Yasmien Kurdi, Gabbi Garcia break the glass ceiling

MANILA, Philippines — Yasmien Kurdi and Gabbi Garcia, along with Bea Binene, are women in love in the GMA Telebabad drama-action series Beautiful Justice. This love for their loved ones leads Yasmien’s Alice, Gabbi’s Brie and Bea’s Kitkat to break the glass ceiling. The Kapuso actresses continue to espouse the positive image of women through the soap directed by Mark Reyes V.

“Alam naming mga kababaihan ito, ang abilities namin (we know our abilities as women),” said Yasmien in a group interview. “We want to show that what men can do, women can do it also.”

She added, “Iba na ang mundo ngayon, lalo na sa kababaihan (The world has changed, especially for women), kailangan din (naming) malaman kung paano depensahan ang aming mga sarili, kung paano namin magagawa ang mga ginagawa ng mga lalaki (We need to know how to defend ourselves and how to do male-oriented tasks). It’s a new world, it’s a modern world. I think this (show) is very positive, walang lalaki, walang babae dito.”

Appreciating, too, the gender-equality theme of Beautiful Justice was Gabbi, by saying that “actually, nakakatuwa for they’ve (created) an ensemble — (composed of) Yasmien, Bea and I — to represent women who are willing to fight for their loved ones physically and emotionally… We’re all female and it’s about time people should give (it) a try, watching three girls fighting, and it’s refreshing (to see) women (who work as a team).

“Usually in a teleserye with women, (they get involved) in kabitan (illicit affairs or extramarital relationships) (and) sabunutan (hair-pulling situations). This time, they will team up… hindi na kami nagluluto, nagtsitsismisan, pwede na rin kaming bumaril (we are no longer cooking and gossiping, we can also fire a gun).”

So Alice, Brie and Kitkat do not only show women’s love but also their courage.

Asked about their experience in doing action sequences, Yasmien answered, “We haven’t done any. We are about to enter the action-sequence (phase). We’ve done our (Krav Maga) training and we still have to do another training.” The female leads are taught the basics of handling guns like the small ones and “malalaki at iba’t-ibang pang klase ng baril,” shared Yasmien.

As for Gabbi, she had fun completing the intense gun training sessions but got intimidated by the tasks at first, “Di ko alam kung kaya ko (I doubted myself if I could do it), but I enjoyed the training.”

Although her work as Alena in Encantadia could have somehow lessened the jitters and given her the heads-up, playing Brie posts unique challenges for Gabbi. “Siguro mas nanibago ako this time, mas-tutok yung training and mas-hand-to-hand combat talaga kumpara sa Engka (I needed some time to get used to it because the training was more focused and involved hand-to-hand combat as compared to Encantadia).”

The Beautiful Justice narrative will see Alice, Brie and Kitkat find leads and ways to understand the tragic death of their loved ones — all Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) agents. It’s a husband in the case of Alice, boyfriend of Brie and brother of Kitkat. They seek for truth and justice. What’s also implied is that Alice, Brie and Kitkat may form a secret group to fulfill their personal-turned-collective mission. This is possible since they will form a professional bond with a PDEA agent named Vin, played by Gil Cuerva. Also in the cast are Victor Neri, Bing Loyzaga, Derrick Monasterio and Valeen Montenegro.

As Brie, Gabbi is a vlogger, social media influencer and an It girl, “May pagka-hacker (siya) dito… She can’t accept the passing of her (boyfriend). Maarte (siya) na misunderstood, na mabait naman at may katalinuhan (She is also kind and smart).” Bea as Kitkat, on the other hand, is a street-smart beautician, who always engages Brie in discussions. Coming in between them is Yasmien’s Alice. “I think I’m the ate (the older sister),” Yasmien shared. “As their ate, I would stop (their arguments) and decide on what are the next steps that we will take.” For someone who has done family/relationship-oriented TV series aired either in late morning or in the afternoon timeslot, Yasmien considered Beautiful Justice a respite from the familiar territory she has been associated with.

“It excites (and thrills) me,” she said of her latest TV role and return to the primetime block. “Nagkaroon na ako ng kalyo sa kamay kakakasa ng baril. I’m very excited, I’m very happy but I’m very pressured, too. After five years, lumabas po ako sa box ko, I got out of my box (comfort zone).”

Given the “action” in the “drama” series, Yasmien’s husband Rey Soldevilla Jr. and Gabbi’s boyfriend Khalil Ramos just offer their full support.

“Of course, he is very happy and very excited for me, supportive si pangga. You know he supports (every) project I do,” said Yasmien.

“Hindi, wala yun sa kanya (He doesn’t worry),” shared Gabbi.

That also speaks of their loved ones’ trust, which is reason enough for Yasmien and Gabbi to give their all in Beautiful Justice.

(Beautiful Justice premieres on Sept. 9 after 24 Oras and airs weeknights thereafter. For program guide, visit www.gmapinoytv.com.)