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Zaijian reveals how they filmed the first ‘Ding, ang bato’ scene in Darna 

Article (news)

Liezel dela Cruz

As <a href="https://ent.abs-cbn.com/darna">Mars Ravelo’s Darna</a> ends, cast members Zaijian Jaranilla and Mutya Orquia looked back on their journey with the teleserye – the challenges, good times, and lessons learned. Having spent a year working on this project, under a lock-in setup, means the actors have developed family-like camaraderie. But they have to step out of the bubble and let go of their old routine, with confidence that the friendships they built will continue to grow even outside the bubble.More than the typical finale blues, Zaijian and Mutya feel a sense of pride to be part of the Darna legacy, carrying with them a stronger purpose to help others. They said their greatest takeaway from the series is, “Ang pinakamalaking kasalanan ay ‘yung may kakayahan kang tumulong pero hindi mo ginawa,” which was Leonor (Iza Calzado)’s dialogue that became Narda (Jane de Leon)’s guiding philosophy. “Kahit anong paraan malaki man ‘yan o maliit, basta makatulong ka, ‘yun ang mahalaga,“ Zaijian mused.Zaijian’s character, Ding, can be considered as iconic as Darna, thus, one of the challenges he met was to create a fresh and relatable iteration. “Hindi naman kailangan mo higitan pero kailangan lang magpakita ka ng iba,” knowing the viewers’ taste is constantly evolving. Mounting the superhero series wasn’t a walk in the park, especially when you are directed by Chito Roño, as Zaijian puts it, “Dagdag pressure.”For Mutya, playing the Gen-Z vlogger Tricia has its challenges as well, especially in creating a balance between her ‘astig’ and ‘maarte’ manner. But just like Zaijian, she was eager to give her best, thanks to the positive feedback about her acting.The tandem went on to share their best memories with their co-stars, starting with Janella Salvador who portrayed Valentina. While she hasn’t shared a scene with Janella, Mutya witnessed her intense professionalism and adorable personality. Zaijian, on the other hand, acted a lot with Janella that he memorized her ‘Valentina moves’ just by watching her, or sometimes he’d ask how she plans to execute the scene so he can react properly.The young stars gushed over Rio Locsin, who they described as the coolest ‘Lola’ as in she has this teenage vibe in her. Zaijian, a ‘laking-lola’ in real life, grew close with the veteran actress. They love to eat, work out, and just spend quality time together.Joshua Garcia – Mutya will never forget the moment he let her borrow his taping chair; while Zaijian appreciates his generosity, “Kasi kami ‘yung magkasama sa dressing room kaya naaambunan ako lagi ng libre.”Mutya, unica hija in real life, gained brothers on set. There was Paolo Gumabao aka Noah who willingly absorbed her jitters during their Darna Caravan shows. In scenes where Zaijian low-key hates on Noah’s character, he would ask the actor, ‘Kuya, pwede ba akong maging masungit sa’yo?’ Paolo was very collaborative. He is quiet at times and one of the coolest guys.Mutya didn’t have scenes with Iza Calzado but she saw her when the actress visited the set, and she hopes to work with Iza in future projects. As for Zaijian, he considers Iza one of his mother figures in showbiz, hence, their off-cam closeness, “Parang hindi nalalayo ‘yung pagiging nanay niya on- and off-cam. Sobrang maalaga niya sa amin ni Ate Jane. Sobrang sweet. At pinakagusto ko sa kanya ay ‘yung ang dami niya lagi dalang pagkain.” She mostly brings healthy diet food on set, thus Zaijian was obligated to eat healthy as well.Zaijian and Jane’s sibling dynamic is real even behind the cameras. They have grown so close that they can engage in adorable ‘asaran,’ which he deeply appreciates, “Nagpapasalamat ako sa patience niya. Sobrang kulit ko kasi pero nakakatiis siya sa akin.” He knows playing Darna comes with gargantuan responsibilities and pressure but he commends Jane’s unwavering determination, “Nakita ko ‘yung hirap niya. Ilang oras siya nakasabit sa harness, ‘di ba?”Asked their most unforgettable moment on set, they two erupted into laughter when Mutya mentioned their fight scene. She narrated, “Kasi po ‘yung fight scene namin, siyempre, may bilang para alam ‘yung isa’t isa. Pagka-punch ko sa kanya ng right arm ko, masyado siyang nag-self-defense, so ginano’n [blocked] niya ‘yung kamay ko, so muntik akong tumilapon. Pero nasalo din niya ako agad.”Meanwhile, Zaijian’s unforgettable scene was the first time Jane uttered the iconic line “Ding, ang bato!” And as viewers, this was one of our favorites, too, right? He recalled, “Kasi no’ng binabasa ko pa lang ‘yung script na ‘yun, kinilabutan talaga ako. Tapos nu’ng ginagawa na namin, parang, hala, totoo na pala ‘to. Dati, pinapanood ko lang ‘tong ‘Ding, ang bato’ tapos ngayon nandito na ako. Medyo ano lang ‘yung moment na ‘yun, hindi kapani-paniwala, hindi agad nag-sink in sa akin.”Zaijian revealed that he didn’t watch the past versions of Ding. What happened was he gave Direk Chito three different versions of him throwing the stone to Jane. “No’ng take na, binigyan ko siya ng tatlong option kung paano ibato ‘yung bato. Tapos ‘yung pangalawa, ‘yun ang pinakanagustuhan niya.”Zaijian and Mutya are very much open to joining future adaptations of Darna. And if ever, Mutya would love to play Valentina, “Gusto ko lang ma-challenge ‘yung sarili. Kasi na-inspire ako ni Ate Jea, eh, so gusto ko lang maranasan.”For now, let’s watch Mutya and Zaijian as Tricia and Ding in the <a href="https://ent.abs-cbn.com/darna">Mars Ravelo’s Darna Super Finale</a> on <a href="https://ent.abs-cbn.com/articles-news/kapamilya-channel-livestream-12685">Kapamilya Channel,</a> <a href="https://ent.abs-cbn.com/articles-news/kapamilya-online-live-12710">Kapamilya Online Live</a>, and A2Z.

Join Zaijian Jaranilla and Mutya Orquia as they look back on their ‘Darna’ experience! 