Prim Chanikarn Tangkabodee Recounts Her Acting Career, From Child Star To Superstar-In-The-Making
The Thai actress is poised for primetime after starring in several hit TV series such as ‘F4 Thailand: Boys Over Flowers’, ‘The Gifted: Graduation’ and ‘A Love So Beautiful’.
By Mila Wenin - published
“When I was a child, I remembered doing a few auditions a day not knowing whether they would land me any job,” says Chanikarn Tangkabodee, more commonly known by her nickname “Prim,” of her early start in showbiz. The former child star recounts her journey to stardom, “Initially, I was very shy and couldn’t use my face or body to express myself at all. But my mother, who took me to these auditions, never pressured me. She believed I would be able to do it and always said it was fine because there was always the next time.
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She continued taking me to so many auditions, to the point that I started to learn that you couldn’t achieve a different result by doing the same thing. I learned to muster up the courage to express myself and perform more in order to get the job.”
After overcoming her shyness, Prim started getting jobs in commercials and taking small roles, such as the child version of the female lead. Her first leading role came in 2020, when she was only 16, in the science-fiction fantasy The Gifted: Graduation. In a supporting role in the mega project, the Thai version of F4: Boys over Flowers, she earned international recognition as well as 27th Asian Television Awards for Best Actress in a Supporting Role.
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“I was very happy and honoured to receive the award. It meant a lot to me because I felt like I was being recognised as an actress and that all the effort I have put in along the journey until then wasn’t for nothing... there were people noticing it. It was a shame I couldn’t attend the ceremony as it overlapped with my exams.”
Outside of the limelight, the petite actress is also admired for her academic excellence. Prim loves studying, but as she has to skip classes sometimes, she “needed to make an effort to show to teachers that I could still get good grades. I remembered revising until 3am for a morning exam when I was in Grade 6”.
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She is now in her third year at Chulalongkorn University’s Faculty of Commerce and Accountancy. Her love for books, however, is not limited to academia as she also loves reading novels. She enthuses, “It helps me focus and once I’m hooked on a title, I will read through to the end, no matter what. If there are 12 books in the series, I will finish them all in one go.”
She credits her early works in commercials as the reason for her patience and solid discipline. “You had to wait so long during auditions—and some could take up an entire day. It’s tough, but that’s how I learned to be very patient.”
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“I learned to wake up early without making a fuss, when I was shooting commercials. It’s a good way to be self-disciplined. Also for commercials, it takes dozens of takes for one shot so I had to do it all, again and again. Looking back, I am very proud of baby Prim.”
While passion and commitment form the foundation of her craft, Prim has a studied approach in making each of her characters believable. She determines the background and objectives of each character, even going as far as to assign them colours; for example in playing the role of Kaning in F4, Prim identified the character with light blue as “she seems like a plain character, but there’s more to her than meets the eyes”. While in A Love So Beautiful, the lead “Som-O” Kewalin Asarattana is a yellow as she is “bubbly and bright”.
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“I love watching movies, so much so I even dreamed of being a filmmaker once. That’s why I really enjoy doing extensive character background studies,” she adds.
“I have a table where I fill in their different details. I even have one showing the similarities and differences in the characters I play, their objectives and motives. I have a graph of their life to see if there’s any turning point or any divergence. This process is fun, and it’s why I enjoy working on a new character each time. Whenever I work on a character, I get to learn something new about life.”
But what does a studious 20-year-old have to say about fashion, a decidedly less serious subject? “I like to look chic, and yet comfortable. I love to mix and match using everything from clothes from my mum’s closet to my own pieces.”
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And she’s quick to dish out some fashion must-haves for her fans: “A great pair of jeans that won’t go out of style. When you don’t have time to put on makeup, sunglasses are a big help and they also protect your eyes from the sun. We always need a pair of white sneakers that complement any outfit. And a watch-it can complete any look and give off a sophisticated vibe. Lastly, you need a signature handbag that reflects your personality. With that, your look can be whole and your personality can shine through.”
And she certainly shines. For that, Prim thanks her fans, “Whenever I read their messages, I feel uplifted. Seeing how people appreciate me gives me a reason to wake up and go to work. I’m acting because I love it, but the fact that they like what I love to do is very fulfilling. They motivate and inspire me.”
Editor-in-Chief: Kenneth Goh
Photographer: Waroon Kieattisin
Stylist: Windy Aulia
Producer: Montrai Towandejsiri
Makeup: Sapsiri Siriwong
Hair: Promya Bangpong
Photographer’s Assistants: Chanon Praphaiwaranon, Arnon Boonrod, Prompong Dechpol, Ratchapoom Yaemnet, Kachapon Panuditeekun
Stylist’s Assistants: Patipan Limsuwash, Phi Ritwiwa