Exclusive with Pangina Heals
Listen to the interview via the link below or keep scrolling to read the interview.
Pangina, welcome to Spill the Tea gorgeous, how you doing?
I am doing well, I'm very caffeinated currently so I'm ready to spill a lot of tea!
That's what we like to hear. What have you been up to since we last saw you on our screens with UK Vs the world?
You mean the last time you saw me crying or having a little meltdown? Well my life has been really great. I've been doing an Asian Tour, so I've been travelling all over Asia. I went to the Philippines and I'm so excited to be coming to the. UK for Drag Con because I haven't been back to the UK in over, I think 15 years.
Oh wow. Have you been watching any of Canada Vs the World?
I have not, but I've been rooting for several of the girls 'cause I know them, but I'm sure it's awesome, but I've seen some of the fashions and I think everyone is just bringing their A game.
Well the reason why I ask is I wondered if you liked Kendall Genders reference to you saying she's going to be Pangina’d? Did you hear about that.
I saw that! That was really funny, I reposted that for sure. I thought it was hilarious.
It’s become iconic now.
It's a verb now.
For sure, I don't know what the version would be. I mean there's so many different versions now, something like Battle of the Drag Race judges or something, but would you ever return to compete or would you like to get back behind the judging panel?
I miss judging a lot. You know, I really do miss the judging part of it, because to be honest, it’s a lot less stressful, but I also do like being put in difficult and different situations. I just came out of competing it would be nice and kind of refreshing to go back and everyone has been waiting for Drag Race Thailand season three. It's not only just my dream, but a dream of a lot of people. Because we've got a lot of Thai artists that have not been seen yet, and especially after the show aired, and when I went to compete. There's a lot more Queens coming up. Now that I think the light needs to be shown, you know they need their spotlights, so I think it'll be great for a Drag Race Thailand season three to come back.
As you said you're coming back for Drag Con, but you're also coming back for your UK tour. Are you excited?
I am so, like literally two drops of pee just came out thinking about it! I couldn't make it the last time because of visa issues and now I'm holding my breath. The UK just loves drag, it's very mainstream and I can't wait to meet all the fan giants because when we were filming I didn't get to see anybody.
What are you most looking forward to?
I am looking forward to hearing all the beautiful accents of everyone, everyone just sounds so rich and I just feel like with my accent I feel real poor.
Oh I mean wait till you go up North then… I’m joking, I’m from down South so I’m being a snob.
You are so bad.
Now we must talk about your new series with World of Wonder Tongue Thai’d. How did it feel to have World of Wonder reach out to create a series with them?
That was another dream I never thought was going to happen. You know, just competing was one already. But then after that I feel like I have won all over again. I'm really fortunate, and it's so fun because I get to show my culture and what I love about Thailand with my friends. Queens from all over the world. There's Maxi Shield, Honey Davenport, Cheryl Hole, JuJubee, Kim Chi and even Jimbo. All of them are experiencing my culture and what I love about Thailand, which is food, and I'm sure a lot of them are going to get diarrhoea because… It's real spicy.
We touched on it a little bit then, but tell me what's the show all about?
Well the show is basically an 8 part series that's coming to WOW Presents Plus and it's basically me and special guests having conversations and the spicier the food becomes so does the conversation. Nothing is off limits. There's no filtering. I think a lot of the audience will get to learn about certain dishes which you don't know exist. And then maybe they'll go and try it, and they'll learn a lot more about the Queens themselves as well. It's a lot of sex talk and a lot of food and it's real fun.
Just like general drag chat but with cameras then?
Yeah, but like the questions are real crazy. I think you watched the screener one already, right?
Yes I did!
What did you think?
I loved it 'cause I wasn't sure what to expect either. And I actually really enjoyed it and it ended really quickly which is what you want when you're watching TV. You don't want to feel like an episode is dragging, like oh God. So I actually really enjoyed it and was really engaged with it. The translation with the camera man, that was hilarious.
Ah, that makes me so happy. Did you want to go and try different Thai foods now.
Yeah 100%, although I’m not sure on the spice level. I’ll have to test myself.
OK, good, good.
We will have to do a special Spill the Tea edition at Drag Con.
I'm so down I can't wait to, you know, meet you in the flesh.
We'll have to do it! As you said, on the show you were joined by many Queens from the Drag Race franchise but who was the most fun to film with?
I think everyone brought a lot of their personality and their crazy stories. But Honey Davenport just has no filter, like the things she says. I'm just like, oh my God, did you really say that? And she literally I feel like lived 9 lives. You'll hear in the episodes of what she's done behind the DJ booth and I'm just like you're inspirational to me at this point. Everyone was so willing to try the crazy spices. It's surprising because, people who I thought were going to have a hard time like Cheryl Hole, she was fine! On the other hand, I was dying.
Did you have to pretend you have hold it in?
Yeah, because when we were filming I would turn to the chefs and say make it like they're about to go to hell and so I had to taste it too. I got the short end of the stick most of the time because they were like, oh, it's not that bad and I'm like, oh, really…
I bet they used numbing cream before they came in.
Yes, just spread it all over and make sure you. We put like this bottle up of Pepto-bismol?
Never heard of it.
Do you know the medicine? The medicine that coats your stomach, so you don't get an upset stomach. Whatever it is, we had that on every single filming.
Just in case afterwards! I’m sure it takes a while to get to get out of drag to go to the toilet, and sometimes it's not waiting.
I know!
Can you can you cook?
Can I cook? Does it look like, I know how to cook?
I mean it does, but you never know. Good poker face?
The last time I cooked for my ex-boyfriend, he threw up so badly that I thought we weren't gonna make it, so I decided maybe some people just need to go to restaurant, but I think I'm one of those people who thinks cooking is just dangerous for me.
Okay, so what would be the dish that you would pick off the menu when you go out? What would be your number one go to?
Do you mean like a Thai dish?
Any dish, if you were going anywhere, what would be your fave? Do both?
OK, if it's a Thai dish, usually we get this feeling called like the scratchy head feeling. Thai people want the food to be so spicy that we're sweating out of our heads and we're scratching our heads so I usually like a lot of curry or something with lots of herbs. I would order either because we have so many different types of curry in Thailand and by the way, curry means prostitute in Thai, so if you call someone a curry, it means you’re a prostitute, so it would be curry.
Nice, I'm gonna steal that and in general?
In general, I would, uh… Wine.
One of your five a day.
I know it's liquid, but…
If it’s okay with you I would like to play a little game that we call it ‘Piping Hot Tea’ and it's basically quick fire questions that need some quick fire answers back, you down to play?
I am always down to play as long as it's safe.
If you could have anyone else dead or alive, sit down with you for an episode of Tongue Thai’d who would it be and why?
Joan Rivers, because she's insane and the pioneer for all comics. You know, just absolutely inspirational and I love her humour.
Thai food is famous for being spicy, but what is the hottest thing that you've ever put in your mouth?
Uhm, 3 penises at the same time.
Love it! Is food the way to your heart?
It is, and it's also a way to my ass.
What's the first thing that you do after getting out of drag?
Oh I poop, because I always hold it in.
What's your favourite song to lip sync to?
Last Dance by Donna Summer.
Best thing about performing in drag?
The fans and the money.
And the worst?
The worst thing about drag is taking off your acrylic nails, 'cause it's the worst pain in life.
Even more than Thai spices?
Oh, even worse, you feel like you want it to die. Have you ever put on acrylic nails and you have to really take them out immediately. It's worse than corseting. It's worse than wearing high heels. It's the worst pain drag queens know.
Yeah, I feel your pain. What is better, competing or judging on Drag Race?
Different.
Who is a better judge, you or Ru?
I can't answer that because depends on who it is because I think RuPaul is an amazing judge, I think we're just different. I think maybe I am meaner 'cause a lot of people say I'm a mean judge. I'm more like the Michelle. But I do relate with Michelle because I think it comes from love and that's how I am too.
Feedback is always a gift, even if it's not what you want to hear in the moment.
Amen!
What is your guilty pleasure?
Dark chocolate and good p*rn.
I can't stand dark chocolate. I love chocolate but not dark.
How dare you!
I know, there’s something about it, I do love orange flavoured chocolate.
You have good taste.
And the final question, and the most important one, did you love sitting down with me for this interview?
I absolutely did. I’m in my car seat but it was great and I'm kind of nervous because you shouldn't play quick fire questions with someone who obviously has tourette's like me and it just throws sh*t out. It was very dangerous, but very exciting.
You survived. It was all good.
I did, I did.
The way I'd just like to round off this Spill the Tea interviews and is to give you a chance to give a shout out to somebody, so that could be another drag, King, queen, or just a queer performer doing their thing that you think deserves a shout out.
OK, my shout out would be to a queen I just met in the Philippines when I was on tour and I absolutely think she's one of the greatest Queens that I've ever met in my entire life. Her name isManza, she is killing it in the game, I posted her video on my TikTok and it went viral like 3 million people watched it or something crazy like that.
Tongue Thai’d with Pangina Heals will be available at 7.00pm GMT on 6th December, exclusively on WOW Presents Plus; Subscribe via. Pangina will also be attending RuPaul’s DragCon, the largest celebration of drag culture, returning to the UK at the ExCeL London from 6th - 8th January 2023, with quadruple the queens, triple the space and double the glamour. Get your tickets here.
Note: Some of this interview has been edited from the original transcript to help with readability.
Imagery with thanks to our friends at World of Wonder.