About the famous Hokkien-spewing massage therapist uncle (
featured here)
inSing has a decent post about him.
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Sound engineer Toh Kia Hing, 53, has been single for more than seven years now (Photo: Jobiness.sg)
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I'm a little distracted by the 3 eye candies there, but that guy there... he is the massage uncle??
He looks so different with the longer hair, spectacles, and of course the jacket.
He definitely looks happier with the 3 models than otherwise...
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He plays a disgruntled massage therapist for professional models in a
video advertisement, complaining about his “nightmare” job.
The video, which advertises a startup online platform that offers branding for businesses and a research database for jobseekers – spawned a “second edition” (below) for website
Jobiness that went viral, gathering more than a million views in just four days.
Speaking in Hokkien, a Chinese dialect, the massage therapist “uncle” – a broad term used by Singaporeans to address middle-aged or older men – tickled those watching his so-called “misery”.
The man playing the “uncle” is really a sound engineer at Chinoiserie, a dance club near the Esplanade.
Toh Kia Hing, 53, used to work with Sony Music, and he clarified during his interview with inSing News that he is Hainanese and not Hokkien.
Recounting how he landed the job to star in the video, he said he got a call from the video director and an old friend, Nicholas Lee, who used to play “Ronnie” in the Channel 5 sitcom ‘Under One Roof’.
Toh went for an impromptu audition and two weeks later, he landed the role.
He said laughs and giggles filled the set when he rehearsed his lines and nothing sleazy went on: “The girls were fun to work with. One of them even thanked me for a good massage.”
Asked if he had ever considered being a massage therapist, he said: “I have been a sound man for more than 30 years and I’d rather massage a microphone than a woman because it doesn’t nag.”
Toh, who used to play rugby in his younger days and now enjoys fishing, said he has never been married and has not been in a relationship for the last seven years. Responding to negative comments from viewers that he “hates” the company of women, he retorted that it was all staged for the advertisement and nothing else.
“It is nice to be acknowledged for my work, but I don’t really need the limelight. I didn’t even expect it to become a hit,” he added.
We hear there may be two more editions of the video ad planned, so the spotlight will not be switched off that soon.
I like to remind
Jobiness that I can work for free in their next campaign.
