Tony Rakaen Takes a Break from Entertainment to Garden, Admits Dark Skin Hurt His Career—Jokes About Mom Baan Yen's New Face Surgery Looking Like He Got a New Sister
Thai entertainer Tony Rakaen stepped away from show business to focus on gardening with his wife, candidly admitting dark skin from neglecting self-care hurt his career prospects. He recently resurfaced at a Netflix film premiere, joking th
Tony Rakaen has made a comeback to public appearances after stepping away from the entertainment world to pursue a simpler life with his wife Kaew Charinya Sirimongkol. He shifted his focus to gardening and growing vegetables, becoming largely absent from the entertainment scene. Recently, he attended the Netflix action-romance film premiere 'Blood Love Killer' at Siam Paragon's fifth floor, opening up about finding better life balance. He humorously remarked about his mother Baan Yen's recent cosmetic surgery, saying she looks so much younger it's like having a new older sister. At 74, she rarely leaves the house.
When asked about his current lifestyle, Tony explained: "Things are going fine. Nothing major really. We cook and garden. I don't go out much. It's been a long time since an event like this—probably a year. I do talk to people though. There was a period when we were focused on completing the garden project, which didn't align well with entertainment work since the industry demands skin care. I wasn't taking care of myself during that time, and my skin darkened, which meant I wasn't getting work offers. Do I regret the trade-off? I think it's more of an ongoing feeling. We've found more joy in the peace and quiet than in chasing happiness. There are periods where we have to make choices, times when I was filming while also working on the garden, and my skin would change color, making it hard for cinematographers to light scenes properly. But once we understood the system and got everything automated, it required less work from us, allowing us to do more in entertainment."
When asked if economic concerns drove his decision to stay home, Tony responded: "Since COVID, we've been doing this for a while. It does have an effect—we still drive and buy imports; we can't produce 100% of our food at home. I've been affected like everyone else. If anything, it's more of a social issue than economic. We go out less and stay home more, reducing those expenses. Previously, we cleared all our debts—paid off the house, car, and everything. So we don't need to focus on making money the way we used to, though we still do. We've just become more economical. Kaew taught me that living this way is easier—if we want something, we wait until we can afford it, then buy it outright. That's always been her approach, and I've learned from her."
When asked if he's resisting technology and trends like others in the industry, he laughed and said: "I'm not better than anyone. I just go with the flow. My desires have decreased since I don't want to go out much. I don't need to dress up like before. I focus on what we'll cook and eat today and whether it tastes good. I don't see many people or go out often. My consumer spending isn't excessive—it's normal. Most of my spending goes toward the garden: soil, supplies, things like that. As for collectibles I like, I have some Supreme items for decoration, but I'm not buying more. Most of the spending goes to the garden rather than luxury goods."
