P-pop star Mikha Lim of BINI handled online criticism with calm and grace after a netizen questioned her use of English over Tagalog during an interview.
The issue stemmed from a video clip of Mikha’s April 28 interview, which was reposted on X (formerly Twitter), accompanied by a harsh caption accusing her of pretending not to be fluent in Filipino: “Malamang sa Pilipinas yan lumaki Nung di pa sila sikat fluent naman Tagalog nyan ngayon umaarteng di sanay magtagalog halatang pinepeke Yung mga tangang fans lang naman nila nacucutan Cringey mo.”
Rather than firing back, Mikha took the opportunity to calmly clarify the matter: “Hi! Thank you for saying this, a good opportunity for me to clear things up! I’ve said before a couple of times and to people who ask me about it that I can speak fluent Tagalog, but there are times in a script or in front of the camera I get a little bulol or I overthink the Tagalog words I should use… that’s why I end up choosing to speak in straight English most of the time in front of the camera Have a good night!”
Her response was met with praise from fans and fellow netizens for her respectful tone and transparency.
The following day, April 29, Mikha followed up with a reminder for her supporters to avoid turning her response into fuel for online hate:
“Let’s stop all the hate guys, my response was not to fuel hate but to inform and clear things up for everyone. Please spread kindness and just educate.”
Let’s stop all the hate guys, my response was not to fuel hate but to inform and clear things up for everyone. Please spread kindness and just educate.
— mikha (@bini_mikha) April 28, 2025
Mikha is one-eighth of the popular P-pop girl group BINI, alongside Aiah, Colet, Maloi, Gwen, Stacey, Jhoanna, and Sheena. The group is known for their hit tracks ‘Blink Twice,’ ‘Pantropiko,’ and ‘Salamin, Salamin,’ and continues to dominate the local music scene with their catchy songs and empowering messages.