For family and freedom
Austrian-Filipina beauty Cindy Kurleto on the real Cindy Kurleto. By Katherine Magsanoc

The real Cindy Kurleto that many of us don't know is called Cynthia. That's her real name and how her true friends call her. "Cynthia has almost nothing to do with Cindy," the 22-year-old Austrian-Filipina says. "It's like Gollum and Smeagol or maybe Jekyll and Hyde. Cynthia has the guts to speak up all the time. She's a rebel and will fight if she has to."

A TRUE PROFESSIONAL
Growing up in a country whose people are known for their love for the arts and classical music molded Cindy into an artistic and out-spoken woman. Part of Cindy's Austrian heritage is her strong sense of independence. Empowerment is big in Austria, says the very down-to-earth girl. "You don't rely on connections, money, a prestigious family name. You have to work hard to succeed."

Cindy has impeccable work ethics. "I see to it that I'm always on time and prepared physically and mentally. I always give my best and do what I've been paid to do. I cannot imagine myself getting paid for work I won't do with all of my heart. When I was a kitchen help, a waitress, I would be the nicest waitress you could meet. I would give total quality service. I didn't mind serving anyone. It was my job so I did it."

Born to an Austrian father and a Filipino mother, Cindy is self-made and self-supporting. She left her hometown of Vienna in Austria when she was just 20, after earning a degree in Hotel and Restaurant Management. (Perhaps not coincidentally, her breakout Philippine television appearance in a deodorant commercial featured her pinch-hitting for a chef who was a no-show for her dinner party.)

Today, she is one of the most popular and beautiful faces in Philippine show business. She appears in a daily noontime variety show and on various television, magazine and billboard ads. Cindy is said to be Tinseltown's "next big thing."

BEST OF BOTH CULTURES
Her return to the Philippines began with a long vacation she planned with her mom. Growing up an only child to parents who divorced when she was only 4 years old, Cindy yearned for a big, happy family in the province with none of the usual urban conveniences. "That's why I went straight to Legaspi, Albay in Bicol province and didn't spend one night in Manila. My mom wasn't born in Legaspi but her family moved there. They're still there today."

Cindy first thought of visiting the Philippines after spending time with Filipino friends in Austria. "I had more fun with my Filipino friends," she says. "With them, everything was just about being happy, laughing and making silly jokes. They made me feel at ease because with them I didn't have to prove myself intellectually all the time."

But Austrian and Filipino culture, Cindy is quick to point out, do have striking similarities. "[Both] love ... music, drama and poetry. They have the same creative [spirit]. Austrians, like Filipinos, are romantic and sentimental." Cindy prefers "the warmth of the Philippines to the cold of Vienna. Our weather here is so much more me. I like the country very, very much."

COPING AND ACCEPTANCE
On vacation in the Philippines, having just shot her first TV commercial, Cindy thought that things were going smoothly when she received a phone call that would change her life forever.

"I was reading the last page of a book and about to go to sleep when my phone rang," she recalls. "Relatives said my mom suffered a brain aneurysm and was unconscious in a Vienna hospital." She booked the next flight to the Austrian capital. At the airport, her father was waiting for her with the terrible news: Her mom was gone. It was Cindy's birthday.

"I was very angry. My mom, the only person close to me, had passed away," she says. "I see other celebrities going home to their families, they have someone to comfort them. I have no one. I talk to God all the time. I would just love for my mom to just be there."

Coping and acceptance began when Cindy started getting more projects. "I asked God to give me something and He gave me my career." When someone so close to you passes away, she continues, "you just try to redefine everything in your life." Her 68-year-old father has been battling cancer for 13 years now. After the divorce, he remarried but never had any children.

"The chemotherapy is helping a lot," Cindy says. "I think everything happens for a reason. Before he got sick I thought that he didn't care about the things I said. Now I see him as very sensitive and responsible. I've forgiven him for leaving my family. It's a fact I can't change. I respect my stepmother because she brings my dad so much happiness."

Cindy is often in touch with her dad, finding solace in his counsel. "He brings me peace. My dad listens to me. I really appreciate that."

MEDITATION
Cindy sports a lean figure reminiscent of the surf-girl era of the 40s. "You only have one body and God said it's a temple [where] your spirit resides, so treat it good."

Cindy stays healthy physically, mentally and spiritually through meditation. "Meditation is like praying," she explains. "It's like painting, which I love."

WISH
When asked what she really wants to be, Cindy has a quick answer: "I would like to be 8 years old again, have a complete family in a house near the beach and then I would go to school. Be in a family, have lots of people around me who love me and whom I would be able to love back. I want to be surrounded by nature and have the freedom that only kids can have -- freedom of speech, freedom to think and to color your trees blue if you want to."