Idolising Au (อุ๊ หฤทัย): Go for it, girl!

Even as my age, it is okay to have idols...to follow them devotedly, in fact.

Since the early days of our relationship, boyfriend Maiyuu has introduced me to Thai singers, actors, writers and other arty types who take his fancy.

Some have been with him since he was a teenager. His Mum or his sister might have liked them. Or maybe he discovered them through his gay friends.

Maiyuu took the opportunity to pass on what he knows to me.

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Most of the contemporary, soft-pop singers Maiyuu likes are favourites of the gay set.

Many are women, such as Mint Maleewan Jemina, Amp Saowaluck Leelabutr... Some are wannabe women, such as superstar Bird McIntyre.

Bangkok flower market

Among the real women, one of my favourites is Au Hareutai Puangboonsri, a former Grammy singer who has since branched out into new fields (more of that below).

In fact, it would be fair to say that she became my first Thai singing idol.

I bought her albums: her solo efforts, her early albums with the group Seven.

I followed what she was doing in the news. Maiyuu even took me to one of her concerts, which she performed with fellow Grammy performer Amp Saowaluck Leelabutr.

Back in those days, Maiyuu was a social animal. His night-time adventures took him to the usual gay nightspots, such as Khao San Rd, Or Tor Kor.

A couple of times, he came across singer Au (อุ๊ หฤทัย ม่วงบุญศรี), who was herself out for the night.

In those days, she lived in Pak Khlong Talad, the Bangkok flower market, with a friend who ran a flower shop (see image above).

Maiyuu and I used to visit that market in the early hours, to buy flowers for our place. However, I never saw singing diva Au myself.

One night, Maiyuu spotted Au walking down Khao San Rd. Another time, she was sitting in a small bar drinking with friends.

Maiyuu and I were both fans, so he plucked up the courage to talk to her.

'Pee, do you mind if I take your picture on my cellphone?' Maiyuu asked.

Au put down her cigarette, and her whisky.

'You know, she drinks Sang Som!' Maiyuu told me later, referring to that harsh Thai rum which makes hair grow on a man's chest.

She posed for his cellphone picture, which was kind. But there was more.

'My farang boyfriend loves you. Would you mind signing something?' he asked.

'A farang!' she exclaimed. 'I didn't know I had many farang fans.'

Maiyuu borrowed a piece of paper from the bar and gave it her to sign. She addressed it to me in English, then signed her name in Thai.

My name is hard to spell, and she got it wrong. But it is the thought that counts.

Today, I still have that scrap of paper, along with a couple of news clippings of Au in the flower market with her singer friend Amp.

They were promoting their singing-duo concert.

Maiyuu took me to the concert, the only time I have been to a live concert with him in Bangkok.

The pair performed at the gritty Thammasat University hall.

The concert was great. I particularly enjoyed the banter between Au and Amp, as it brought me closer to her, I thought.

Back in those days, I entertained the thought of her as a potential girlfriend, should I lose Mayuu to some calamity.

As we listened to her, my eyes would well with tears (actually, they still do).

Usually, Mayiuu understood, as he found her voice moving too. But occasionally, Maiyuu would give me a worried look. 'Is my boyfriend going mad...again?'

In the last few years, Au has been busy with other things. In Phra Khanong district, close to where Maiyuu and I live, she is a local body representative, no small accomplishment in a country where politics is still dominated by men.

Dear Au...if I spot another pothole in the road, can I call you? And will you to send men in singlets around to fix it?

As part of the research for this post, I Googled my singing idol.

Husky voiced Au, in turns out, is a former student activist, who at the age of 18 spent a night and two days in prison.

This was during the May 1992 protests in Bangkok, popularly known as Black May. She said:

'My family is interested in politics. I was brought up with protest songs.

'As a child, my parents took me to commemoration events for the October 1973 massacre. Then, as an arts student at a technical college, I joined protests against the government of Suchinda Kraprayoon.

'I spent two months at the King Chulalongkorn Monument, where I saw solders shoot students. During the military crackdown, I sought sanctuary at the Rattanakosin Hotel, but soldiers found us.

King Chulalongkorn monument

'I spent a night in jail, along with other protesters. We were freed after the King, calling for social unity, intervened,' she told Kom Chad Luek newspaper.

Twelve years ago, Au embarked on a career as a performer, releasing her first album with the group Paper Jam. She also joined a group called Seven, and put out two solo albums.

However, she always had a sense of politics being in the background...waiting.

A few years ago, she took a break from singing to enter politics.

Au says she has achieved one of her life goals in being elected to serve the people of Phra Khanong as their local body representative.

'Politics brings me close to people,' she says.

Au also runs a muay thai boxing ring with her uncle. 'I am promoting muay thai as a national treasure...one of the performing arts in the fighting arena.

'Muay thai brings in a fortune to our country every year, but government help is still needed to preserve it.

'In the boxing ring, it is a fight between two people. In the political arena, the important thing is not who wins or loses, but the voters who get the benefit,' she says.

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Occasionally, Au returns to her old love, singing. Most recently, she performed in the 11th Green concert (promoted by a local radio station, Greenwave), called Seven Divas.

Au performs along with six other Thai singing doyen. All have been around a while...including one performer who next year celebrates her 20th year in the business.

Maiyuu bought the concert VCD, which we watched this morning. Au performed a couple of her hits from years ago.

She looks older, as do we all. Her voice has dropped markedly, and at times she seemed to be fighting for air.

'It's all the cigarettes and booze,' says Maiyuu.

However, she's still the same Au which Maiyuu and I have admired for almost a decade now.

Good on you, girl. You're a fighter.

Au is part of my earliest memories of Thailand - and I daresay Au (along with Maiyuu, my other girl) will be with me until the end of those days, too.

Postscript: Sample Au via YouTube here.