Chantavit "Ter" Dhanasevi is a man of many talents, both on-screen and off. While Chantavit has been a part of the screen-writing team for successful comedies like Guan Muen Ho (Hello Stranger) and Pee Mak Phrakanong, he's better known in front of the camera. He has played lead characters in ATM: Er Rak Error and Guan Muen Ho. Both films earned over 100 million baht at the Thai box office.
Chantavit Dhanasevi plays Punn, a soldier who falls for a beautiful captain, in Phu Kong Yord Rak.
His latest appearance is in the TV series Phu Kong Yord Rak (My Beloved Captain) — a military comedy which will finish its airing this weekend on Channel 3.
Phu Kong Yod Rak follows Punn, a soldier who falls in love with one beautiful captain in the infantry and his comedic effort to win her heart. The story originated from a novel of the same name and has been remade about 8 times before since 1972 — both as films and lakorns.
This lakorn has been remade over and over. How do you keep it fresh and original?
I watched the previous two versions — 2002 and 2007. They were very good. I watched how the actors portrayed the characters. Then, I tried to design this character differently. It took a while. In the previous versions, my character would talk slowly and with a thick accent. I redesigned the rhythm for him. He's now fast paced. He talks faster now, like teenagers, but still with an accent.
How did you prepare for the role?
I was very concerned because this character has to talk with an accent. I didn't think I'd be able to do it. So, I discussed with the director. We had a workshop for 2 days in Suphan
Buri. I went there with another actor and we had to talk with an accent all the time that we were there. I mimicked the locals by listening to them carefully. I said something wrong and they laughed at me. After the two-day workshop, I continued my practice at home.
Tell us about your experience on set. What's it like to play a soldier?
Though we didn't have to join in the real soldier training to prepare for the role, we still had to do everything — punishment and training — as a real soldier would on-screen to get a realistic image. Something like carrying a table under intense heat for a couple of hours to crawling on a hot concrete surface — all the while wearing the heavy combat boots as well. Most of our extras are real soldiers, too. We can't really be slouchy in front of them. They have it even harder compare to us.
What is it like to play a soldier now that our country is under a military government?
It was good. I haven't experienced a soldier's life since my Ror Dor day. During filming, we had to go inside the infantry. You can really see how tired the soldiers are. It's about discipline, every single day. We already feel exhausted pretending to be them on-screen. But this is real life for them. We got to see how they struggled for us. True, we can see soldiers everywhere now, but we have never seen them crawl or run under the sun. I really feel for them.
As a screenwriter who usually writes comedies, how do you keep your stories fresh and funny?
During writing, I try not to repeat any jokes or it'll be really predictable and redundant. Making things funny is not just about saying a smart one liner or telling a joke. To me, it's more about putting the characters in a funny situation. We have to think first about the characters, who they are and in what situations would be the most funny to see them in. That makes a fun scene.
In real life, there are lots of funny things — like getting your car keys out and it then falls into the ditch. That's funny already. Good fun is something that people can relate to. People will see it and think, "hey, I've been through that before."
Some of the previous film content has been taken from real life, too. Funny things, drama and romance. Many were taken from the screenwriter's real life — like the live octopus eating scene in Guan Muen Ho. I saw that when I was in Korea and I found it really amusing. I decided to put that into the story — all without proper research. When you eat the octopus, you actually have to put sesame oil on it to make it slippery and easy to swallow. During filming, however, we didn't put oil on it. The octopus was still alive and it sucked on my lips. I kept trying to pull it out. It really hurt. My lips were actually swollen — like how it was captured on film. After that, I had to see the doctor and rest for a few days. It was still pretty funny, though.
Tell us about your upcoming projects.
I have a film coming up with GTH. I'm currently working on the script. I can't really say anything about the story, but it should be released some time next year. It's being made by the team who made Pee Mak Phrakanong, so that should be pretty entertaining.
