Lim Do-hwa (Chan-mi), a former member of the girl group AOA, has expressed her feelings about her new public appearance, including her name change, as she returns as an actress in the movie 'The Black Spirit.'
Lim Do-hwa conducted an interview on the afternoon of the 27th at a cafe in Samcheong-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul. She spoke with local reporters about the movie 'The Black Spirit.'
The movie 'The Black Spirit', released today (27th), is an occult horror film that begins as Anuat (Anupam Tripathi), who hides a horrific past and a secret, meets Sua (Lim Do-hwa), who is destined to die when she turns twenty-five, on a moonlit night and confronts a chilling fate. Lim Do-hwa challenges the screen for the first time as 'Lim Do-hwa' through this work.
Lim Do-hwa, who debuted as the maknae 'Chan-mi' of the girl group AOA and was loved for a long time, is now taking a leap as an actress by changing her name to Lim Do-hwa, which she chose herself.
Regarding her name change, Lim Do-hwa said, "When I first changed my name, I didn't have any regrets about the things I had built up. However, after changing it, I realized how important a name is. Some people remember names even if they don't remember the face, but if I don't say it, they don't know. At first, there were many times I felt regret and confusion. People would ask if I was 'Chan-mi from AOA,' but they didn't recognize me," she said with a smile.
She said, "On the contrary, the good thing is that it feels better that people recognize me from the start. When I was active before, even when I shot web dramas, most of the curiosity was about the team, AOA, which was frustrating for me at a young age. I thought that even though it was interest, it was impossible to act because they weren't curious about my acting. When I went to auditions after changing my name, they didn't know me at all. They knew AOA, but not me. Changing my name made me completely unrecognized. Although I have received harsh evaluations, that too was good. It provided an opportunity for me to develop further, and even though I am not a glamorous person, many perceive me as very glamorous. I wanted to change that," she revealed.
The meaning of Lim Do-hwa's name was also beautiful. She said, "'Chan-mi' represents the basis of my efforts to live well," and after laughing, explained, "The surname means 'the mother's Lim,' the character 'to arrive,' 'beauty,' and it signifies reaching 'beauty.' There were conditions when I changed my name; first, there shouldn't be any entertainers with the same name. Also, I wanted to create it myself. Even if I regret it, I thought I should have my own share of regrets," she said.
She continued, "I wanted to give a meaningful name as I thought about 'being myself,' which means that beauty aligns with being myself. I wanted to achieve a beauty that represents me rather than just beauty in general. I still feel that my name hasn't fully settled with me. Sometimes, I find it a bit awkward; my dream of my birth was to see many flowers embracing my mother. I think the meaning of 'Do-hwa' is the peach blossom, and I believe it is my destiny, so I've kept a positive mindset," she said with a smile.
(Continued in interview②.)
[Photo] Provided by Dante Entertainment.
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