Academic criticises Por’s casket
An academic has run foul of the celebrity set for criticising the
choice of a golden teak casket to send off actor Tridsadee “Por”
Sahawong at his cremation last week.
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| Sopon |
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| The casket |
Sopon Pornchokchai, president of the Thai Appraisal Foundation and a dam activist, came under attack from Por’s celebrity friends after he criticised the choice of such expensive, rare timber for the coffin. An actor and presenter friend, Boat Wibunnan, paid for the coffin, and had it made as a tribute to his friend.
“From one point of view, it’s a way of showing respect, generosity, and wealth; but in another it’s a waste,” Dr Sopon wrote on social media.
“It spurs demand in the supply chain which damages natural resources and leads to our forests being felled. It’s a personal taste which society should not follow. We should emphasise goodness and simplicity as upheld in the Buddha’s teachings,” he added.
Por’s celebrity friends said they wanted nothing but the best to send off the popular actor, so he could rest well in heaven. They asked if Dr Sopon would rather he was cremated on a bonfire with petrol.
One of the first to criticise the academic was outspoken actress Panadda “Poom” Wongphudee.
“I’m delighted to find someone who loves nature this much,” she wrote. “Please tell us about some ways to cremate a body without damaging the outdoors.
“If we use another type of wood, isn’t the result the same? Or would you have us cremate him without a coffin?
“You’re over the top. I don’t understand whether you enjoy criticising, or whether you just want to make a name for yourself.
“Don’t be envious. If Boat is wealthy and wants to make an expensive coffin, let him be. At your own funeral and that of your family, don’t use teak, it’s a waste. I love this world too, so I advise you with good intentions.”
Writing in a similar vein, comedian Kotee Aramboy said Dr Sopon was taking his concern for the environment too far.
“Our friend Boat made the coffin so Por might rest well, because Por is a good person with values,” he wrote. “I have never seen a body cremated in a bag meant for fried banana chips.
“Golden teak is commonly used for furniture and other types of commerce. And it’s not as if we went into the forest and cut it down ourselves.
“I understand you are learned, but if you spend your time thinking in an ‘eco’ vein over our friend’s funeral, it’s just not right.”
Also chipping in was DJ and actor Paranyu "Tack" Rojanavudtitham, who asked if Dr Sopon would prefer they cremated Por on a pile of tyres.
Dr Sopon, who took his case to the media, denied he was trying to cause a stir, saying it was the celebrity set, not him, trying to get their names in the spotlight.
"I like Por, and I am not criticising those who saw him off at the cremation," he said. "I waited until after his funeral before I made my comments."
"Whether someone makes a coffin of golden teak is a personal matter, but in my view society would be better to change its thinking. Overseas they do not see the need for such an honour; some people are cremated in cardboard."
The row was still raging by the end of the week. -
2. Cops to probe bizarre baby triangle
The wife of absentee husband and father Peter Corp Dyrendal has asked police to track down the authors of a website which claims she is raising children by two different fathers.
Ployphan "Ploy" Taveerat has laid a complaint with Technology Crime Suppression Division police about the Facebook site.
Criticising Ploy for being two-faced, it claimed the couple’s youngest son, Puma, was actually born by a male friend of hers, called Bank, but neither was letting on.
‘‘It’s only Peter who appears as the bad one in others’ eyes ... what about yourself?’’ it asked.
The site said Ploy was quick to seek public sympathy when Peter, an actor and singer, left her soon after Puma was born, supposedly to make a "big bike" road show in the provinces. He has not been in touch since mid-2015, despite saying in November he would contact his spouse about the future of their relationship.
Denying Bank was the father, Ploy said her friend helps bring up the boys, but is actually gay. Like Ploy herself, he is an air flight attendant.
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| Bank and Ploy |
"He’s not stressed over the saga, and in fact would like to be the boys’ father ... but as a member of the third gender he might be better suited as their mother. Let’s just call him their godmother," she joked.
"The kids call him Aunty Bank. He comes across as a bit feminine, but we have spoken about that and I ask him to man up a little. He can dress and carry on like a man, so the kids have a role model to follow," she added.
She and Peter have two young boys, Panda and Puma. After laying her police complaint, Ploy promptly took Puma for a DNA test at Ramathibodi Hospital, to put the naysayers at rest.
"We couldn’t use Peter’s DNA but were able to confirm that Panda and Puma are biological brothers with the same parents," she said.
"I took the test because I don’t want people to have any doubts as to why the kids look different. Panda has a farang-style face, while Puma looks Chinese, but they are both ours.
"The Facebook site was set up with the intention of abusing me. They can attack me, but not my kids, as they are innocent. It’s bad enough that they are growing up without a dad, but to suggest that no one owns up to being Puma’s dad? That’s too much.
"They have created a scar in the hearts of my kids, so I have laid a complaint. If it goes to court I won’t ask for a single baht ... all I want for them is jail."
Police are investigating. -
3. Kan refuses to let Sek see his kids
Rocker Sek Loso’s former wife says she is willing to fight in court his request to have the kids stay with him on weekends, even though it is permitted under their divorce agreement, because his home "stinks".
Wiphakorn "Kan" Sukpimai, who divorced Sek in a court-backed settlement last June, said the rocker’s lawyer has been in touch, asserting Sek’s right to have the couple’s two teenage daughters, Kwang and London, stay with him on weekends.
The letter reminds her of their divorce agreement, in which Sek is entitled to visit the couple’s kids at school or have them stay with him eight days a month. In line with the pact, he declares he wants the children with him every week from Friday evening to Sunday evening.
Kan, however, says his home stinks, and the environment is unsafe. "The state of his home is not really like a home. As a mother I feel I can’t accept it.
"If it was just him and the maid, I wouldn’t mind so much, but there are other women, men hanging about. Since we parted this is the first time he has asked for the kids," she said.
"Even when he visits them at school, he won’t go alone, but takes a whole gang with him. The kids feel uncomfortable.
"I am in the process of court action seeking to have his rights struck out so I have sole right to raise the kids. The children themselves do not want to go," she said, adding she was still having trouble getting Sek to pay their maintenance.
"He doesn’t do as he agreed in court. I am so stressed I had to go into hospital. If he wants to visit the kids I have no objection, but he can’t take them just anywhere."
Kan said she and Sek are due back in court this month for talks on outstanding property matters.
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