NATURALLY , KC CONCEPCION

FROM childhood onward, Maria Kristina Cassandra Concepcion, or simply KC, has been subjected to not only intense media scrutiny but also endless public fascination—and, along with it, speculation and bias and even instant antipathy for reasons unknown. Which, of course, is par for the course in celebrity life, she having sprung from what amounts to showbiz royalty around these parts—but which did not necessarily inure her to the often unpleasant realities of life in the limelight that she had not sought.

Still, then as now, she never tired of flashing that infectious smile, her every pore overflowing with enthusiasm, a picture of positivity—although she doesn’t want to be labeled easily as “nice.”

What the gathered media thought would be the typical question-and-answer hosted recently by hair-care brand Palmolive for its new “Go Natural” campaign, turned out to be KC’s intimate confession as she let down her guard and for a moment allowed her emotions to take over. Indeed, everyone in the room was convinced that it was her most “natural” talk so far.

KC, who has been a Palmolive endorser for years now, offered her own insights on what to her is “natural beauty”, even sharing some beauty tips.

She admits to being obsessed with fashion accessories, which she has openly talked about on her show Simply KC. “When I saw the TVC, right away I called Palmolive Naturals for a bunch of charm bracelets to wear all together on my show. I’ve been wearing them for a week now,” said KC.

On natural beauty

ASKED to choose five women who represent natural beauty to her, KC had a hard time completing the short list. On top was Julia Roberts, who has been vocal about aging gracefully. “She hardly wears makeup and even when she goes to a public event, she wears only the tiniest bit of makeup.”

Tyra Banks was next on her list, the former supermodel-turned-media mogul who does not conceal her imperfections. “She’ll remove her pushup bra then her makeup on-air. That’s something I appreciate about her.” KC on the other hand, sees beauty in Ellen DeGeneres in her being proud of who she is and being a nonconformist. Locally, it was a given that her mom, Sharon Cuneta, would be on her list. “Naturally, I would choose my mom. She’s somebody who has never taught me anything about being vain. Honestly, she has no regimen whatsoever,” KC shared. It’s just the basics that are to be found in her mom’s bathroom.

Last, she picked Laurence Ligier, founder of the Chameleon Foundation for abused and exploited girls. “She’s French-Filipina but she’s a friend of mine whom I have worked with and who always reminds me, ‘Are you happy with this life?’” Ligier, who has survived life-threatening situations because of what she does, remains unfazed by the glitz and glamour, said KC.

KC gives much props to the natural morena color of Filipino women. She fondly shared that during tapings people would remark about her not being that fair-skinned. “Hindi ko lang masabi na hindi niyo lang alam ang effort ko para lang hindi magmukhang maputi.”

In fact, every two weeks she uses a self-tanner that a friend sends from Paris every couple of months. She says she likes to use it, because it is subtle and gives her just the right hint of tint.

Thanks to her love for adventurous activities like motor biking, Jet Skiing and ice skating, KC has a long scar on her knee from a motorbike accident. “We are keloidal [in the family]. It [the scar] has been there for 11 years, and it has not gone away. Nagke-keloid. It doesn’t heal properly.”

One may be perfect physically—some through costly makeovers, others because of good genes—but that does not necessarily make them beautiful, according to KC. Meanwhile, a woman can have eye bags or blotchy skin but still be beautiful. “You can see a lot of these imperfect women who just radiate beauty and you can’t really explain it. Whether it’s the vibe they give out or the way they talk or what they say, it’s something that can’t be readily explained.”

She reasons out that one can be happy and lonely and still be beautiful. As she puts it: “I think some lonely people are beautiful. I think sadness is beautiful. It’s also something about how a woman feels. I think emotion is beautiful, like somebody who is really in touch with her feelings. I think that is beautiful.”

On the natural lifestyle

MANAGING to sleep only four to five hours, which would be the longest for her, KC discloses that she was never an “avid fan” of sleep. “I don’t even know how I can run four days straight with only an hour of sleep each day. I think it’s because in between things to do, when I’m not working or when I’m not talking to somebody or when I’m not needed for a scene, I just sleep. Catnaps really give you so much energy throughout the day,” she said.

When it comes to what she eats, KC says that she eats food that are easy to prepare. She has an Eastern medicine doctor who coaches her on health food and healthy eating. Whenever she gets sick or needs to boost her metabolism, her doctor gives her natural capsules such as cayenne pills, instead of energy pills.

She also can give you the benefits of eating dried seaweed. “Protein-wise, it gives you as much protein as beef. Basta you have to wash it three times kasi ’pag once lang, lasang tubig-dagat eh. It becomes like seaweed salad. I eat it with tuna siomai that I get from the store.”

For 11 years now, KC has been a pesco-vegetarian and for six months of the year, she doesn’t eat fish, making her a total vegetarian. “It’s for health reasons also. It started out as a matter of preference. I really don’t like the taste of certain foods. So I’d be lying to the public if all of a sudden you see me endorsing like a pork product or a beef product. That would suggest that I’ve converted back to being a carnivore, which is not me.”

On being real and authentic

FOR KC, being an authentic person in showbiz has grounded her in many ways. She has realized the showbiz machinery is such that it can replicate personalities with carefully calibrated imaging and packaging.

“The one thing that broke my heart last year was the realization that it’s so easy for companies to replicate people for business. It’s like we’re products and not human beings. That’s why I wanted to name the show Simply KC, because we go through real-life situations and all that really grounds me. The show is about going back to the basics, to what’s simple and real,” said KC.

She fiercely protects what is real about her because that is something that she will carry with her for the rest of her life, whether in showbiz or not. “Everything is a reflection of what’s real about me, my personality, and that’s hard to replicate,” she maintained.

On natural relationships

IT was expected that the topic of KC and her mom and her dad (Gabby Concepcion) would be brought up at the Palmolive event, and the media also expected the lovely actress to go from being open and loquacious to being guarded and careful with her words. Instead, what we got was a KC who freely discussed her “pained heart.”

She begins by saying that the hardest part about growing up against that high-profile backdrop was seeing the respective postmarriage relationships and dalliances of her parents.

“You become close [to whoever they were currently in a relationship with] and all of a sudden, that person disappears and they go on to the next relationship. You get scared about bringing people close to you again because they can leave any time. I went through a lot of that on both sides.”

There came a time when she did not believe in marriage and feared people who wanted to get close, bearing in mind that they, too, could leave her. While growing up, her mom would tell her, “Your papa and I are living separate lives. You have no right to think ill of anybody that comes into his life. You know, it’s not the woman’s fault that she’s in your life. And he doesn’t love you any less because he’s with somebody else.”

Because of this, KC is grateful for her mom’s efforts to make sense of the situation for her. “Had she not really sat me down several times to really explain that to me, I would have just come out a monster, honestly,” she intimated.

KC, who used to be an avid fan of heartbreak because it made her feel alive, shared that the experience she went through as a kid taught her to be more experimental and open. What about marriage? KC opens up and declares that she is excited about getting married one day. No, not too soon, she clarified, “maybe like in my late 20, like 29, or maybe 30.”

“I’ve had different [concepts of family] through the years. First were my parents and when that didn’t work out, it became my grandma and her relatives. And then when my stepfather [Sen. Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan] came in, we totally discarded that. It became the Pangilinans. And now Papa is back in the picture and so the Concepcions are around. I’m just really excited to come up with my own traditions and my own sets of family,” KC concluded.

ANJO C. ALIMARIO