‘I was most rebellious’: Dawn Yeoh opens up about getting thrown out of home by mum when she was a student

Minor spoilers ahead.

Art imitates life, which actress Dawn Yeoh can attest to.

In the beginning scene of her new film King of Hawkers, her character Zhang Nala gets into a quarrel with her mother Law Yoke Ping (Liu Lingling) after announcing that she wants to marry rich playboy Lee Guozhong (Collin Chee), whom she had a child out of wedlock.

Angered by her daughter’s naive decision, Law forces Nala out of their flat, throwing her suitcase out with her.

This scene struck a chord with Dawn.

“My mum actually did that to me,” the 37-year-old revealed to AsiaOne in a recent interview.

Dawn shared that the incident happened when she was in secondary school: “I was most rebellious then… My mum is a very strict person. I told a lie.

“I also didn’t want to leave home, but my suitcase was already thrown out, so I had no choice but to stay over at my neighbour’s home for one night. I returned home when she had cooled down.”

King of Hawkers centres around Nala, who returns to Singapore from Hong Kong with her daughter Chen Pei (Gini Chang) to restart her life at her family-run bak chor mee stall after divorcing Guozhong.

Operating next to Nala’s stall are others selling local food, such as Ah Lau’s Cantonese Cuisine, run by Liu Derong (Hugo Ng) and Bestest Indian Food, which is operated by Raja (Das DD).

When Guozhong’s company organises a competition to buy over their recipes and businesses, the hawkers work together to retain their legacy.

Despite the strict upbringing, Dawn shared that she has a close relationship with her mother now, who inspired her portrayal of Nala in the movie.

“It’s really not easy [to play a mother] and I can only observe the experiences through people around me, such as my mum… How I interacted with Gini in the movie is exactly how my mum interacts with me, just like sisters,” she said, adding that she also observed how Lingling communicates with her child.

‘I miss your bak chor mee’

During the movie’s press conference on Feb 20, Dawn shared that to immerse into her role as a bak chor mee stall owner, she cooked that dish for her fellow cast members and even director Kelvin Sng frequently.

“I would cook a bowl of bak chor mee every day for Kelvin during filming, and he was sick of it by the sixth day and told me not to give him bak chor mee anymore,” Dawn laughed.

“A few weeks after we completed filming, I received a message from him one day saying, ‘Actually, I miss your bak chor mee’.”

Gini, 29, added that she would think of Dawn’s cooking every time she passed by a noodle stall because it is really good.

Dawn’s career hasn’t always been smooth sailing.

While she found success in Mediacorp dramas in the mid-2000s, Dawn was embroiled in a contractual dispute with her Japanese manager back in 2009 while in a 10-year contract with talent agency Future Stage.

This led to her going on a hiatus until 2013, when her contract ran its course and the dispute was resolved as a consequence.

She has since signed on with mega Taiwanese management agency Catwalk, which also manages Christopher Lee and Fann Wong. She is also with sales livestream platform Star Live.

King of Hawkers marks Dawn’s first lead role on the silver screen. She’s also in The Little Nyonya spinoff Emerald Hill, which is set to release in the first half of 2025.

With multiple opportunities coming her way, we asked if this means that her career is catching a second wind.

“I feel very grateful for whatever I’m receiving right now and fully enjoy every moment that I’m experiencing. I am also learning from all the seniors, which I think is more important than anything else… I feel that there will always be room for improvement,” she replied.

Dawn added that she lost her self-confidence after the contractual dispute and felt that she should have had “a bit more trust and faith” in herself.

“I realised that actually, I am the only person that I can count on for my own future. So if I don’t rely on myself, who can help me? I have to be strong first, so that other people can come and help me,” she said.

King of Hawkers, which also stars veteran singer-actress Mimi Choo, local actors Ryan Lian and Asher Su, Hong Kong actors Anita Chui and Moses Cheng and Filipino actor Kimson Tan, is now available in cinemas.