Claudine Barretto on being separated: ‘It’s very painful. Pinagdadaanan ko ngayon’

It’s been almost a decade since she last worked with director Chito Roño and Kris Aquino in the Star Cinema horror flick Sukob, but Claudine Barretto admitted it felt like it was just yesterday. As part of Etiquette for Mistresses, the talented actress said it is an honor to be with them on a project again. "Because it’s a Chito Roño project and of course tita Kris. After Sukob, I never thought na magkakasama ulit kami na ma-re-reunite kami sa isang project and nung binasa yung Etiquette for Mistresses sinabi ko na parang ito talaga ang magandang comeback na pelikulang gagawin ko kasi napaka-challenging nung role ni Chloe kaya ko siya tinanggap,” she admitted during the Etiquette for Mistresses grand presscon held last September 16 inside the ABS-CBN compound.

The 36-year-old actress said she is excited about her big screen return this year. "Sobrang happy ako. Sobrang overwhelmed and excited. Yung last movie ko was In Your Eyes in 2011 so ang tagal. Parang hindi pa rin ako makapaniwala na nakabalik na rin ako. Parang nang tagal tagal ko na kasing simple yung buhay, normal yung buhay, mother lang sa mga anak ko. Pero yung ngayon talagang happy ako kasi nakabalik na ako. At saka napakaganda nitong project na ito para sa comebacking project ko after how many years,” she shared.

After this film, Claudine revealed she is set to do more projects for the Kapamilya network starting with another exciting movie. "Yes. Hindi ko pa alam kasi usually kapag may mga ganyang plano inaantay mo talaga pag malapit na mag-taping bago (mag-announce) kasi minsan hindi natutuloy, na-se-shelve, ganyan. So ang focus ko ngayon is other movies pa after this,” she added.

In the movie, Claudine plays one of her most outspoken roles to date. "I play the role of Chloe Zamora. Isa siya sa mga head ng advertising company. She’s very successful but she’s a mistress. Matapang, scandalosa, bilib sa sarili, akala niya hindi siya kayang iwan. Si Chloe maaawa ka rin pero ngayon ko lang nagawa yung pinaka-extreme na role na nakaka-challenge talaga. Sobrang na-enjoy ko yung role ko kasi kahit ilang pelikula yung nagawa ko na na medyo naughty ako, medyo parang naughty pero ito talaga yung scandalosa, grabe magdamit, pag pumasok siya sa room madaming nakatingin, yung presence niya. Ako na-enjoy ko talaga kasi in real life mahiyain talaga ako. Ako in real life hindi mo talaga makikita na ganyan. I swear,” she admitted.

Playing one of the kinds of mistresses along with co-stars Kris Aquino, Kim Chiu, Iza Calzado and Cheena Crab, Claudine said she hopes their film can help open the minds of viewers and give them a deeper insight into what kept women have to go through in society. "Sa society na ito they really exist and may mga taong around us na ang piniling tahakin na buhay ay yung ganung klaseng buhay hindi dahil sa pera lang, iba iba. Kagaya nung mga babae sa movie na ito, iba iba yung dahilan kung bakit sila nagmamahal ng may nagma-may-ari ng iba. Hindi ko masasabi kasi mahirap eh. Mahirap mag-judge ng tao kasi alam naman natin kung ano ang tama, hindi naman namin gino-glorify yung mga mistresses pero hindi rin namin sila koni-condemn or jinu-judge. I think dapat ganun na lang ang pagtingin sa lahat para wala tayong nasasaktan na tao. Kasi it’s really hard to teach the heart to obey kung kaya ba natin. At the end it’s really yung choice natin sa buhay. Kung kaya ba natin na may ganun tayong natatapakan o kung kaya natin na magbigay at ayusin yun,” she explained.

With her own personal life as controversial as ever with her separation from Raymart Santiago ongoing, Claudine could hardly hold back the tears when asked about her own views about divorce. The returning Kapamilya actress was able to say that she is also pro-divorce like Kris Aquino. "Mas okay na din yung divorce. Kahit na aabot siya sa ganun mas okay na yung ganun. It’s very painful. Pinagdadaanan ko ngayon,” she said.