Aly Alindayu and Josh, both participants of Marion Aunor’s “Pusuan or Laruan” dating show have spoken out after their appearances went viral on social media.
Photo: Pusuan or Laruan/YouTube
In an Instagram post, Aly talked about her sentiments about the “spliced videos” uploaded about her, which went viral a few weeks ago. She received flak after calling herself an “Englishera.”
She described the viral incident as the “worst experience of her life,” saying she received hate DMs, made into memes, and turned into a sound bite. Worst, she received death threats.
“The hate wasn’t even from a few hundred, it was from tens of thousands of people. People who I don’t even know made assumptions and defined my entire character,” she said.
“This has caused me severe mental and emotional distress and has made me afraid of crowds due to the fear of being recognized,” she added.
She also shared why she labeled herself an “Englishera,” stating that English is her first language.
“I may not have the typical American accent that you’re expecting but English is my first language. I spoke Taglish because it’s a Filipino show and I was adjusting,” she explained. “I hope you can see that I was trying.”
Despite facing backlash, she feels grateful to be surrounded by good people: “One thing’s for sure, I am blessed with good people. There are many people close to me or those I barely talk to standing up for me. There are even creators and celebrities I personally like and strangers who defended me as well. Thank you so much!”
“To those who sent me hate, I hear you. We have our own preferences and I forgive you and wish you peace,” she concluded her post.
Josh, another contestant, has also spoken out about going viral after his appearance on the show.
In a Reddit post, the network engineer held an “Ask Me Anything” portion, where he addressed some of the issues about him. He revealed that he had been laying low since late last year after being doxxed and receiving a lot of hate.
The 22-year-old assured Redditors he was doing fine and expressed gratitude to those who understood him. Additionally, he was thankful that his parents weren’t able to read hate comments from his viral video.
“Buti nga di nila nakita yung hate comments ko kasi we all know na ayaw makitang nasasaktan yung anak nila, because magulang sila (It’s a good thing they didn’t see my hate comments because we all know that no parent wants to see their child getting hurt). So I hope they dont see all of the bashing,
Amid the negative traction he received, he revealed that he had no regrets about joining the dating show: “I have fun with the guys. Mababait sila (They are nice) and fun to be with. Nagkaroon ako ng (I gained) insider knowledge sa fields nila, lalo na sa (especially in) IT.”
He also talk about the way he held his microphone, explaining that he was fidgeting.
“I want to fidget so bad pero ayaw ko gumaslaw (I don’t want to move much) like big movements… So ano pwede ko paglaruan (So what can I play with)? Yung mic, which I find it dumb na rin when i look at it,” he said.
He also affirmed that he has been prioritizing his work and his family.
“So as weeks go by, nagpapakabusy lang ako sa work and sa fam because sila lang naman mahalaga sakin. Huwag lang madamay yung mga hindi dapat (I’m just keeping myself busy with work and family because they’re the only ones that truly matter to me. As long as those who shouldn’t be involved stay out of it), it’s all good,” he expressed.
In the episode featuring Josh, which was uploaded last year, a spliced clip of him made rounds on social media after he described himself as a “Golden Retriever” boy looking for a “Golden Retriever” gal.
“Pusuan or Laruan” is an online dating show where a group of contestants hold a balloon while they are being introduced to a potential match. If the contestant pops their balloon, it indicates that they are not interested.
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