Millionaire celebrity DJ Wichian ''Petjah'' Kusolmanomai is defending his decision to give away his wealth in its entirety to his new wife, actress Hansa ''Newclear'' Jungviwattanawong.
Wichian 'Petjah' Kusolmanomai and Hansa 'Newclear' Jungviwattanawong.
The long-term lovers were wed in a mixed Chinese-Thai ceremony at their palatial marital home last week. Netizens have asked why celebrities insist on throwing so much money around when they get wed, especially at a time when parts of the country are submerged under floods.
Petjah and Newclear, one of a string of celebrity couples to tie the knot in recent weeks during the city's cooler weather, were quick to defend their marital plans. The ceremony itself, while involving under 50 guests, will be followed by a spectacular wedding party this Saturday at the Shangri-La Hotel, to which over 1,500 people have been invited.
Petjah has given his new wife 28 million baht in cash, 50 baht weight in gold, and title to the marital home in the Ratchapruek area.
"She hasn't asked for much as a bridal price -- just the house, all my money, gold -- I'm giving her the lot,'' he joked.
Spotting a theme, one newspaper late last week listed half a dozen celebrities ranked by the amount of money the groom has lavished on his bride as a bridal price.
The list was topped by the wedding earlier this month of former singer and businessman Tana ''Chain'' Limpayaraya and Miss Grand Thailand 2003 runner-up, Kanika ''Jame'' Phusri (see below).
Chain lavished a 168 million baht bridal price on his new wife, comprising a house worth 147 million baht, 8,888,888 baht in cash, 168 baht weight in gold worth 3.4 million baht, a 25-carat diamond crown worth 5 million baht, and assorted diamonds worth 3,711,112 baht. Asked why he had revealed the bridal price in such detail to the media, Chain said the figures were not only huge, but auspicious, so he wanted to share them.
Commenting in public reaction to her wedding plans, actress Newclear denied the cost was beyond their budget, but said the couple also wanted to make it a day to remember. The reception area will be done up in the theme of Princess Elsa's ice castle from the Disney movie Frozen, one of her favourites.
"I have had to scale down the ice castle plans, as the ceiling of the reception room wasn't big enough,'' she said. "I didn't have enough princesses, and it looked more like a fairy tale setting than a wedding."
Asked if it was necessary for Petjah to give away his worldly fortune, Newclear said it was his own choice.
"When I asked him to put a figure on the bridal price, he said he didn't want to put a value on me, so he would rather give me the lot. As he was heading off to the bank, he said: 'Don't leave me, na!'
"But he hasn't really left himself with nothing, because he has to keep a bit aside for the children we will have. He has put the house in my name, but not yet the car,'' she said.
Petjah said the wedding party will be modest, not one of the season's giant events. Asked why he was handing over his fortune, he joked that any man scared of his wife would give her everything.
"Most couples divide their assets according to their personal circumstances. But I want to tell my girlfriend and her family that they can be sure in me; I am not trying to trick her into marriage.
"If I want something of my own, I can always earn it again, as I still have my business interests. Marriage is like starting a family anew, so the money is still here. I also want to serve as an example to the public that a single man can change his ways,'' he said, referring to his playboy antics of the past.
"At what point in Thailand did we decide if you have anything in life, you have to help others? In fact, I help people constantly,'' he said, referring to criticism of their marital plans.
Tana 'Chain' Limpayaraya and Kanika 'Jame' Phusri.
Ex-singer addresses fake online claims
Former singer and city businessman Tana ''Chain'' Limpayaraya has gone to police after fake Facebook sites falsely claimed he had refused to help a flood-stricken grandmother in the South because they are not relatives.
Chain, who laid a complaint with Technology Crime Suppression Division police last week after earlier visiting his local station in Thong Lor, said claims that he had withheld help for a flood victim had hurt his business and affected his family.
He said the saga came to light on Monday, one day after his wedding to former beauty queen Kanika ''Jame'' Phusri.
"I woke the day after our wedding and was looking idly at pictures when people started abusing me on social media. Two Facebook sites are to blame. The day before, reports emerged of the bridal price I was paying. The Facebook sites claimed someone wrote asking me for a donation of 500 baht to help a grandmother down south. They claimed I refused to help.
"I allegedly replied that I might have millions of baht but still wouldn't help as she is not a relative of mine. In fact, such a sentence has never been uttered in Thailand,'' Chain said, referring to Thais' willingness to help each other in their hour of need.
Chain said he has helped fellow Thais struggling with the floods by mobilising funds. "I have been busy with my wedding lately, but am likely to visit Bang Saphan in Prachuap Khiri Khan to help further," he said, referring to a flood hotspot.
"I was a flood victim myself back in 2011. The water rose to a metre at our place in Bang Bua Thong in Nonthaburi. We had to seek shelter at a relative's place, so I know how much suffering is involved," he said.
Since the fake news emerged, friends and family had called, while sales reps and customers from his food supplement business had left abuse.
"Some Thais have written inviting me to the South. They say they will assault me when I get there," he said. ''I decided to take action to protect my reputation, as I have a family and many people dependent on me.''
Chain's new wife Jame said it felt odd visiting police the day after they were married.
"The day after the wedding we should be chilling out, yet there I was at the station. I asked Chain if we could just ignore them, as complaining would just give them publicity. But with mum and dad asking, and people starting not to believe us … I knew we couldn't go on like this,'' she said.
Meanwhile, actress Achara ''Ae'' Thongthep is upset after a security guard chased her and friends away from a shopping mall as they were raising funds for southern flood victims.
"The guard at The Mall Bang Kapi claimed he was from the South, but chased us away as if we were stray dogs. We were actually raising money for flood victims," she said.
Ae and her friends managed to raise 12,780 baht from a foot bridge outside the entrance to the mall before the guard shoo-ed them away.
"He threatened to get the police if we didn't leave. I am willing to be caught. I would like to know … Was your home one of those flooded?'' she asked, publishing a picture of herself in tears.
While some netizens were sympathetic, others said the guard was just doing his job.
Pageant owner wants to start family
Owner of the Miss Tiffany show in Pattaya, Alisa ''Ja'' Phanthusak, says she is setting her sights on starting a family with her new husband, even though work is hectic.
Puwanart 'Aun' Kunpalin and Alisa 'Ja' Phanthusak.
Ja, 42, married TV presenter Puwanart ''Aun'' Kunpalin, 40, in a combined Thai, Chinese and Western ceremony last week. He gave her a bridal price including a five-carat diamond ring, and a marital home in the same design his father once built for his mother.
In prior interviews, Aun said businesswoman Ja had repeatedly turned down his offers of marriage as she was worried he was gay, and that looking after him would interfere with her career.
As well as helping her family run Miss Tiffany's Show, Ja also has interests running eateries in Pattaya and Bangkok.
Speaking on their wedding day, Ja said she was setting her sights on starting a family, as age was advancing. "We will try to make a start as soon as possible. However, I am not worried about whether I can have it naturally or have to rely on a surgeon's knife."
The couple could always resort to assisted reproductive technology if all else failed, she said.
"I have laid down a plan for everything in life,'' she said. "I harvested my eggs years ago but don't know how many kids we will have.''
Aum, who said he was placing no pressure on his wife to have kids, joked she had frozen a "huge'' amount of eggs.
"If we can't have them, we won't suffer because of it. We started off life together as a couple, and were happy. If we have children I would regard it as a bonus,'' he said.
The pair plan a honeymoon in New York, as Ja wanted to check out the shows on Broadway to bring back a few ideas for Miss Tiffanys.
Registering the marriage could wait. "It's an involved process legally, as I have many businesses to look after,'' Ja said.
