One of today's hottest stars, Kim Chiu, celebrated her 21st birthday last April 19 with Grace To Be Born Shelter, a charity group who takes care of abandoned babies and unwed mothers.At Kim's birthday lunch with the entertainment press on Tuesday, May 3, at ELJ Building in ABS-CBN, Kim talked about celebrating her birthday, her US trip and her upcoming TV series, "Binondo Girl."
Kim has tasted success early in her career—having various TV projects, movie offers and endorsements since the time she started as a housemate in "Pinoy Big Brother Teen Edition." After years of painstaking work, Kim has already established her name as one of the country's premier young actresses.
It has been Kim's tradition to celebrate her birthday with a charity group and share her blessings, as a way of giving back. "Yearly, iba-iba yung charity ko para sa birthday ko. Ngayon, magkasunod na newborn babies. Ngayon yung pupuntahan ko yung mga abandoned children. Mga tinapon sa basurahan, iniwan sa CR," Kim told Yahoo! OMG Philippines.
For her 21st birthday, Kim chose Grace To Be Born Shelter for the abandoned babies and unwed mothers, which she visited on Tuesday. "Ang dami naming niresearch. Sila lang yung kaunti lang ang supply na nakukuha. Kaunti lang yung bumibisita. So naisip ko, ito na lang kase kawawa sila. Hindi nabibigyan ng mga gamit, mga gatas.Kawawa naman yung mga bata," Kim added.
As Kim also experienced hardship when she was younger, she made it a point to help other people on her own. "Kailangan meron akong charity na natutulungan. Kasi hindi naman lahat ng kinikita ko, para sakin lang. Syempre, meron din dapat sa ibang tao," Kim said.
Kim told the press she had a long birthday celebration, starting from their US trip last month until Tuesday. Kim toured the US with Star Magic artists for a series of concerts. "Magkakasama kami nila Angelica (Panganiban) at Maja (Salvador). 3 days free. Laging may pumapasok na waiter na may cake, so everyday birthday. Every night, nagbu-blow ng cake. Kahit na gabi-gabi birthday ko, okay lang," Kim happily shared. Along with other Star Magic artists, Kim visited Los Angeles, San Jose and New York, where she performed and spent a short vacation. "Nakita ko rin si Ben Stiller. Nagpapicture kami," Kim also said.
While in the US, Kim also did other projects such as magazine pictorials, where she posed alongside 90210's star, Matt Lanter. "Para siyang Filipina actress meets Hollywood star. Masaya naman, mabait siya. Tsaka parang close na kami," Kim said. In another pictorial, Kim wore the dress used by Glee's Amber Riley which is designed by Filipino-American couturier Oliver Tolentino.
After her US trip, Kim also celebrated her birthday at her new house with her family and friends from showbiz. "Nung Sunday, nagkaroon ako ng birthday sa bahay ko. Maraming pumunta. Sila Matteo, sila Jayson, sila Gerald, Star Magic handlers and mga road managers," Kim said. Maja Salvador provided the photo booth as her gift to Kim. Gerald, Kim's former boyfriend, gave her Salad Master ware for her kitchen.
Kim's love life is always talked about, so it's no wonder when Gerald's name is still always linked to her. The former on-screen partners were able to catch up on each other's lives in their US trip. "Masaya naman kami sa kanya-kanya naming buhay. Nung nasas States kami, iyon lang yung time na nagkasama kami. Madami naman kaming napag-usapan, katulad kung kamusta na kami, ano mga bago sa amin," Kim said.
Kim has a fair number of admirers, including DLSU's varsity player Simon Atkins and actor Jolo Revilla. But, Kim is quick to comment that she is still enjoying her single life. "Mas marami akong nakikita para sa sarili ko na wala akong kasama na ako lang. Kaya ko pala na ako lang. Masaya naman ako, marami akong kaibigan. Marami akong nakikilala. Hindi lang sya nakasarado sa isa," Kim said. She even joked that she might have a boyfriend next year instead.
"Binondo Girl," Kim's new series, is set to start filming this month. Kim topbills the series together with Matteo Guidicelli, Xian Lim and Jolo Revilla as her on-screen partners. "Si Xian, nakasama ko na sya sa 'My Only Hope.' At nakakasama ko rin sya lumabas-labas, mag-bowling kasama sila Maja. Okay naman sya, nakakatawa. Hindi halata sa kanya na kenkoy rin sya. Si Matteo, okay naman sya, nagbibisaya kami. Kasi pareho kaming Bisaya eh. Si Jolo naman, forever gentleman," Kim told Yahoo! OMG Philippines. Jolo Revilla recently revealed that he has a crush on Kim.
She plays a Chinese girl who comes from a poor family. The story also requires her to gain weight, which made Kim to gain some pounds recently. "Kailangan, kahit muscles. Dapat 115, 108 na ako ngayon. Kaya congratulations to me," Kim said. This is the first time that Kim will be paired with three leading men in one TV series. "Meron akong nagawa dito na hindi ko pa nagagawa sa ibang teleserye ko. Hindi pa siya pwedeng sabihin,pero kailangan kong lumaki, para syang Mulan," Kim said.
Blessings continue to rain on Kim. She has recently graduated from high school last March 10 and her family has recently moved to their new house. With all these blessings, Kim still continues to wish, "Sana magkaroon ako ng business bago matapos ang 2011. Kasi may bahay na at nakagraduate na ako," Kim said.
