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Biography |
There’s something about a teenaged girl aching for her
long-lost dad that moves one’s heart. When ABS-CBN’s Charo
Santos-Concio saw Maja Salvador pleading on nationwide TV
for a glimpse of her dad Ross Rival, something in the girl’s
angelic face tugged at the network executive’s heartstrings.
Concio asked her staff to look for Maja.
Thus did Maja Salvador sign up with the Lopez network and
was introduced as John Prats’ partner in It Might Be You
last February.
Before that though, Lady Luck was working overtime for the
17-year-old girl from Aparri. Maja met Farrah Ramos, movie
columnist-talent manager Chit Ramos’s daughter in a modeling
workshop and they became fast friends. Little did Maja know
their friendship will lead her, not only to a reunion with
her dad, but to a promising career in showbiz, a field her
father’s side of the family has been identified with for
decades.
Maja confided to Chit that she had long wanted to see her
dad, whom she last saw when she was only seven. Maja did not
know Chit wrote about showbiz and never suspected her
wishful thinking will come true.
To Maja’s surprise, Chit replied, “You want to see your dad?
Let’s call Phillip (Salvador, Maja’s uncle).” Before Maja
can say a word, Chit dialed Philip’s number on the cell
phone and uncle and niece were talking.
The long-delayed father-daughter reunion - chronicled and
aired on The Buzz – took place in the house of Ramon
Salvador, Phillip’s older brother. As fate would have it,
Concio was watching at that time, and that touching scene
stuck in her mind. The rest, as they say, is history.
“I feel no bitterness toward my father, even if he and my
mom separated when I was a baby. My mom said I won’t be here
if it weren’t for him,” says Maja.
Besides, she has moved on herself. Maja is grateful to her
Japanese stepdad for taking good care of her. It was her
stepdad who, upon learning she was entering showbiz, came
home from Japan, where he markets Toyotas, to buy Maja a van
to take her around.
Maja is having the time of her life, never mind if she has
to wake up early to make it to her classes in a school close
to their home in Cainta at 7 a.m. Never mind, too, if unlike
before, when she can go to malls in casual shorts, “I must
look presentable because fans see me.”
She need not worry about her get-ups though. Navy/White Tops
got her as image model. The brand’s pastel colors complement
Maja’s young, carefree image, and its casual look, she adds,
jibes with her love for things simple yet comfortable.
Her style has even caught the eye of Aga Muhlach and Janice
de Belen’s son Igi Boy, who sent Maja flowers during a
presscon.
“Maybe it’s his way of telling me I should feel at ease at
that time,”Maja brushes away romantic ideas.
The flowers have not swept her off her feet - yet. Maja is
too busy with showbiz and school for that. In fact, this
high school graduating student has her sights set on a
marketing management course.
Maja has high career goals: “I want to make my own mark in
showbiz. While I don’t mind being identified as a Salvador,
I also want to be different.”
She should relax. Showbiz pedigree and ABS-CBN are on her
side. |
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