Shane Pow: I’d like a girl who can wash dishes

Photos: Teo Sijia
Video: Vanessa Lim

For Shane Pow, 25, a match made in heaven would mean being paired with a girl who can do the dishes.

A confident cook on the side who dislikes being stuck on dish duty, the actor said, “This way, I’ll be in charge of making meals, and if she enjoys eating them and is happy to help clean up, that would be perfect!”

He added that his proudest culinary achievements include making aglio olio and pasta dishes — with homemade sauces, not the canned or jarred stuff — and cooking chicken breast, any style. And rather than stir-frying or pan-frying the meat all the time, the actor prefers to get creative with his food.

“It will taste the same (that way) and I’ll get bored of it,” he said. “So I will switch it up, such as adding basil or chili padi and making it a Thai-style mince.”

Fitness first
For the former Manhunt 2011 contestant, 70 per cent of losing weight depends on controlling one’s diet, so he’s staying away from carbohydrates and loading up on vegetables and fish.

Shane said he’s trying to maintain his weight at his ideal 69–70 kg range. “Any lower than that and my face will look gaunt, and I’ve been told it doesn’t look good,” he said. “But I really love to eat, so I hope everyone can be understanding about that.”

While making an appearance at Dazzling Cafe’s launch of its Tweety-themed honey toast offerings on Monday, Shane said his recent weight loss efforts have cut him off from dessert, so he’s taking a rare day off from his diet.

The actor had to film scenes for his upcoming drama series House of Fortune while topless on Orchard Road, and shocked many with the absence of his pageant-quality six-pack abs.

So was the Internet criticism so harsh that it drove him to work out again?

“To be honest, I don’t really mind it,” Shane said. “I’m more concerned about the audience and whether they mind flabby bellies. Perhaps they assume actors must have washboard abs, so as an actor I probably should maintain that image.”

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Moving on
And the on-camera stripping doesn’t stop with House of Fortune. Shane is set to shed the layers again when he starts work on Fu Gui Ping An, the 170-episode Channel 8 drama series that’s scheduled to air after Life — Fear Not.

“When I read the script, I thought, Why does this keep happening to me?” he said.

“To people like me who put on weight easily, we need about three months to prepare ourselves for a topless scene. Not only must we watch what we eat, we have to train regularly. Six-packs don’t come easy.”

But Shane hopes audiences will move on from his beauty pageant image. “Everyone remembers me being a hunk, but I hope I can make a different impression on audiences and not just be on-screen eye candy,” he said.

“And if I’m too buff, the range of roles I can take on is smaller, so I may not deliver as many breakthrough performances.”

House of Fortune debuts January 19, 9pm on Channel 8. Shane Pow will be part of Celebrate 2016’s celebrity lineup — more details here.

This story is translated by Zara Zhuang.

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