The continuing tale of Fidel and Stella

I do not know where the story came from or if there is any truth to it. Balisong, which was composed by Kakoy Legaspi and Rico Blanco and recorded by the band Rivermaya for the album Between The Stars And Waves, is not really about balisong. Balisong is the world-famous fan knife that originated from the province of Batangas. But while the title of the song is Balisong, there is nothing in the lyrics that refers to a balisong or any knife for that matter.

Not that anybody would think lyrics like “Nobody’s made me feel this way before/ you’re everything I wanted and more…” can refer to a knife. Instead, the story says that somebody intentionally to disguise the song or just unintentionally made a mistake writing down the title Balisong. It was not supposed to be Balisong but Bali Song and refers to the paradise island in Indonesia that was the site of an unforgettable romantic interlude.

All that happened over a decade ago and Balisong by Rivermaya has since then become a classic. However, the song is hip once again and a hit with young people basking in the glow of their early romances. This is thanks to a new version by the band The Juans and to the use of Balisong in the soundtrack of the much-loved motion picture 100 Tula Para Kay Stella that starred Bela Padilla and JC Santos.

Written and directed by Jason Paul Laxamana, 100 Tula Para Kay Stella tells the story of stutterer Fidel who vowed that he would write a hundred poems for his rocker classmate Stella as proof of his love for her. He finished his poems but he and Stella did not end up together and to this day there are thousands of fans who hear Balisong or any of the other songs in the soundtrack and are filled with sadness and regret. 

Sadness and regret indeed. Those are also the two main emotions explored in Regine Velasquez’s latest single Hugot, one of the cuts from her R3.0 album. And it is because of those that she tapped Bela and JC to star in her music video of the song. The short film wondered, what if the ending had been different for Fidel and Stella? 100 Tula Para Kay Stella was released six months ago and to this day fans still wonder about that and try to change the ending in their imagination.

It is thanks to them that Balisong is a hit again. They were also the ones who gladly made a bestseller out of the novel edition of 100 Tula Para Kay Stella also written by direk Jason Paul. It is also because of them that Bela has found two new careers. First, as a rock singer with Kaya Natin Yan composed by Carl Guevarra of The Juans that she performed as Stella in the picture and which is now a hit. And second as a published poet, her book 100 Tula Ni Bela is now available in the stores. 

And her writing is good. The poems are short and simple but effective. Check out this entry titled Lunod: Naturingang magaling lumangoy/ kaya kahit saang pwedeng sumisid/ ako’y sumusugod. Pero mapaglaro talaga ang tadhana/ hindi pala ako sa tubig malulunod.

Or this one titled Undead: In between here and there/ love isn’t fair. It hits you so hard you feel like you’re losing air. And at the end of the day you’ll realize/ no one really cares. 

Meanwhile, JC stars in another love story with Ryza Cenon titled Mr. & Mrs. Cruz. Like 100 Tula Para Kay Stella, it also has a soundtrack of love songs. Getting heavy airplay because of use in the film’s trailer is the new tune Nasaan also composed by Carl who recorded it with newcomer Nicole Omillo. The oldie in the line-up is Before I Let You Go, the phenomenally popular song that launched the band Freestyle to big time stardom. Let us wait and see if it will be the Balisong of Mr. & Mrs. Cruz.

But meanwhile, I will be taking another look at Fidel and Stella in Jason Paul’s engrossing book of 100 Tula Kay Stella, while sneaking a peek once in a while at 100 Tula ni Bela.