‘Hipon Girl’ Herlene Budol on life after showbiz: ‘Back to zero kami’ | ABS-CBN

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‘Hipon Girl’ Herlene Budol on life after showbiz: ‘Back to zero kami’

‘Hipon Girl’ Herlene Budol on life after showbiz: ‘Back to zero kami’

Rhea Manila Santos

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Toni Talks host Toni Gonzaga interviewed viral personality and former Wowowin co-host Herlene “Hipon Girl” Budol (whose real name is Nicole Budol) in her latest vlog posted last July 25. The 21-year-old talked to Toni about growing up with her grandparents after her parents separated and her father went abroad for work.

Herlene shared that her mom encouraged her to join local beauty pageants just like her older sister but it was not what she wanted to do even after winning the Binibining Angono pageant when she was 17 years old. She then auditioned for a segment on Willie Revillame’s show.

“Andun yung mga kasama ko, ang gaganda. Parang half half, ganun. Eh yun pala ang kailangan sa Willie of Fortune panabla, kaya hindi puwedeng ganda lang. Lumaban yung fez. Boring ka pag puro maganda. Kaya thank you Lord naging pangit ako masyado, hindi masyadong pangit, middle noh? Dun ko na-realize na panabla ako kasi ang gaganda ng mga kasamahan ko tapos ako ang napili,” she recalled.

After failing to win in the segment, Herlene thought that that was the end of her stint on the show but she received an invite to return as a guest host. Her stint as a guest host lasted for two years even though she was never offered a contract.

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“Yung mga tao daw ang dahilan bakit napasok ako sa Wowowin. Pinabalik ako mga two days. Kasi 35 million views yun tapos rini-request ng mga tao. Sabi lang guest lang. Araw araw ako na kinakabahan. Kaya nga ako naiiyak palagi kasi kapag sasabihin sa akin ni kuya Wil na, ‘O bukas pahinga ka muna…’ iiyak na ako,” she revealed.

With the pandemic ongoing since last year, Herlene admitted it really drained her finances after not being invited back to the show and becoming the family breadwinner.

“Buti nga nag-ipon ako eh kundi wala, patay na kami ng pamilya ko dahil sa pandemic na ‘to. Kasi hindi alam ng lolo at lola ko na nag-iipon ako tapos. Gate pa nga lang napapagawa ko sa bahay namin. Dati kasi wala kami nun. Meron naman maliit pero hindi kasya yung tricycle ng tatay ko. Tapos ngayon kasya na. Hindi ko nga napagawa yung bubong. Siyempre buong angkan ko sa akin tapos talagang walang wala talaga. Umiiyak ako araw araw. Dumating ako sa puntong parang ayoko na. Ayoko na magpakita sa pamilya ko. Nahihiya ako. Back to zero kami. Walang wala na talaga kahit ngayon, walang wala na akong pinagkukunan ng pera talaga. Kasi sa akin lahat umaasa buong pamilya ko. Dati pagkain lang ngayon pati kuryente sa akin. Sa lola’t lola ko yung mga gamot nila, wala ngang vitamins ngayon yung lolo ko at lola ko ang mahal kasi,” she said tearfully.

Watch the vlog here:

Despite her situation, Herlene said she has no one to blame but herself for not preparing for the future.

“Hindi rin ako makapag-reklamo kasi hindi lang naman ako yung tinamaan. Kasi naging kampante rin ako, naging mali rin ako. Naging kampante ako na may pagkukunan pa ako pagkatapos ng Wowowin. Wala talaga. Nahihiya nga ako kapag may humihingi ng tulong sa akin wala ako mabigay kasi wala rin ako. Hindi ko masabi sa kanila na ako nga wala akong nabibili para sa sarili ko eh. Akala nila masayahin ako pero hindi talaga. Lagi akong umiiyak kapag kapos kami. Wala na akong pinagkukunan,” she said.

Before joining showbiz, Herlene shared that she had already worked in various jobs as a teenager.

“Dati nag-pa-payong ako ng mga nag-go-golf, umbrella girl tapos naging tindera ako sa palengke, nag-munisipyo rin ako. Kahit mga maliliit na sahod pag pinagsama ang laki ng pera ko. Mas malaki nga pera ko dati. Kahit 500 meron akong pera sa wallet. Ngayon na-si-zero talaga ako,” she said.

In order to have some income, Herlene currently runs a humble sari-sari store in their home in Angono, Rizal. She also does live streaming on social media to sell her pre-loved items and lip tint collection in order to make ends meet.

“Hindi ko nga akalain na mapupunta ako sa TV eh. Gusto ko naman mag-artista pero wala namang kumukuha sa akin. Totoo yung sinasabi na hindi habang buhay nasa TV ka. Dalawang taon pa lang ako, tingnan mo wala na kagad. Ang hirap. Ang hirap din umaasa. Naging kampante rin kasi ako na uy baka may kumuha pa sa aking iba kapag natanggal ako dito. Zero totally. Kahit cellphone ko bigay lang eh,” she added.

Before ending the emotional vlog, Toni shared words of advice with Herlene, giving her words of encouragement and support before sharing that proceeds of the vlog will all go to Herlene. The vlog titled “Why Herlene ‘Hipon Girl’ Is Back To Zero” is now trending at #1 on YouTube with more than 4.8M views as of this writing,

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