‘Dani Girl’ is now a brand endorser

MANILA,Philippines — Dimples Romana’s meme-worthy TV character Daniela Mondragon, with her red outfit and red maleta, has been spotted everywhere. Dani Girl has appeared in wet markets and fiestas, as well as waded through rivers while pulling carabaos, joined a group of noontime dancers and paraded with her squad of Hollywood stars.

Well, you do note, Dani Girl is now officially a brand endorser, not just once, not twice but thrice to date, at least.

And the 34-year-old Kapamilya star couldn’t be any happier for the good fortune that has come to her onscreen “alter ego.”

During the recent presscon that introduced her as the new face of the beauty and skincare brand Skin Magical, Dimples said, “This is not the only endorsement of Dani Girl. I have two more (endorsements) that will come out next week as Dani Girl.”

An endorsement deal for a luggage brand is also being worked out, she also revealed.

“I’m just happy na naging positive siya,” referring to the effect of popular her character, the chief antagonist in the top-rating ABS-CBN afternoon drama Kadenang Ginto the airing of which, Dimples said, is far from ending yet.

“It’s a kontrabida with a heart. People understand her because you know, everyone of us has a good and bad side, it just depends on what you want to show, ano ang nananaig sa’yo. Me, I want to revolutionize yung pagiging kontrabida para magkaroon naman ng kakaiba. Kasi forte ko rin naman yung magiging mabait sa roles, so bakit hindi ko naman pagsamahin ito?”

Dimples noted that she’s also endorsing Skin Magical as herself.

Dimples with Skin Magical CEO Ghie Pangilinan and her husband Jerry.

According to Skin Magical CEO Ghie Pangilinan and husband Jerry, they picked Dimples as their endorser because she shares the same characteristics as that of the brand’s campaign, Gandang Palaban, which has “the objective of making everyone confidently beautiful and happily achieve a successful life.”

For Dimples, what she likes about the brand is that she can relate to its story of humble beginnings. Ghie with the support of her OFW husband Jerry started a soap business in Morong, Rizal with an initial capital of P7,000 and one distributor only. Today, Dimples said, it’s a business that’s proudly Pinoy but awarded abroad. At present, Skin Magical has 80 franchisees and 150 distributors with an average delivery of 100,000 to 150,000 of Rejuvenating Sets every month. Ghie will also soon launch a book on entrepreneurship under ABS-CBN Publishing.

The 34-year-old actress during the presscon presenting her as brand endorser.

On a more personal note, the actress enjoys endorsing Skin Magical because she’s big on skincare. Maintaining her skin for all the 23 years she has been in show business is no joke. Crying scenes and exposure to harsh lights for long periods of time can take a toll on the skin.

Dimples particularly recalled her skin insecurities when she was younger. “Growing up, I didn’t have good skin. During Kay Tagal days with John Lloyd (Cruz) and Bea (Alonzo), oh my god, yung pimple ko, pag tumubo siya, sa pinaka odd na lugar talaga, yung sa ilong, sa gilid, mako-connect the dots mo. That’s why I can relate to people going through the same thing. I learned how to take care of my skin.

“Dahil artista na ako 12 years old pa lang ako, napakalaki ng aking insecurities. Kasi pag nakita ka nila sa TV, nakita nila ang pimple mo. Hanggang ngayon makikita nila kasi may YouTube na. So you can just imagine na parang na-immortalize na yung pimple mo. Yung pimple mo nung 16 years old ka, hanggang ngayon pwede nilang pag-usapan.

“(Taking care of my skin) only started when I realized that this is an investment, this is a source of income. I worked on it. At sa totoo lang ngayon, ang maganda sa atin lahat, kahit hindi tayo artista ang peg natin palagi ay kutis-artista. Mamula-mula ka. Kung hindi mo man gustong maputi, yun bang makinis,” she said. 

Still, her state of happiness and contentment is more than skin-deep. The proud wife and mother of two said, “I-flex ko lang ha, sobrang saya ko sa trabaho... pagdating ko sa bahay, niyayakap ako ng pamilya ko, walang sasarap pa! I feel like I’m having a work-life balance. So, I’m at a point, na nahihiya ako, Lord, are you sure you’re giving this to me? Pwede po sa iba to? Pero ang sabi kasi ng Diyos, no, you have to embrace my blessings.”

Dimples said that reaching this high point in her career was a tough climb. Along the way, she took on every role, whether mainstream or indie, as long as the material was good and would fit her limitations, never mind if her character only had three lines and got killed off a few episodes later. “There was a time, I was always the mother in the flashbacks.”

She also married very young and was predicted not to last long in the business. However, she said, “It wasn’t in my book to give up. Hindi uso sa akin yung quitting.”

She can honestly say that she’s at a stage in her life and career that she just wants to somehow be a source of inspiration to other people who need it. “I just want to be the kind of inspiration na just because, for example, you married young, it’s not the end for you. Bukas, ang buhay ng tao, you cannot define that with a single misstep. In fact, sa pagdapa na yun makakabuwelo ka pa-akyat.”

Dimples shared that she’s so contented with what she has right now that she had informed her Star Magic handler that she wished to semi-retire next year.

“For somebody who came from nothing, I think I have enough. Isipin mo, tanggalin mo lahat ng pera at karera ko, buo pa rin ako, kasama ko pamilya ko.

“I told my handler, enough na yung ipon ko pwede na ba akong mag-semi-retire next year? Sabi sa akin, ano? Hindi pwede! Sinabi rin ng mga nanay-nanayan at tatay-tatayan ko sa showbiz, Dimples, no, you keep on going.

“I was thinking, oo nga, because sometimes when you feel the blessings have already been enough, you feel it’s okay to stop and I also don’t want to be greedy. I don’t believe that money is the end-all for everything.

“But I believe in inspiring people, so I’m taking that more as a motivation to keep on going because for the sake of the younger artistas, who feel that they don’t have a place in this industry, I want them to feel hopeful whenever they see me, that they will think, ‘she worked hard for it, she persevered for many years, and it will also happen to me.’ I want them to feel that way whenever they see me.”