Desmond Tan is one of the brightest stars on screen now but he actually had a pretty rocky start to his showbiz career. And in this week's episode of Quan Yifeng’s talk show, Hear U Out, the actor revealed how he had once been humiliated in front of his fellow cast by the production team.

For the first four years of his career, the Star Search 2007 runner-up juggled school and acting. After graduating from NUS with a degree in real estate, Des dove right into the world of showbiz and the first role that he was offered was his star-making turn as heroic rickshaw puller Luo Xiaoxiao in 2011 Mediacorp drama A Song To Remember.

But unknown to many, he actually suffered a massive blow to his ego even before filming started.

After casting for Song was finalised, the cast and crew were called up for a meeting, where they discussed the plot, and the characters and relationships in the drama.

“I was pretty upset [after the meeting],” Des revealed. “That day is the most memorable day in my acting career. Everyone else was told what their character names and personalities were, and [the production team] would tell the actors how they would like them to interpret the role. They told each of the other actors that, but when it was my turn, they said to me, ‘You’re not the person we wanted in this role. We don’t have much expectations of you so you can just give it your best shot. Just give your all for the role.’”

It was a huge slap in the face for Desmond, who admitted that he had to hold back his tears. I felt like everyone [in the room] sucked in their breaths when they heard what the person said. I felt like the room turned into a vacuum and the atmosphere was filled with tension. I had to hold my tears in and I refused to make eye contact with anyone because I didn’t want to let anyone see that my eyes were brimming with tears.”

After the meeting, Desmond made a beeline for the exit, but a group of actors pulled him a side and told him, “Don’t think too much [about what was just said]. If you encounter any problems, you can approach us for help. We’ll definitely do our best to help.” This group included Pan Lingling, Cynthia Koh and Priscelia Chan. “I was really touched. We weren’t really friends. I was just a newbie and a stranger to them, but they took the initiative to approach me and offer their help, Des shared.

Looking back, the actor admitted that he still doesn’t know if the production team was so harsh to him because they were hoping it would motivate him to do a good job.

Whatever their intention was, it did spur Desmond on, who went Method to portray the character convincingly.

“I took some acting modules during university and realised that I should do some research about what people in that specific time period were like. Rickshaw pullers were muscular, but not bulky because they didn’t have much to eat,” he said. “Our call time was at 7am, but I’d wake up at around 4am to exercise for an hour to an hour and a half before driving to work. It was only later that I realised that I could combine exercising and my travel, so I’d cycle to work from my house in Jurong.”

At that time, Mediacorp was still at Caldecott Hill, and the long cycle to work was all the exercise Desmond needed to maintain his physique. This gave him half an hour more to sleep and an additional hour to go over his scripts every day. The actor kept this routine a secret and would arrive at work before everyone else. He would then put his bike away and take a shower before heading to the make-up unit.

The role, which was very well-received by audiences, earned Desmond his first Star Award. “When the winner for the Rocket Award was announced, I was checking the time on my phone to see if I could go home yet. When they said my name [I was so shocked that] I dropped my phone.”

This would be the first of the many awards that Des has picked up since then, a sign that his dedication to his craft has paid off.

Click here to watch Part 1 of Desmond Tan's interview on Hear U Out.

Photos: Desmond Tan’s Instagram, Mediacorp

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