‘The fist of a man, the heart of a woman’

That blurb for the hit Thai movie Beautiful Boxer, released locally by Viva Films starting on Wednesday, Jan. 11, aptly describes the person around whom the story revolves – transsexual kickboxer Parinya Charoenphol, affectionately known as Nong Toom in her country, who is portrayed by real-life kickboxer Asanee Suwan, a Yul Servo lookalike who is also, like Toom, from Chiangmai and who started kickboxing at age 12 to help a poor family.

The life of Nong Toom (who was once featured in National Geographic magazine) is full of drama and color. As a boy, he briefly joined a Buddhist monastery but was dismissed because he loved to wear makeup. That was when Toom realized that he was a girl trapped in a boy’s body but that didn’t stop him from venturing into kickboxing, a sport unique to Thailand involving swooping kicks, flying elbows and sledgehammer uppercuts.

Toom won matches and became a champion and that stopped the hissing that usually preceded his every fight which he kicked off with a dance routine as colorful as his thick makeup. And then, at 17, he decided to undergo a sex-change operation. Thus, he, now a she, became known for having "the fist of a man, the heart of a woman."

Beautiful Boxer, which chronicles the main events not only of Toom’s life off the ring but also on it, has won raves and awards not only in Thailand but also in international film festivals such as the Brussels Filmfest in Belgium where it won a Grand Prix and at the Montreal Filmfest in Canada.

Suwan, the kickboxer-turned-actor, has fought and won in more than 180 matches in Thailand and Denmark. He was ranked No. 5 by the World Muay Thai Council in the 118-pound category. In 2001, Suwan was also named Best Kickboxer by the Association of Muay Thai for the Northern Region of Thailand. He quit kickboxing after Beautiful Boxer and is concentrating on being an actor.

Other members of the Beautiful Boxer cast include Thailand’s award-winning actor Sorapong Chatree as Toom’s coach and one-time Miss Thailand Orn-Anong Panyawong as Toom’s mother.

Last week, Funfare did an exclusive interview with Toom at the coffee shop of the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Bangkok. When she walked in, all heads turned in her direction. In person, Toom is demure and ladylike, more like a woman than a real woman. There’s hardly any giveaway until she comes closer and you notice her Adam’s Apple. She was accompanied by her manager, Sathira Angkul, who also acted as interpreter during the interview (Toom speaks very little English).

You’re 24. When did you have a sex-change operation?

"I had it seven years ago, when I was 17, at the John Hay Hospital in Bangkok."

So you really like to be a woman.

"Yes, ever since I was a child."

How did you prepare for the operation? Did you have to consult a psychiatrist?

"I had to talk to a psychiatrist for about a year. I had to take female hormones. I don’t know what they were called but they came in the form of pills."

Haven’t you had any regrets?

"Never. I am very happy being a woman."

Did you have a boyfriend before the operation?

"No, I didn’t have a boyfriend."

Did you have a boyfriend after the operation?

"Yes, I had one. He was Thai. We were together for three years."

Did your boyfriend know that you had a transsexual operation?

"Yes, he knew."

No malice... But do you enjoy sex now more than you did before the operation?

"I’m so sorry but I don’t want to answer that question. Sorry."

How was your childhood like as a boy?

"I have two older brothers, one little brother and one sister. We were happy but poor."

When did you know that you were, well, "different"?

"I realized that when I couldn’t feel anything when I saw a girl, not like other boys my age."

How did your family react?

"They were okay."

According to a magazine story, you were once a monk, weren’t you?

"Yes, I was. As a monk, I did everything that a monk was expected to do – pray."

What made you decide to be a kickboxer?

"Because I wanted to earn money for my family. As a monk, I wasn’t earning money."

In the movie, it says that you went into kickboxing because you needed money for your sick father...

"...yes, it’s true. My father was sick; he couldn’t work."

So it’s okay for somebody like you to be a kickboxer?

"I tried very hard to be a good kickboxer, to be even better than the male kickboxers. At first, people found me funny. But later on, when I became a champion, they stopped laughing."

How many times have you won as champion?

"Five times."

I heard that, after the operation, you also joined the Miss Gay Thailand contest. Did you win?

"I did. But I didn’t compete in the Miss Gay International contest."

Didn’t you think of any other job to earn money?

"I wanted to be a model. But at that time, it was easier to be a kickboxer."

Are you still a kickboxer?

"I was a kickboxer before and even after I had the operation. But now, I train kickboxers. And I’m also a model and an actress. I have done more than 17 films."

How did you react when the offer came for your life story to be filmed?

"I was happy and proud that somebody was interested in my life story. I did a bit role in the movie."

Do you know Asanee Suwan, the kickboxer who portrays you in the movie?

"Yes. I’ve known him for a long time now since we met in Chiangmai. He’s from Chiangmai where I also come from."

Is he your boyfriend?

"No. Of course not!"

Did you recommend him to portray you?

"Yes, a little bit but not much."

Did he talk to you before shooting the movie – you know, to study how you moved, how you talked, etc.?

"No need because, as I’ve said, we have known each other for a long time. But I taught him how to do the dance that I did before I fought and how to smile. We are friends but we are not that close."

Is he gay?

"No, he’s not. He has a girlfriend."

Were you satisfied with Suwan’s acting when you saw the movie?

"Yes, I was. He’s a very good actor."

What have been the changes in your life now that you are popular?

"People understand better now how I feel. I share the money that I earn with my family which still lives in Chiangmai. I live in Bangkok with my sister. Sometimes I go abroad to model. I’ve been to Italy, Japan and 18 other countries to have a show. I model and dance but I don’t sing. I model sexy dresses."

So you’re now officially a woman...

"...not officially. In Thailand, I cannot change my gender even if I am now a woman."

Do you plan to get married?

"Of course, I do. But first, I have to find the right man."

What kind of a husband do you want?

"He must be kind."

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