By Carby Rose Basina

Beauty queen-turned-actress Kylie Verzosa is set to fly to Dubai to receive the “Philippines Actress of the Year” award at this year’s DIAFA Awards.

Viva Artists Agency (VAA) reported this in an Instagram post writing, “[Kylie Verzosa] will be the recipient of the Actress of the Year - Philippines at the DIAFA Awards 2022 in Dubai…DIAFA is an annual unique and prestigious red carpet & awards ceremony which honors distinguished personalities from both the Arab and International world, in recognition of their annual achievements and contributions towards committees and society’s betterment.”

According to VAA, the awarding ceremony will take place on Nov. 22 at the Dubai Creek Harbour Marina, United Arab Emirates.

“Kylie will be awarded for her outstanding role in the remake of the iconic 2010 South Korean thriller “The Housemaid” which was a huge hit in the Philippines, and was Kylie’s first leading role in a movie,” it added.

Kylie also took to the social media platform to thank the Filipino community in Dubai for “rallying” for her.

“I remember watching the movie alone at home during the pandemic, how I wanted to celebrate with my family and friends. Dubai was the only place the movie could premier because of the pandemic, but it was made for an international theatrical release,” she started to narrate.

“I was hesitant of accepting this Cannes Film Festival piece at first for my first lead film because it was such big shoes to fill and so out of [character] for me, but [I'm] a sucker for good material and always up for a challenge.”

She added that the movie was filmed two years ago but still has a “special place” in her heart. “They say that good work drains you, Daisy did just that to me.”

Kylie then dedicated her achievement to all the hardworking Filipinos “especially in UAE and Middle East” writing: “this is for you.”