This review may contain spoilers
A chilling, cautionary tale
Karnkaew (the main protagonist) has it all: fluent English skills, charming looks, the gift of gab, and excellent people skills. Men, especially those in relationships, throw themselves at her and want to be with her, women are envious of her and want to be with her, and it seems as though many people are deeply invested in her well-being.
But the undeniable fact is that Karnkaew is absolutely dissatisfied with her life. She feels that her family's poverty is holding her back from achieving the one thing she desires more than anything else in life: an upper-class lifestyle. So what does she do? Rather than work her way up the ladder like everyone else, she becomes a courtesan, thinking that it'll bring her quickly to her goal.
Throughout the show she seduces and has sex with various men, and even manages to get into a relationship with someone from a rich family. In her obsessive, blind, and dangerous pursuit of becoming a member of the upper-class, she burns bridges with the people around her, uses people to get what she wants, people away willingly, and makes friends with the wrong people. In the end, her blind desire became her tragic undoing and guided her to her untimely death. As depressing as it is to say this, the man who sold her to the German brothel was spot on—if all that Karnkaew wanted was a good life, why did she choose to become a courtesan?
Chala, Karnkaew's best friend, on the other hand is not like her; she does not share Karnkaew's obsession and only wishes to lead an honest, hard-working life. In the end, her commitment to honest living and being true to herself pays off; she ends up escaping a life of poverty.
Many Thai people, especially those in living in urban areas and the younger generation, equate wealth with superior social status. Anything that makes a Thai person look good is taken positively; anything that makes a Thai person look bad is not. Many run into problems trying to become wealthy, and Karnkaew is the perfect representation of that—she went from a top-tier courtesan who was admired by all in Thailand to a low-level sex worker who was beaten and mistreated by all. She completely understood the gravity of what she truly lost by becoming blindly obsessed with wealth and power.
Let this show serve as a brutal, cautionary reminder that a blind obsession with status does more harm than good. It poisons relationships, makes you many enemies along the way, and makes you an outcast. If Karnkaew made better decisions to begin with, she wouldn't have ended up the way she ended up.
But the undeniable fact is that Karnkaew is absolutely dissatisfied with her life. She feels that her family's poverty is holding her back from achieving the one thing she desires more than anything else in life: an upper-class lifestyle. So what does she do? Rather than work her way up the ladder like everyone else, she becomes a courtesan, thinking that it'll bring her quickly to her goal.
Throughout the show she seduces and has sex with various men, and even manages to get into a relationship with someone from a rich family. In her obsessive, blind, and dangerous pursuit of becoming a member of the upper-class, she burns bridges with the people around her, uses people to get what she wants, people away willingly, and makes friends with the wrong people. In the end, her blind desire became her tragic undoing and guided her to her untimely death. As depressing as it is to say this, the man who sold her to the German brothel was spot on—if all that Karnkaew wanted was a good life, why did she choose to become a courtesan?
Chala, Karnkaew's best friend, on the other hand is not like her; she does not share Karnkaew's obsession and only wishes to lead an honest, hard-working life. In the end, her commitment to honest living and being true to herself pays off; she ends up escaping a life of poverty.
Many Thai people, especially those in living in urban areas and the younger generation, equate wealth with superior social status. Anything that makes a Thai person look good is taken positively; anything that makes a Thai person look bad is not. Many run into problems trying to become wealthy, and Karnkaew is the perfect representation of that—she went from a top-tier courtesan who was admired by all in Thailand to a low-level sex worker who was beaten and mistreated by all. She completely understood the gravity of what she truly lost by becoming blindly obsessed with wealth and power.
Let this show serve as a brutal, cautionary reminder that a blind obsession with status does more harm than good. It poisons relationships, makes you many enemies along the way, and makes you an outcast. If Karnkaew made better decisions to begin with, she wouldn't have ended up the way she ended up.
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