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Recreating ‘Reply 1988’: Mon and Mhy’s Prenup

Recreating ‘Reply 1988’: Mon and Mhy’s Prenup

Their proposal story is just as kilig as their engagement shoot peg!

Can a pandemic inadvertently inspire your engagement shoot? For Mon Arias and Mhy Encinares, their lockdown binge-watching led to a theme for their shoot that was orginially set in Oriental Mindoro but was re-routed to BGC. Below, Mon and Mhy share what pushed them to recreate the K-Drama’s scenes—complete with wigs and `80s outfits—plus their proposal story. We must say, it can rival Reply 1988‘s kilig feels!

What inspired your shoot concept?

Mhy Encinares (ME): It was during ECQ when we were introduced to Reply 1988. We’ve known about before then but the drama just hooked us in uncontrollably. So when Mon and I were brainstorming for our prenup storyboard, our top of mind was to recreate Jung-hwan and Deok Sun’s classic scenes! Actually, we came up with the idea right after finishing the drama. (SPOILER ALERT!) We are both avid Team Jung Hwan (but we love Taek too) so we decided to give JH and DS a happy ending through our PreNup storyline. Reply 1988 is a masterpiece. If only we had known of Reply 1988 sooner, we really think our lives would have been different. We both are not used to being K-Drama enthusiasts and this feeling is new to us. We’re really beyond happy to have our prenup inspired by our one and only Reply 1988.

Did the pandemic affect your prenup shoot?

ME: Yes, it of course did. Initially, we were planning to have our shoot at a private cove in Oriental Mindoro, everything was set a year ago then Covid-19 happened. Last April, we decided not to push through with this and resorted to having it at BGC instead, which is nearer and we won’t be hampered by traveling bans.

Then in we watched Reply 1988 and fell in love with the drama so much that right there and then, we both knew we would have a set of prenup photos dedicated to it. It was hard to look for places that would suit the pegs from the drama so after our indoor shots, we checked out the bus terminal for the bus scenes. After a series of discussions and a lot of waiting, security guards still would not allow us to shoot so we went around High Street to look for alternative place. The weather was gloomy then, we had to bring all the wardrobe intended for outside scenes but failed to use all those because we ran out of time changing. Suffice to say, it was a challenge to shoot!

Related: You’ll Find A Way: This LDR Did A Virtual Proposal

How did Mon propose to Mylene?

Mon Arias (MA): It happened during our fourth anniversary–I took her on a date with a surprise itinerary. We first went to Quiapo Church then to a Quiapo food trip to spa/sauna then last stop, to a Hotel in Ortigas where my friends set up the proposal area. I asked Mhy to dress up through the help of a friend, another friend filmed the whole event, while the others were in charge of prepping up the place. Both our families were gathered in a secret room.

Our friends escorted Mhy, who was blindfolded, to a seat, while Your Love by Alamid (our theme song) was playing in the background. Then my video of how I gathered the yeses of her siblings and parents played. Theafter, our families went outside of the secret room which took Mhy by surprise, she burst into tears seeing both our parents holding the cardboards with the letters “Tara, pakasal na tayo?” Then I knelt and asked her to marry me. And she said yes! Our family and friends celebrated there until morning.

What are your wedding plans?

ME: After over a year of preparations but with the pandemic around, we have decided to have an intimate wedding this October. We are still working on the details and are enjoying every bit of the wedding preps. We are looking forward to celebrating our Big Day with our loved ones and with the Lord.