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When with SIS’s whimsical hosts—Carmina Villaroel and sisters Janice and Gellie De Belen, expect a little bluntness, a dollop of tact, some funny musings and...
When with SIS’s whimsical hosts—Carmina Villaroel and sisters, Janice and Gellie De Belen, expect a little bluntness, a dollop of tact, some funny musings and a hefty load of sisterly acts! Text by Yvette U. Tan. Photos by Mitch S. Mauricio.
These girlies are without guile when they’re yacking about themselves. They talk with candor when asked about the ins and outs of their often busy world. Ask one question and you get three different answers, often hilariously coming to an agreement in the end.
“Si Janice,” Gellie says, “stubborn yan e.”
“Ako?” Janice replies, then later concedes with a smile “oo nga…stubborn.”
“How about Carmina? What can you say about her?, ” we asked.
Gelli and Janice jointly tease Mina by calling her “weird!” then seriously, Gelli pipes in again saying “Actually, Carmina is thoughtful… weird lang siya pag pagod siya”.
Carmina couldn’t agree more. She admits being pesky when tired from a long, dogged day at work . “[Carmina] she remembers what you like,” adds Gelli smiling. The young De Belen remembers Carmina giving her gifts exactly matching her taste and coolest favorites. “Ang dami nga lang niyang mag-kape,” slips in Janice. “Kung hindi naming siya aawatin, aabutin ng 5 cups”.
Carmina and Janice and Gelli have been hanging out for years years, even before they began co-hosting the program SIS. And because their ties are so tight, they’ve shared almost every major incident they’ve come across their lives. From their once single heydays up to the time they took on husbands and bore children, the three no longer have to put up with each other’s motley moods—they’re just so used to each other that no matter the break and tide of day, the trios are just perfectly compatible.
"Sistahs" in every way
Carmina recalls of Janice “Nung bata pa ako, kasama ko na siya”. And take her word for it, because Janice can attest to how often Carmina would stay in her house and the two would bond like real-blood sisters. “She’s my ate,” Carmina smiles. And it continuous to be so to this day.
But when it comes to goofing around, expect Carmina to gel with Gellie. One time after a taping of Nuts Entertainment, the two haung out in Makati just to gabber about the day when suddenly for no reason, they both tapped into their sentimental sides and began crying. “Ewan ko naging senti-senti kami ng hindi naming sinasadya,” Carmina shares amusedly. Around them, people might have thought they were taping some kind of soap with hidden cameras. As they dramatically strolled the sidewalk then, they talked about everything: from what attitude they like best about each other and how their friendship is steering for them well. When Gellie recalls this, she couldn’t hold her laughs just the same. At spur-of-the-moment times, the two say, they can really be quite serious.
Gellie and Carmina share a combative knack to defend people they love. Although this comes only rare and in the most demanding of situations, Gellie for one remembers how innumerably she has picked up a fight with Janice’s ex hubby-actor, John Estrada. And Carmina once defended her sister from a boyfriend who kept screwing up. As for Janice? Well, she would like to think of herself as the buffer or filter. She can't recall any fight she has been in in the recent past. She grins- “Hanggang salita lang ako, tsaka kwento-kwento lang…dead ma lang ako.”
The “dead-ma” in Janice doesn’t mean however that she’s a thoughtless soul. She is, in fact, the sweeter of the two sisters. “Ako. Promise, sweeter ako,” she says. “Parang ito [Gellie], nung isang araw pinadalhan ko ng quote ng pang ‘happy mother’s day’, tapos alam mo kung anong tinext back sa akin…’same to you’! Wala man lang smiling face, wala man lang exclamation point…talagang ‘same to you’ lang.”
“Alam mo ba kung ilan kayong nagpadala ng message sa kin nung araw nay un?,” cuts-in Gellie.
“Gellie, magkapatid tayo!” Janice yells back.
“Mas na-totouch ako pag ang text sa kin ‘happy mother’s day to you’ chuva na hindi forwarded message, kahit short siya,”
“Gellie, yung mga finoforward naming messages, yun ang nakakatouch. Kahit forwarded siya, yun ang gusto naming i-share sa yo,” teases Carmina.
Conversations like those take place every day and often go one for a while.
Happy trios make happy hosts
There indeed is no stopping to the upbeat and compatible mix of Carmina, Janice and Gellie. Their sistah-hood extends beyond TV and that makes them likable to the audience that tunes in to watch them everyday. There is something about their very real friendship that people can relate to.
So keep watching the delightful trio of Janice, Gelli and Mina!
