not the spoon-feeding type: “She never taught me how to model, all she said was just for me to be myself.”  Emphasizing uniqueness, Asiana shares the biggest lesson her mother taught her: “She always says: she’s her, and I’m me, para din hindi kami ipag-compare ng mga critics.”

While shutting the door for the possibility of her being a funny lady on TV—for now, Asiana only has high praises for her “model mom” for being like a friend to her.

“Sobrang saya.  There’s no dull moment with her,” she proudly says.

At 5’8, having a pretty face, a killer walk and good communication skills, Asiana is also being asked to consider joining the country’s most prestigious beauty pageants.  Now that’s something she’s not closing her doors to.

“Kung open opportunity po iyon, of course, I’ll grab it pero syempre kailangan ko pa rin ng proper training, and mentors, but I’d rather study first.”