Vic, Pauleen & Tali Sotto star as ‘themselves’ in family sitcom

Last Sept. 4, the new sitcom Love, Bosleng and Tali premiered on NET25. Top-billed by Vic Sotto, Pauleen Luna-Sotto and their adorable little daughter Tali, the show marks the first time Vic, Pauleen and Tali are starring together as a family where they play “themselves.”

Every week, Bossing (Vic) and Pauleen receive a letter from a sender who needs advice. Tali plays the “postman” who finds the letter in the most unexpected places in their home, following which the letter-sender’s story is presented as a sitcom. Bossing and Pauleen not only read the letter, they also interact with the characters who break the fourth wall and talk to them.

The show is a riff on “He Said, She Said” where Vic and Pauleen draw on their own experiences and give their respective comments and suggestions to the advice-seeker. Inevitably, husband and wife sometimes disagree on the slant of their opinions. And in typical Vic Sotto fashion, the advice is bound to be funny, but always wise and sound.

Last week, Pauleen taped an episode of the cooking show Lutong Daza with me and Sandy Daza. In between takes, she and I chatted and did our best to catch up. After all, the last time I saw her was over 10 years ago! We began talking about food and I naturally asked her if she knows how to cook. She admitted that they have a great cook who has been with Vic for decades, one who is so good at her job that Pauleen has left the cooking chores in her able hands.

Pauleen also said that Vic’s love for Filipino food has rubbed off on Tali as well. When we talked about motherhood, Pauleen’s eyes lit up and she shared that her life changed completely for the better as soon as she became a mom.

For as long as she can remember, her ultimate dream was to become a mother. She feels so blessed that they were gifted with Tali, who is such a funny, gentle and loving child. And these traits of Tali’s are what make it quite difficult for Vic to say no to their precious little one. And so, when it comes to disciplining Tali, husband and wife agreed that Pauleen will be the disciplinarian.

I witnessed this myself when Vic called Pauleen while we were chatting. He called because Tali wanted to ask her mom’s permission to go swimming. After a few questions and some reminders, Pauleen allowed Tali to go swimming with her dad. Pauleen is a firm disciplinarian who makes a conscious effort to train Tali to be kind, humble and unselfish. Even if she can get practically anything she wants, Pauleen wants to ensure that her child does not grow up feeling entitled.

Tali is indeed lucky and blessed to have parents who love each other immensely. The very few times Pauleen and Vic argue, they resolve it peacefully and quietly. Their 34-year age gap is no issue because they respect each other and know enough not to utter hurtful words because there’s no taking them back once they’ve been unleashed.

It helps that Vic’s family is a happy, loving and caring bunch of in-laws and stepchildren that Pauleen gets along with. During our taping, Pauleen requested that we finish by 2 p.m. since she was hosting the gender-reveal party of her stepdaughter Danica Sotto-Pingris’ soon-to-be-born third child (a boy) later in the afternoon.

If there’s anything she learned during the pandemic, it’s to live in the moment because time is precious and fleeting. If there’s a silver lining to the pandemic, it’s that the Sottos have grown closer and see each other more often because most of them now live in the south, allowing Vic to enjoy a round of golf with his siblings regularly.

(Catch Love, Bosleng and Tali every Sunday from 6 to 7 p.m. on NET25. The sitcom is directed by Cris Martinez and line-produced by M-Zet Productions and Brightlight Productions.)