Tay Ping Hui: King of the hill

Several years ago, Tay Ping Hui issued us an invitation to accompany him to Geylang. (To eat durians, of course — what were you thinking?). Over the years, he would wax lyrical about his favourite fruit, so it was inevitable that we’d eventually take him up on his long-standing offer.

As we were heading out to his regular joint, 717 Trading, he went off and running about his pet topic, offering tidbits such as “The best Musang King is from Pahang”; “different fertilisers affect the taste”; and “eat mangosteens and drink salt water to combat the heatiness”.

At 717 Trading he immediately grabbed a durian and started explaining how to recognise a good fruit from the pattern of its thorns and the sound it made when tapped. “I have a durian bible with all the different types and how to identify them,” he said, showing me a special album in his phone.

The 44-year-old can’t remember a time when durians weren’t part of his life. “When I was a little child, I would go and buy durians with my mum. We used to squat at the roadside or sit on a stool, with newspaper on the ground, and just eat it fresh from the shell,” he said, adding that while he thinks that is the only way to eat durians, he’ll compromise when he has to. “When I’m desperate, I’ll eat out of a styrofoam box — even frozen durian.”

LOCALLY BRED AND GROWN

This durian passion is only one of the many manifestations of Tay’s Singaporean-ness (another is his love for the expression “wah lau”). As a local boy, his “ultimate favourite” meal is “kopi, kaya toast and two soft boiled eggs”. “None of that Big Breakfast muffin stuff,” he asserted.

Nevertheless, as much as he loves his kopitiam kopi-o gao siu dai (strong black coffee, less sugar) or kopi-o di-lo (black coffee, no water added), he admits to indulging in “a good cold-pressed coffee”. “I think all these hipster coffee places are a good thing. We should have more variety in Singapore,” he said.

In a way, it represents how Singaporeans in general — and Tay in particular — cherish both eastern and western values. “I’m very Westernised with regards to social ethos and personal principles. But I still hold true to certain traditional Chinese beliefs. I believe in filial piety, the family unit and that we have to respect our elders,” he said. “I truly believe that we can be traditional without being narrow-minded.”

Of course, even though Tay said he’s “very proud to be Singaporean”, there are some things that he’ll gripe about in typical Singaporean fashion.

“We are too crowded ... Now, the roads are perpetually jammed. If we have too many cars then we perhaps need to address who can drive the cars — and priority should be given to Singaporeans. Also, Singapore is the only country I’ve been in where if you signal to change lanes, people speed up and will not let you pass.”

He added: “Another thing I really don’t like is that we’re not jailing people for not cleaning up the sh*t when they walk their dogs!”

One hope he has is that Singaporeans might “dare to be free” to voice their views “in the right way”. “Singaporeans generally are a very shy lot. We are not encouraged to question (or to) air strong opinions,” he said. “I think we have a long way to go when it comes to voicing our views in the right way, in the most effective way.

“If we allow ourselves to have more freedom, to dare to be free, then I think we’ll be a much better place.”

TOP SEED

For all that, though, Tay still thinks that the country has done well. “I love my country,” he said.

In a way, he said the drama he is currently working on, Crescendo, contributes to a feeling of sentimentality. The drama is about the popularity of xinyao culture, which is locally composed music that spread throughout the region in the 1980s and 1990s. “Throughout the filming process, I felt so nostalgic. I haven’t enjoyed (doing a show) for so long in this way. I love singing and I love acting, so this is pretty much combining the two things that I really like in one show.”

Tay is also working with fellow actor Zhu Houren on scripting a second movie, which also takes music as its theme. (They first teamed up last year for the film, Meeting The Giant, Tay’s directorial debut.) He is also busy working on a technology start-up and “building some applications”.

It doesn’t escape this A-lister, whose career is 17 years old and counting, that the television industry and the volatile celebrity game is much like, well, the durian trade.

“There are durian fads. It used to be XO; then, D24 durians were the rage. Now, it’s Musang King. And recently there is this new rising star, Black Thorn, which is from Penang,” he elaborated. “(Similarly) different stars come and go ... but to be the all-time favourite or to be the signature person takes a little bit more quality, I guess.”

But if he should ever stop playing the celebrity game, he has a retirement plan ready. “My friend has a durian orchard in Pahang. We are currently exploring (options). I told him, ‘If I open the way for you, you should bring in your stuff’.”

Tay Ping Hui, durian importer? “Yeah,” he smirked, licking durian off his fingers. “I’ll hire very good-looking models and they’ll all wear tight T-shirts to open the durians.”

There’s only one possible response to that: “Uncle, got discount?”

Crescendo debuts on Oct 22, weekdays at 9pm on MediaCorp TV Channel 8.

CREDITS: Photography: Jason Ho; Makeup: Joanna Ang, Sono Bello (9695 3772); Hair: Louis Lim, Passion Hair Salon; Special thanks to 717 Trading.