Princess Punzalan left showbiz for family

MANILA, Philippines – One of the popular Filipina villains is back as she stars in the ABS-CBN primetime series “The Story of Us.”

She’ll portray the role of Clodette, the mother of CJ (Bryan Santos), the third wheel in the relationship of Macoy and Tin.

“No’ng pinadala sa akin ang character sketch, na-excite ako kasi unang-una, na-miss ko talaga makatrabaho ang ABS-CBN,” she said about accepting the project, in an interview on Tuesday.

“Since naging very iconic ang character na Celina, I wanted to do something else na drama, may paka-kontra bida, pero ibang take naman. So ‘yon ang challenge for me,” she added.

Celina was the main villain of Claudine Barretto-starring drama series “Mula sa Puso,” where Punzalan's laugh became iconic.

The trademark laugh of Princess Punzalan! pic.twitter.com/VE7fezM1FC

- PhilstarShowbiz (@PhilstarShowbiz) March 29, 2016

Punzalan has been away for more than 15 years, but clarified that she didn’t leave the industry permanently.

However, her marriage made her decide that “it was a good step na iwan muna lahat ng ito at mag-concentrate sa buhay may asawa, na wala pa masyadong nakikialam sa buhay ko.”

“I really want to make my family work, my marriage work. So kailangan maging priority ‘yon para sa akin,” she noted.

She now has a two-year-old daughter who is with her in the Philippines while she’s shooting for the soap opera.

Asked if she’s willing to do another project after “The Story of Us,” Punzalan said it’ll depend on what she and her husband will decide on.