Manjean Faldas: 'Kailangan mong ma-realize, isapuso, na hindi ikaw ang bida'

"LANGHAP KO YUNG HINIHITHIT NG KAPITBAHAY," began Manjean Faldas, describing their house in Manila.

"Ganoon kanipis iyong kuwarto o iyong dingding. Kapag umuulan, lahat na ng sulok, may tulo. Tipong isang sulok na lang iyong matutulugan, ganoon! Tapos may kaunting moist pa!”

There are two sides of Manjean Faldas: The loud, extroverted, shoutcaster in esports, and the quiet, reserved gentleman you typically see in the hallway, greeting you with a bow of the head. Exceedingly humble, Faldas easily disarms with his charm and humility when he meets people who only often see him on the stage shoutcasting for the MPL.

Manjean Faldas is one of the Philippines’ pioneering shoutcasters in the esports scene and is most visible during the Mobile Legends Professional League (MPL) tournaments. Throughout our hour-long conversation, two words frequently escaped his lips: “lucky” and “adjustment,” things that heavily influence his outlook in life and the way he had to hustle to survive.

Manjean Faldas

Unknown to many, Faldas grew up in the slums and experienced living among the poorest of the poor.

“Lumaki ako sa slums, naranasan ko iyong mamuhay hanggang Class E,” he tells SPIN's Abo Limos. He tells it so casually as if it was the most normal thing in the world. He does not brag about his experience in poverty, nor is he ashamed of it. It’s simply there. He lived in a riverside slum area in a makeshift shanty made of plywood. When it rained, the roof leaked. When their neighbors smoked or sniffed something, they could smell it.

But despite his social status, Faldas sees himself as lucky because they had a roof over their heads. When we counted, he uttered the word “lucky” or “swerte” at least 15 times during the length of the interview. Manjean Faldas always chooses to look on the bright side. He was also fortunate to be a scholar at the College of Saint Benilde, one of the most expensive schools in the Philippines.

“Scholar ako sa College of Saint Benilde sa Culture and Arts for Theater. I can say that I was lucky because I was able to experience both ends of the social class, nagagamit ko rin siya in talking to people in meetings, in casting, kasi iba’t iba ang nanonood. Masaya naman ako na naranasan ko dahil nakuha ko iyong culture kung paano magsalita at mag-communicate ang ganoong class. Nasuwertehan na nga ako dahil noong college, nag-apply ako ng scholarship at naranasan ko rin iyong Class A at Class B way of communicating, at nagulat talaga ako kasi medyo overwhelming iyong culture kapag bigla kang napunta sa ganoong realm ng mga tao.”

Faldas would keep smiling remembering his days as a poor college student. He would suppress laughter, clearly enjoying a private memory when he recalls how his classmates would help him out of tough situations. There were plenty of days when he would sleep over at his classmates’ houses, borrow their laptops, or enjoy their treats for food, just to save a few bucks, or because he has no few bucks.

No trace of self-pity was etched on his face, and there is no hint of struggle in his eyes that would betray his truth—that he has been fighting all his life to survive. Even now, Faldas describes life as an eternal adjustment to challenges.

“Life is really an adjustment,” Faldas says. “For example, when I was in CSB, I was a scholar and I was so lucky because my tuition per sem is P200. Nasuwertehan ako na umabot ako sa ganoon. Before we started classes, parents were oriented about the required equipment and editing tools, PC or laptop. We didn’t have money to buy one, so, one adjustment that I did was, I used the computers in the computer laboratory. Kapag wala akong classes, whole day nandoon lang ako sa computer lab, tapos i-eedit ko na lahat ng mga assignments! Tapos palipat-lipat lang ako kasi hindi naman whole day available yung computer lab eh, may mga times na biglang may papasok na na class, kabisado ko na iyong schedule ng mga lab!"

When he finally graduated, it was not just relief, but also surprise, that came over him: “Nagulat ako na uy, naipasa ko tong course na to?” Faldas recalls, thinking how he had not owned any high-tech equipment, computers, or gadgets of his own.

When he landed his first shoutcasting job, it paid out a meager sum of P400 per casting job. And that was only on weekends.

Manjean Faldas

“Ang laro pa noon, League of Legends, DOTA. So pwedeng umabot sa eight hours to nine hours of casting. Pero masaya na kami noon eh, masaya na iyong pakiramdam na may ganoon kang halaga lalo na pag starting ka, sa ganoong edad. I started when I was 20 years old and I remember the Garena office, may pantry sila. Ang ginagawa ko, San Marino Corned Tuna plus kanin. Iyong San Marino, magkano lang iyon, P30. Tapos iyong kanin, pag sa 7-Eleven, mahal, P15. Pero kapag bumili ka sa karinderya, mga P10 lang! So kahit sa P50 o P55, may pang meal ka na, tapos busog ka na.”

And yet he was really happy because he could play on Garena’s computers after casting.

“Never ako nagkaroon ng console. Ngayon lang ako nagkaroon ng mga gadgets sa buhay ko! Ngayon lang ako nagkaroon ng PC, late ako nagkaroon ng laptop — December 2019. Kahit iyong smartphone! Parang halos lahat ng classmates ko may smartphones na, tapos ako, iyong gamit ko pang phone ay yung qwerty na Nokia. Medyo sosyalin pa nga, “qwerty!”

Living through hand-to-mouth subsistence

There were many days when the only thing on Faldas’ mind was sustenance. “Hindi kung anong makakain, ang iniisip ko, may makakain ba kami ngayon? May mga araw noong ako lang nagtatrabaho, naiisip ko, ‘May makakain ba kami bukas?’”

“Mahirap talaga kasi iyong income ng Mama ko, sapat lang pangkain namin sa isang araw. Kahit noong nagtatrabaho ako, umabot na rin sa ganoon. Masasabi kong hindi ako ganoon kamalas, at hindi rin ako ganoon kaswerte. Pero swerte na rin ako dahil iniisip ko, kaunti lang ang kinikita ko pero nakahanap ako ng murang tirahan, parang umabot kami na nagre-rent kami ng isang kuwarto for P3,000 tapos sharing pa yung CR, iyong kailangan mo pang bumaba kasi common lang iyong CR tapos may iba pang nakiki CR minsan,” Faldas shares, describing how he and his mom “adjusted” to the seeming difficulties thrown at them.

“Feeling ko naswertehan lang, mindset lang kasi. Mindset lang,” he adds, beaming with positivity.

But it’s hard to be positive and resilient when you’re living in the slums, inhaling whatever your nextdoor neighbor is smoking, regardless of whatever Faldas might say.

“Ganoon talaga. Ikaw mag-aadjust sa situation basta magawa mo iyong bagay na gusto mong ma-achieve. Hindi kasi siya ibibigay sayo agad. Kailangan mo maranasan iyong negatives niya bago mo ma-adjust kung paano siya magiging positive.”

The reason why Faldas rarely talks about his past with poverty is that he does not like to draw sympathy from others.

“May mga times kasi talaga na hindi ako makuwento sa personal experience kahit yung kahirapan, kasi hindi ko siya kailangan i-share to gain sympathy? Pangalawa, hindi ko siya kailangan ipagmalaki kasi lahat tayo, may kanya-kanyang hirap, lahat tayo, may kanya-kanyang levels ng nahirapan. Ang pinaniniwalaan ko, maswerte ka kapag may bubong. Pinaniniwalaan ko na swerte ka na kapag kasama mo iyong family mo

When we asked about a profound memory he will never forget, Faldas hesitates. His face betrays a hint of sadness.

“Naranasan ko talaga yung walang wala, iyong tipong kami na lang ng Mama ko iyong naiwan, and then I realized na walang ibang tutulong sa amin kundi ako lang.”

One day, Faldas spent the last remaining cash on his hand to buy food for himself and his mother. And then he barely had enough left to be able to go to his very first work.

“Walang wala kami noon, kumapit lang ako at naghanap ng kaunting tulong sa relatives para mabigyan lang kami ng pangsustento lang ng maybe, two days, three days. Timing lang na after five days kasi, magkakasahod na ako, first sahod. Ayun, nagamit namin. Tapos sustain lang din, tiis, tiis talaga. Tiis pogi! Ganoon,” Faldas shares.

“So iyong natitira naming money at that time, ginamit ko na to go to my job. Ginamit na namin to just eat one night and go to my job and then just do it. Just do it. Iyon na iyon eh. Wala ka nang choice, kailangan mong mag grind. Siguro iyon iyong nagtutulak sa akin up to now. Kailangan mo lang gawin eh, kasi kung iiyakan mo lang ang mga bagay, walang mangyayari. Kailangan mong i-solve, pero hindi mo kailangan maging stubborn about it. You need to be patient, to solve and to adjust. Ikaw ang mag-aadjust, walang ibang mag-aadjust para sa iyo. Walang entity sa mundong ito na mag-aadjust para sa iyo, ikaw at ikaw ang mag-aadjust, kahit sino pa iyan, kahit ikaw na iyong pinakamalaking position diyan, ikaw pa rin ang mag-aadjust.”

Manjean Faldas shoulders 70 percent of his family’s sustenance.

When you’re as famous as Manjean Faldas, it’s easy to think that you’d be living a life of luxury and comfort, free from family burdens and responsibilities. But for Faldas, reality is only as kind as how you take it.

“Bigla akong binombard ng reality na mahirap pala ang buhay lalo na pag sa iyo mapupunta yung responsibility. Aabot ka rin naman sa point na wala kang choice, alangan namang hindi kayo kumain, alangan naman na hindi mo tulungan yung pamilya mo. Eh di, minindset ko na a kailangan ko to gawin, maging breadwinner.”

At the worst of times, sure, he gets frustrated. As much as 70 percent of his clan’s livelihood comes from him.

It is evident how Manjean Faldas has honed this craft since the beginning of the esports scene in the Philippines. You have to be persistently observant and mindful of the stories happening in and around the game, the league, and the heroes of the game.

“My technique is to translate the game to the 70 percent of the audience who don’t know the game. I think the usual mindset of the newbies in the industry is, pag nakapasok ka rito, ikaw ang bida. But it’s not about your analysis. And hindi rin siya tungkol sa play-by-play na rap god, nasasabi mo lahat, hindi ganoon iyon eh. If you don’t listen, the people will not listen to you too. If you don’t listen to your co-caster, wala.

"If you don’t listen, hindi ka makakapag react at makakapag offer sa kasama mo ng magandang points to discuss, and people will notice that. Again, it’s not about play-by-play, it’s not about analysis, it’s about the storytelling."

This story originally appeared on Esquire Philippines.

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