Me, Myself & I

"Gulf" Kanawut Traipipattanapong made the bold move to pursue his career independently and to be free from the things that made his name. Now, the results have spoken for themselves - scoring him a Gucci ambassadorship and multiple sold-out fan meetings across Asia. The actor and singer/songwriter speaks to Men's Folio about what that journey was like.

- Manfred Lu

However, towards the end of promoting TharnType Season 2:7 Years of Love, Gulf decided to further his career via a different path. Having been in the centre of the buzzy touchpoints that piqued the genre's interest globally, he ultimately found himself siricken by the realisation that something had been missing in his career. "After working for some time now, I realised that being irue to myself is the best approach," he says. "I think everyone can achieve success in their own way. Working as a pair allows for shared joy and fun, but that doesn't mean working alone isn't enjoyable."

What prompted him were a series of circumstances that would lay the groundwork for Gulf to embrace authenticity, daring him to go to his greatest lengths yet even if it meant doing it by himself. "Trying to meet the expectations of others can make things feel inauthentic,"" Gulf shares. "Whereas I found that being myself adds to my confidence. There's an overall satisfaction that comes with it," he adds. "UItimately, success is a very personal journey."

Going solo meant anticipating bigger risks. There have not been enough instances of breaking free from the public's perception — in this case, the popularity Gulf earned just from one series -— that could have vouched it would work. Instead, Gulf took small,incremental steps. A year after Tharntype, his initial solo activities were a mix of small acting roles for short films and appearances in music videos.

During this time, Gulf signed with his first agency. But it took some more time — another year to be exact -to arrive at his next step, where he embarked on bigger ambitions. Starting with a new lead role in the popular K-Drama remake of the same title, romance series You Are My Make Up Artist, before landing himself a film debut in 2022 with Buaphan Fan Yap — both of which received critical acclaim.