'I felt like I lost part of my dignity': Liu Lingling laughed at by classmates over getai costume

That poor girl you bullied in school? She's rich and famous now.

In a recent episode of meWATCH's talk show Hear U Out, Liu Lingling recounted how some of her classmates ridiculed her for the getai outfit she constantly brought to school.

The 59-year-old getai veteran had been juggling both her job as a getai singer and her responsibilities as a student during her childhood, which wasn't easy for her.

"Things were really inconvenient then… I had to wrap my getai outfits in newspaper and keep them under my desk in school," she recalled.

While her teacher knew she was a singer, both the teacher and her classmates didn't know what was wrapped in the newspapers.

Lingling said: "My classmates were curious to why I always had something wrapped in newspaper.

"After I came back from singing the national anthem during assembly, I found the newspaper thrown aside and my outfit in the open for all to see."

She remembered how some students were laughing and how the teacher reprimanded them for it.

"I thought to myself that it didn't matter because I had to do it to support my family. I had to live that kind of life," she said. "But to me, I felt like I lost part of my dignity."

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Hearing this, host Quan Yi Fong, 48, expressed further curiosity about how Lingling managed to balance making a living and attending school.

But ultimately, Lingling had to quit studying in her first year of secondary school due to a leg injury.

She explained: "I was washing the clothes while my parents were out at work… We used to squat [to wash clothes] and the floor was slippery. While washing the soapy water away, I slipped… I sustained two cuts on my leg and I couldn't walk for half a year."

The injury meant that she couldn't attend school and had to rest. She became a full-time getai performer once she recovered.

While Lingling did try to continue her studies, the options at the time just weren't feasible for her.

She had to quit school because she didn't complete her first year and wouldn't be able to keep up with the class as it was already halfway into the second year.

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Her teacher recommended attending an adult learning institute, but she couldn't attend because the classes were at night and she had to perform come nighttime.

The other option was to go to a private school, but the $400 fee per month was an impossible amount for her impoverished family to fork out.

"In tears, I asked my father, 'What should I do?'

"My father told me to remain disciplined and self-study instead — after all, inherently intelligent people can study on their own," Lingling said.

She also attributes her success today to her father's guidance in all aspects of her life.

Quoting him, she said: "For as long as you're an artiste, there is no excuse good enough to give for your sore throat.

"Even if you're retiring tomorrow, tonight, you'll have to give it your all."

khooyihang@asiaone.com

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