NATIONAL ARTIST
PATRAVADI MEJUDHON
The Living Legend who Reformed Thailand’s TV Showbiz
and her joy of Giving
From a wild kid chasing crabs to Thailand’s supermodelof the 70s who went on to become an entertainmentindustry revolutionary, a “first” in many endeavors, and National Artist who never stops moving. But this is just a fragment of the life of Kru (Teacher) Lek Patravadi Mejudhon, who recently appeared in the hit series The White Lotus 3, featuring talented Thai actors and Lisa Manobal, member of the globally famous Korean girl group Blackpink.
Kru Lek’s beginnings didn’t come from ambition, but from passion, and a love of learning. Each of her crafts are known for being unique, vibrant, and captivating as if under a spell.
Behind her success, the 77-year-old legend had once suffered a period of depression from overworking. This helped her discover that “letting go” and “not fighting suffering” are life’s key principles to true happiness and good health.
You are known for being extremely active since your early days. Even when you got married and lived abroad, you still got inspiration to do Broadway theater while also having to fulfill duties as a diplomat’s wife.
I was doing dramas for Channel 3 at that time and left Thailand after my husband was deployed to New York. We were invited every Sunday to see opera and musicals. I didn’t just watch – I got to talk with creators and actors, meeting Broadway directors who encouraged me to do performances. “One Night with Patravadi” – that’s how this came about.
You’ve transformed Thailand’s entertainment industry significantly. Most of your work was “firsts”. Did you feel scared or worried at the time, since you were essentially overturning existing systems?
Not at all, because being first at everything wasn’t because I wanted it. For example, the thing about being the first to do dinner cruises on the Chao Phraya River at 16 was because I saw my mother’s boat docked in front of our house and I just wanted to go out (at night) but still kept a good image doing that (laughs).
So my mother’s boat was sitting and I had a friend at the Oriental Hotel. So why not use the boat to pick up foreigners for dinner on the boat? We could drop them off at Oriental pier and continue elsewhere. When I got home at midnight, she was already asleep and never asked where I’d been because she knew I was tired from working (laughs).
Like when you pioneered the culture of memorizing scripts before filming. Back then, you were a brand new producer and director. What made you decide to make that change?
I didn’t think about that at all. It’s how I was taught. When they told me the lines, I said no need. But others still did, and we had to wait. It wasn’t fun to act that way.
When I got the chance to be a producer, I told everyone we were here to have fun together. That’s what fun means. I didn’t care if anyone would boycott or refuse to act. Whoever wanted to act could come.
Same with doing the country’s first broad way-style concert.
I was in New York then and met Arthur, a Broadway director who had come to learn Thai dance in Thailand. One day, he said, “Thailand doesn’t have this yet. Why don’t you do it, Lek?”
I never worried about anything I did, because if I worried, I wouldn’t do it. If I worried, it meant it really wasn’t good. If I wasn’t worried, it meant it was right. My mother taught me since childhood that gossip is like pouring water, that if we have something good, they’ll gossip. If you don’t have anything good, they won’t gossip. If they gossip, you should be proud that you’re doing something good.
Like when you were approached for The White Lotus series, your concern was about having to stop teaching at the school you’ve founded. Why did you decide to take the offer after refusing several times before?
It’s because I don’t take Western films except documentary work. Earlier, I had worked with Hardy Kruger on “The River.” I rarely do films because the scripts they sent were mostly for old women, old prostitutes, or drunk wives. If it’s Thai content, I’ll play anything. It’s not that I’m better than others, but many people already played those roles. I’d rather do something else that’s more useful. Whether the job is big or small doesn’t matter, it just has to stimulate the mind.
My mother also taught that “What you do, choose carefully. Don’t just do anything. Whatever you do, do it with pride.” I used to argue with her – “Then what will I eat?” She said if we have integrity, we’ll never starve. It turned out to be true.
At first, I didn’t know The White Lotus. I thought it was something like a Love Boat comedy until my daughter told me to watch it first. Wow, it was very well written, deep, dark comedy style – I like it. But I didn’t have time until they came here to film my audition for the director Mike White…I owed it to WoodyMilintachinda (Thailand’s leading talk show host). He said I mustaccept the role and that everyone was auditioning to be part of itwhile I was invited. So I had to do it.
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