Kim looking for a man ‘who’ll take care of me’

Kim Chiu, who called it quits with boyfriend Gerald Anderson late last year, is in no rush to fall in love again, although she gave subtle hints about her kind of man.

“Looks aren’t important, but there has to be a spark between us,” Kim, 21, told writers during a media gathering for her latest TV series, “My Binondo Girl” on ABS-CBN. “He doesn’t have to be that handsome, but he has to be kind and loving… someone who will take care of me.”

After teaming up with Gerald in most of her TV and film projects, Kim said she was initially nervous having to work with other leading men. For the series, she is being paired with three young actors—Jolo Revilla, Xian Lim and Matteo Guidicelli.

Not yet close

“We’re not that close yet, but we will definitely get a lot of bonding time on the set,” she said. “They’re all good actors. I hope that will be enough for the series to be successful.”

“My Binondo Girl,” which premieres August 22, is about a Filipino-Chinese girl named Jade Dimaguiba, who pretends to be a boy to get her father’s attention. Malu Sevilla directs.

Kim said the role is the most challenging for her so far. She’s a totally girly girl, who likes all things pink. “I never imagined I’d be acting like a boy,” she added.

To prepare for the role, she had to watch a lot of movies with a similar theme.

How effective is the “boy” Kim? She related a funny incident in Hong Kong, where they shot for four days. “I was on a break and looking at the knickknacks being sold in a bazaar when a group of young Chinese girls started staring at me. They all giggled when I smiled back at them. I guess I’d pass off as a good-looking boy, after all.”

Kim also said she found the residents of Binondo, a community in Manila primarily populated by ethnic Chinese, to be quite warm and accommodating. “They learned from one of my TV intervews that I loved siomai, so whenever I’m there, they send me all kinds of siomai—big, small, in color green, yellow and white,” the actress said. “They also keep saying they’re fond of me.”

Kim was last seen in the drama series “Kung Tayo’y Magkakalayo” in September 2010. The actress said she’s now feeling the pressure of having to play the title role in a prime-time show. “I’m nervous. I’m not sure if viewers would like my work the way they did last year, especially now that I won’t be with Gerald anymore,” she said. “Then again, the story is very beautiful, the cast is very credible and the production team, reliable. We can’t go wrong.”

The show also features Gina Pareño, Cherry Pie Picache, Ai Ai de las Alas, Glydel Mercado, Ricardo Cepeda, Laureen Uy and Richard Yap.