All it took was a scattershot of a taxi ride for Belle Brillantes to realize she no longer wanted the life waiting for her at home.
Years pass, that specific moment is still imprinted in her memory. She was inside a taxi, looking into the distance, when a thought entered her head all at once.
“Biglang pumasok sa sarili ko na, ‘Pagod na ako. Ayoko nang maging asawa ng kahit kanino—kahit sino mang lalaki,’” Belle recalls.
At the time, Belle had already spent nearly two decades married to the father of her children.
According to her, things changed after he converted to Islam during the final years of their relationship.
“Nineteen years kami mag-asawa, pero noong nagpa-convert siya ng Muslim, doon sa last five years namin, naiba na kami talaga,” she says.
“It's so difficult.”
The realization inside that cab ride home eventually led to the end of the marriage.
“Noong time na after ng Ramadan, bumalik na siya sa bahay, sabi ko sa kanya, ‘Uwi ka na sa mama mo. Ayoko na.’”
Belle walked away from the marriage with just her children.
“Tapos sabi ng mommy ko, ‘O, bakit wala kang dalang mga gamit?’ Sabi ko, ‘Ma, I have everything. I have my kids. Start na ako sa zero.’”
RAISING one of four children IN SHOWBIZ
Starting over meant raising her children largely on her own while Andrea Brillantes—or Blythe as she is called by her loved ones—eased into the entertainment industry at the tender age of seven.
One of the earliest sacrifices Andrea remembers was her mother, Belle, stepping away from her own ventures entirely just to personally care for her on set.
Andrea looks back on it: “Nag-stop si Mama sa business niya noon para mabantayan niya ako sa TV. Yun yung sacrifice na naalala kong nagawa niya nung bata ako.”
For 11 years, Belle owned and managed a workshop that manufactured both genuine and synthetic leather goods, including belts, bags, and shoes.
Admittedly, the decision affected her financially: “Malaking loss doon sa family namin kasi, siyempre, single parent ako at that time.
“But mas nakita ko kasi, kailangan niya ako kasi, ayaw ko siyang ipaubaya sa ibang tao kasi bata siya, tapos babae siya.”
Their way of life has changed. Andrea is now an in-demand endorser and leading lady, while Belle has become a competitive athlete. But their relationship remains much the same as it was when Andrea was just starting out.
“Wala naman masyadong nagbago, actually,” Andrea says in an interview with PEP.ph (Philippine Entertainment Portal) on the day she and her leading man, Enrique Gil, shot promotional content for their series A Secret in Prague, currently airing on TV5 and Netflix.
“I think kasi ever since, parang yung relationship talaga naman ni Mama, friends kami. Kumbaga mommy-ger ko siya, I always seek for her opinion. And yung same naman kami pa rin ng taste sa style and everything.”
But, as Andrea puts it, the biggest difference now is that she has become more decisive about her own life.
“Batang-bata kasi ako before, and to now, mas ako lang ang namimili o mas nagde-decide for myself,” she explains. “Pero hindi pa rin nawawala yung advice ni mama.”
These days, the two no longer spend every day physically together.
Andrea has since moved out after helping establish homes and investments for the family. Yet, their communication remains constant.
“Everyday,” Belle immediately answers when asked how often they talk.
“We talk everyday, but we don't see each other everyday,” Andrea clarifies.
“We text,” Belle adds. “Yes, yes. Everyday.”
When asked how often they actually see each other in person now, both mother and daughter answer in unison: “Once or twice.”
BELLE’S TRUST IN ANDREA
The closeness between them has survived adulthood, separate households, and years of public scrutiny. Andrea credits much of that to the trust her mother has given her.
“Yung freedom na nabibigay niya sa akin or like yung trust na nabibigay niya sa akin with everything I do. Like everything na I want to try, explore, may trust siya sa akin.”
Andrea chuckles while describing her mother’s tendency to panic first before eventually allowing her to make her own choices anyway.
“Natatakot siya, napapraning muna siya. Then at the end of the day, parang, hahayaan niya pa rin ako.”
That level of trust reveals itself most clearly in how they shield each other from internet noise.
One of the hardest parts about raising Andrea in the public eye, as Belle recounts, has been seeing people get her daughter wrong time and time again.
“Naku,” Belle chimes in during the interview. “The hardest part yung lagi siyang misunderstood. Ah, hirap ako doon.”
Andrea interrupts her mother before she could get emotional: “O, wag ka iiyak.”
PEP.ph asks the mom, “Ikaw yung nasasaktan para sa kanya?”
“Yes, oo. Gusto kong magalit sa kanilang lahat,” Belle says before laughing.
These days, Andrea has taken it upon herself to protect her mother from social media altogether, intervening to the point of forbidding her from reading comments.
“Dati ako nagbabasa, but I stopped now kasi sinabi niya,” the 52-year-old free diver says.
Andrea picks up the story herself: “Kasi pinipigilan ko siya. Sinasabi ko, ‘Wag ka nang magbasa kasi ang mangyayari, magra-rant siya and then maba-badtrip na siya.
“Sabi ko, ‘Wag ka na kasi magbasa.’ So, pinigilan ko si mama. Banned siya from reading comments.”
Belle titters, then confirms, “Yes, bawal.”
One misconception that has baffled her is the accusation from some netizens that she competes with her daughter.
The very suggestion earns a strong reaction from the mother of four.
“Huh? Bakit? Oh my god! Eww,” she says, before bursting into laughter.
The assumption may have stemmed from her use of “Belle Brillantes” as her Instagram handle.
One netizen even commented on Reddit: “Artista rin?”
Disbelief momentarily register on her face then the soft-spoken mom says, “Oh my god, nakakatawa iyan kasi hindi ako marunong mag-Facebook, hindi ako marunong mag-IG.
“Kelan lang ako nalagyan ng ChatGPT. Hindi ako marunong…mga anak ko naggawa nito.
“Spoonfed ako. Alaga nila ako sa mga ganyan.”
For Belle, it is difficult to understand why people would think that, especially since “Meron akong sariling world.”
The free diver—who has a national record for her six-minute-and-six-second breath hold—is also a triathlete, tennis player, and runner.
She jokes, “Mas mabilis ako tumakbo sa kanya, dios mio.”
Belle says she has her own identity outside motherhood and beyond Andrea’s celebrity status.
“Like meron ako, for example, sa diving community, it's my world. Yung sa running, it’s my world. Now, I’m building my world in tennis.”
ADVICE FROM MOTHER TO DAUGHTER
Belle may trust Andrea deeply, but there remains one piece of advice she apparently repeats constantly whenever conversations about love come up.
“Wag muna masyadong magseryoso,” Belle says when asked about her reminders regarding boys and relationships.
Andrea nods in agreement, “Paulit-ulit iyan,” before explaining why.
“Because I fall in love deep and hard as she says.”
Belle teases, “She’s crazy [in] love.”
The room bursts into laughter afterward.
When asked to recall moments when she resisted her mother while growing up, the A Secret in Prague lead actress pauses before remembering one recurring point of disagreement: diet.
“Si Mama, lagi siyang, ever since, tutok siya sa diet ko,” Andrea reveals.
“So, I think yun yung pinaka, kung meron man akong di sinusunod.
“Kakain ako, kakain ako, kakain ako,” she goes on dramatically. “And then babalikan ko ang pictures ko tapos sabi ko, ‘Oh my gosh. Oh my gosh.’”
“Tama,” Belle concedes through a sheepish giggle. “Yun yun, yung sa diet. Nagtsi-cheat siya sa akin.”
“Yeah, diet,” the young star affirms.
Despite the playful teasing, Andrea still merits her mother for many things she plans to carry into adulthood someday.
“I think yung dadalhin ko talaga yung pag-alaga niya sa sarili niya kasi talagang ang ganda-ganda pa rin ni Mama. And yung pagiging rockstar niya.”
She also lets slip the one thing she would likely do differently once she has children of her own in the future.
“Bata pa lang ay ipapag-sports ko na agad yung anak ko kasi [ako], too late na,” she yelps while busting a gut.
“Di niya [Belle] pinagawa sa amin iyan. Hindi niya kami sinali sa mga clubs. Tapos ngayon na kami mas athletic, ang tanda na namin, no offense.
“I mean too old to like start na mag sports kung gusto mo maging magaling. Sana bata pa lang kami nag-sports na kami. Yun lang ang babaguhin ko.”
Belle herself only started discovering her athletic prowess in her late 40s.
“Ayun nga, na-burnout ako. Nag-running ako. Nag-swim ako. Nag-two-kilometer swim ako sa Batangas...”
That was the time she realized the extent of what her body could do: “Oh my god, ang galing ko...ang lakas ko!”
How she got into it and decided to make it her lifestyle is another interesting story.
THE LIFE BELLE WANTS FOR HER CHILDREN
Needless to say, Andrea and her siblings are satisfied with how their mom ran the household.
Putting aside how she raised them on her own, Belle also made it a conscious effort to oversee Andrea’s finances during her early years in showbiz.
From her perspective, the decision came from witnessing many artists struggle financially despite spending decades in showbiz.
“Kasi marami kaming kakilala ng mga artist na di sila naka-acquire ng house,” Belle explains.
“I made sure na merong sasakyan yung anak ko, may bahay siya, at walang utang doon. Yun, doon ako proud—na lahat nakuha ni Blythe, nakuha pa ng mga kapatid niya, na wala kaming utang.”
Belle gradually stepped back from directly handling Andrea’s finances after the 23-year-old star helped secure homes and investments for the family.
“Ang ginawa ni Blythe, binigyan niya ako ng sariling pangkabuhayan.
“So nakabukod na kami mag-iina.”
Belle points out that Andrea first made sure their family home was fully finished before deciding to live separately.
“Nung napagawa niya na yung bahay namin, doon siya nag-decide na, ‘O, Ma, okay, tapos na ako sa inyo. Pero eto, iiwan ko sa inyo. Sa inyo na iyan. Magbubukod na ako. Ikaw na bahala dito.’
“So, binigyan niya ako ng mga paupahan.”
Asked how she managed to raise children who stayed grounded despite fame and financial success, Belle divulges that she never once considered herself a traditional mother.
“I don't know kasi hindi ako yung typical na domesticated na mama. I don't know how to cook. Yun nga rockstar nga ako, e.”
Instead, Belle believes she simply raised her children to become independent early on: “Hindi ko sila talaga binaby.”
One of the more surprising revelations from Belle involved Andrea’s long-term plans.
She describes how Andrea often sets financial goals for herself before eventually planning to return to school someday.
“‘Ma, gusto ko ang next kong goal after nung bahay natin, condo.’ So yun, nung nakuha na namin ang condo, ‘Ma, ang next ko, beach house.’”
Belle relates that she once brought up the possibility of Andrea leaving showbiz after reaching enough stability.
“In fact nung natapos ko yung bahay, sinabi ko sa kanya na, ‘Babe, matatapos na yung bahay. Baka gusto mo mag-quit na? Okay na?’”
Andrea then answered: “‘Huh? Anong gagawin ko? Okay pa ako.’”
Still, Belle believes her daughter could eventually walk away from showbiz someday if she truly wanted to: “I think so. Yeah, I think she can.”
OVERFLOWING GRATITUDE
Toward the end of the interview, both mother and daughter are asked what they still want to say to each other for Mother’s Day.
Neither wants to go first.
“Oh my God, ang hirap. Mauna ka,” Belle says.
“Ikaw mauna,” Andrea shoots back.
“Wala akong maisip kasi lagi akong nag-i-speech sa kanya sa cellphone. Iyan, laging meron.”
“Ako, hindi,” Andrea confesses with a guilty laugh, before caving in.
“Well, ah, thank you,” she tells her mother.
“Thank you sa lahat ng sinacrifice mo for me, and the family, and thank you for giving life to me. I love you. Happy Mother's Day.”
Belle turns emotional almost immediately.
“Ako rin?” she asks softly.
She then begins talking about the moments that still catch her off guard, and make her pause as she absorbs how far their lives have come since that taxi ride years ago.
“Especially pag I get to travel... Bigla akong magte-text sa kanya kunyari nakakita ako ng whale shark.
“Yun, magte-text ako sa kanya na, ‘Thank you so much for this life. Kasi kung hindi dahil sa iyo, di ko makikita yung whale shark.’”
Other times, gratitudes comes to her in flashes of ordinary life.
“Minsan nakatingin ako sa kuwarto ko tapos na-realize ko, ‘Ang laki ng kuwarto ko.’ Tapos magte-text ako sa kanya na, ‘Babe, thank you. Ang laki ng kuwarto ko. Thank you so much.’”
She repeats her regard once more before the interview wrapped up: “Thank you so much sa sacrifice mo.”
Andrea then cheekily deflects through the emotion: “Ayan na umiyak na siya.”
“Parang kami din,” somebody else in the room quips.
Belle smiles again, then concludes, “Kahit na masungit siya, sobrang spoiled niya ako. Ini-spoil niya ako talaga. Hindi niya ako matiis.”
From Andrea’s “Thank you for giving life to me,” to Belle’s “Thank you for this life,” their conversation comes full circle.
Some years back, Belle Brillantes sat inside a taxi and decided to anchor her life around her children.
Today, she reaps the quality of life that only courage, sacrifice, and unwavering faith can provide.
PRODUCTION CREDITS:
SHOOT PRODUCER: Karen Pagsolingan
PHOTOGRAPHY: Stephen Capuchino
TEXT/INTERVIEW: FK Bravo
VIDEO: Rommel Llanes
SOCIAL MEDIA: Nikko Angelo Tuazon, Allyanah Calinao
FOR ANDREA BRILLANTES
MAKE-UP: Zidjian Floro
HAIR: RJ Dela Cruz
STYLIST: Eldzs Mejia
FOR BELLE BRILLANTES
HAIR AND MAKE-UP: Trisha Sanchez
PHOTOGRAPHER’S ASSISTANT: Jobo Nacpil
Special thanks to Ms. Shirley Kuan, Donboy Espiritu, and Jenneth Salac
