Ara Mina on sister Cristine’s newfound romance with Marco

By Dustin Moskovitz On May 6, 2023

Ara Mina (left) and Dave Almarinez

Ara Mina and her hubby, Dave Almarinez have great teamwork in marriage and business as well. They recently launched a holding company, Aforce Ventures, which aims to help entrepreneurs jumpstart their business.

“For now, our new venture is our baby,” Ara points out. “But we’re hoping to have a baby soon, though we don’t want to pressure ourselves about it.”

She’s also busy preparing for her lifestyle magazine show on Net 25, “Magandang ARAw.” “It’s a dream come true for me,” Ara beams. “After 30 years in show biz, I will do the interviewing instead of being the one interviewed.”

As for the newfound romance of her sister Cristine Reyes with Marco Gumabao, Ara says, “I want her to be happy. Hopefully, Marco is going to turn out as her ‘Dave,’ so both of us will live and love happily ever after.”

Katya Santos (left) and Maui Taylor

Scintillating reality show

Mirror, mirror on the wall, who’s the sexiest of them all? Find out in the scintillating reality show directed by Paul Basinillo, “PantaXa Laiya” (now streaming on Vivamax). Angelica Hart, Audrey Avila, Aiko Garcia, Apple Dy, Aria Bench, Aila Cruz, Armina Alegre and Cess Garcia will undergo physical, mental, sensual and sexual challenges on the serene beach of Laiya, Batangas.

Maui Taylor and Katya Santos serve as the girls’ mentors, while Wilbert Ross and Rose Van Ginkel host the show. Let the “PantaXa” ladies make you simmer in summer hotness.

Here are quotes from Maui ( M), Katya (K) and Paul (P):

M: All the eight girls have star quality. It was amazing to see their transformation as the show progressed.

K: The girls are all palaban, so Maui and I didn’t have a hard time mentoring them. Since game na game sila mag-pose and project, our focus was more on teaching them how to deal with show biz people and having the right attitude.

P: Out of 100 applicants, the eight girls were singled out. The show serves as their training ground for future projects.

M: The girls remind Katya and me of our Viva Hot Babes days. They have different personalities, so clashes are inevitable. But just like us, they remain as sisters. It’s healthy competition.

K: Competition is tougher now than before when Maui and I were newbies. That’s because of social media. The girls are easy targets for bashing, but I told them not to let bashers affect them. They must embrace their imperfections and be their authentic self.

P: I gave the girls equal exposure. I did not let any of them be a scene-stealer.

From left: Robb Guinto, Nicco Locco and Gela Cuenca

What it’s like dating ‘afams’

When a friend is dating a Fil-Am guy, I ask her in jest “So since he’s half American, is it his lower or upper-half that’s American?”

The joys and woes of dating a foreigner is explored in “Afam” (now streaming on Vivamax). Directed by Linneth Zurbano, it is topbilled by Robb Guinto, Jela Cuenca and Nico Locco.

Robb and Jela portray besties who fall for the same guy, a foreigner played by Nico. He presents himself as perfect, but in reality, he’s a fraud. When he comes to Manila to meet the two girls, they are startled about their situation. His deception is a red flag, yet the besties turn into rivals to win him over. Love turns them into “sinister sisters.”

Here are quotes from Robb (R), Jela (J), Nicco (N) and Linneth (L):

R: Love knows no race or color. What matters is your feelings for each other.

J: When people see Pinays with afam boyfriends, they tend to judge that the Pinay is after his money. We hope our film will erase that stigma.

N: I watched “Tinder Swindler” to prepare for my role. In real life, I’m a one-woman man. I’m a retired chickboy.

L: Since my ex and my current boyfriend are foreigners, I’m a certified “afamista,” so I owned the material of the film, which is my debut. I incorporated my personal experience into my portrayal.

R: In real life, I won’t ruin a friendship just because of a guy. I will give way to my friend if ever we fancy the same man.

J: Hooking up with an “afam” is considered an improvement of the race. When you are half-Pinay and half-afam, you stand out … just like Pia Wurtzbach and Catriona Gray.

N: I’m sick of generalizations about afams like me. It’s a case-by-case basis. There are afams who are scammers, but not all of us are like that. My girlfriend is Pinay, and we’re in a good place.

L: My takeaway from our film is to be proud of our race and not to be intimidated by foreigners, even if they come from first-world countries.

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