'I'm not very expensive': Huang Biren wants to continue acting despite lack of offers

SINGAPORE - Since leaving Mediacorp in 2008, veteran actress Huang Biren has appeared in only a handful of Channel 8 dramas.

Her role in long-running series Recipe Of Life, which ended in May, came after a four-year break and she had not received any acting offers since then.

In an interview with Shin Min Daily News published on Wednesday (Aug 18), the 52-year-old said: "If I have to wait another four years, it's a bit too long and people on social media will ask, 'When will Biren make a return?'"

"I'm not greedy, if I can be in one drama every year, or even every two years, then I can answer to the fans who have been supporting me," said the actress who made her debut more than 30 years ago.

As a freelancer - she left Mediacorp as she did not agree to the terms offered to her in 2008 and also to spend time with her family - she said she understood that roles would naturally go first to those in the company's stable of actors.

A huge ratings draw back when she was a full-timer, she had been the lead actress in seven of the 11 dramas with the highest viewership figures between 1997 and 2007, according to 8 Days magazine in November 2007.

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One of her best-known roles was in Stand By Me, which broke viewership records in 1998 and won her the Best Actress trophy at the Star Awards. In the drama, she portrayed a loving wife caring for a paraplegic husband, played by retired actor Xie Shaoguang.

Reflecting on her current lack of roles, the mother of three said: "Is it because I have a bad attitude? Not hardworking? Bad acting?"

She also joked: "Actually, I'm not very expensive."

This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.