Rustom Padilla's braces nearly paralyzed his face

In its premiere telecast, Showbiz Central made actor Rustom Padilla face the show's Central Jury—composed of Mo Twister, Shirley Kuan, and Arnell Ignacio. The Jury lightened up things by first asking a question about the first time Rustom ever wore a vestida. "Yung sa ZsaZsa Zaturnnah," Rustom answered. "Premiere night, sobrang excited ako noon. Feeling ko, a-attend ako sa sagala!" Rustom's former manager, Shirley, followed up with: "Kamusta naman ang lovelife mo ngayon?" "I wish masasagot kita ng ‘Oo, masaya.' Pero hindi, e,'" Rustom replied. The next question was about a rumor saying Rustom had the hots for a basketball coach. This was followed by a video clip of a man named Manny Mendoza giving a message to Rustom. When asked who the guy was, Rustom said that the man on the video clip was the fellow who taught him how to play basketball, and that this was in line with his role in the movie Happy Hearts, where he was required to play basketball. "Noong ginawa ko yung Happy Hearts, kailangan kong matuto ng basketball. Hindi talaga ako marunong mag-basketball... Siguro yun yung reason noon na confused na confused ako sa sarili ko," Rustom said. Recently, Rustom was struck with a paralytic disorder called Bell's palsy or facial paralysis. This resulted from a mistake Rustom's dentist made with the braces the actor was being fitted with. Half of Rustom's body was nearly paralyzed after the braces were incorrectly fitted up. Rustom said, "Sadly, because of negligence, mali yung placements nung brackets, kasi assistant lang ang nagkabit. So, doon na nangyari yung paralyzation." Rustom is now undergoing physical therapy to reverse the damage. "Tingin ko, kailangan ng neurologist," Rustom's new dentist revealed. "It was really bad. Every time na ngumingiti siya, or whenever he makes an expression, tumatabingi yung mukha niya. We started treating him March 6, bale nasa final stages na kami. Siguro by August, or September, we're done with him [Rustom]." DJ Mo asked Rustom if he would press charges against the dentist. "Alam mo, added stress lang ‘yan. Ayoko ng stress sa buhay," said Rustom, who last year revealed that he was gay while he was in Pinoy Big Brother. Rustom was formerly married to Carmina Villarroel. They have no children. Addressing his former dentist, Rustom said, "Pero sana lang, kung nakikinig siya ngayon, ‘Doktora, I guess you owe it to your patients to become responsible. Please be responsible because, for two months, hindi ako nakapagtrabaho.'" - Philippine Entertainment Portal