
Actress Sora Ma buys first Mother's Day gift for herself with son's angbao money
Malaysia-born actress Sora Ma just got her first Mother's Day gift.
The 41-year-old, who recently became a Singaporean in January, treated herself with her nine-month-old son's angbao money.
In a video uploaded to Instagram on May 6, Ma spoke to the camera while her baby boy, Skye, played with a red packet in the background.
She said: "I'm going to use the money in it to buy myself a Mother's Day gift."
Red packets are customarily given to babies by older relatives and friends in Chinese culture on special occasions like their birthdays or Chinese New Year.
The clip then cuts to Ma taking Skye out to shop in a department store. She initially tried on a a pair of sunglasses and told Skye: "It's $120, is that over your budget? If it's okay, kick your legs."
Skye duly did so, but Ma eventually settled on a pair of gold and silver hoop earrings, though the video did not reveal how much it cost.
She then showed herself wearing the earrings as she kissed her son on the cheek. She said: "Thank you baby, for giving Mummy a Mother's Day gift."
Ma wrote for the caption: "It's my Mother's Day so I'll spend it how I want... I don't want to keep what I want in my heart, I want to guide him and put what I want into action, be a straightforward mother who is not afraid to express love and ask for love.
"This is my son's first Mother's Day gift to me. Thank you baby, because of you, now I get to enjoy Mother's Day."
She added that she has told herself in the mirror that she has been doing a good job as a mother.
"I hope to tell everyone: 'No matter what you're facing now in life, remember that everyone is here and being strong in their own way, so keep going!'"
The upcoming Mother's Day on May 11 is Ma's first as a mother since she gave birth to Skye in August 2024. Her Singaporean businessman husband, who was in his late 40s, had died unexpectedly, leaving her a widowed new mother. Skye was conceived via in-vitro fertilisation.
She only revealed news of her husband's death in December 2024, six months after the fact.
The star, with credits in Mediacorp series like Channel 5's This Land Is Mine (2021) and Channel 8's Crouching Tiger Hidden Ghost (2021), has been regularly posting updates since she gave birth.
Some netizens had criticised Ma after she posted a tour of her new home on Instagram in April. One said that she looked "so happy, so soon after your husband died", while another said she did not "seem to have an ounce of sadness".
Ma had hit back in an Instagram Story, writing: "Am I truly very happy? Or is it that I'm just trying to live every day to the best of my ability? Or maybe I'm just trying to fake it until I make it one day."
She added: "I do not need your sympathy. Why do I have to perform my sadness for you?"
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Business Times
7 hours ago
- Business Times
Tencent Music to buy Chinese audio platform Ximalaya for US$2.4 billion
[BEIJING] Chinese music platform Tencent Music Entertainment Group said on Tuesday (Jun 10) it would buy long-form audio platform Ximalaya for about US$2.4 billion in cash and stock, expanding its library of content to attract more paying users. US-listed shares of Tencent rose 7 per cent in premarket trading. The company will offer US$1.26 billion in cash and Class A shares representing up to 5.20 per cent of its total outstanding stock. It will also issue shares to Ximalaya's founder investors not exceeding 0.37 per cent of its total share count. The stock component of the deal totals about US$1.15 billion based on Tencent Music's last closing price on April 24. Closely held Ximalaya counts Tencent, Baidu and Sony Group's music entertainment unit as backers. The company filed for a Hong Kong initial public offering in 2021, but pushed back the plan. The app-based online audio platform had 303 million monthly active users as of 2023, according to a separate listing application it filed last year. Tencent Music is one of the biggest online music entertainment platforms in China, with apps such as QQ Music, Kugou, Kuwo and WeSing, according to its website. REUTERS, BLOOMBERG

Straits Times
8 hours ago
- Straits Times
Labubu human-sized figure sells for over $193,000 at Beijing auction
Labubu was created by Hong Kong artist Kasing Lung and since 2019 has been sold by Chinese retailer Pop Mart. PHOTO: AFP BEIJING – A Beijing auction house sold a human-sized Labubu figure for 1.08 million yuan (S$193,400) on June 10, setting a new record for the 'blind box' toy as it moves from craze to collectible. The event held by Yongle International Auction, which traditionally specialises in modern art, as well as jewellery, marked the first ever auction dedicated to Labubu, toothy monster figurines that are mainly sold by China's toy company Pop Mart and have been at the centre of a global frenzy for the past year. The auction offered 48 lots for sale and was attended in person by roughly 200 people, while over a thousand bidders put down offers via Yongle's mobile app, the auction house said. The starting price for all the items started at zero and it eventually raised a total of 3.73 million yuan. The highest grossing item, a mint green, 131cm tall Labubu figure, received several bids to sell for 1.08 million yuan. The auctioneer said it was the only one available in the world. A set of three Labubu sculptures, about 40cm tall and made of PVC material, sold for 510,000 yuan. The set, from a series called 'Three Wise Labubu', was limited to a run of 120 sets in 2017 and another one sold for HK$203,200 (S$33,300) at Sotheby's most recent auction in Hong Kong. Labubu was created a decade ago by Hong Kong artist and illustrator Kasing Lung. In 2019, Mr Lung agreed to let them be sold by Pop Mart, a Chinese toy company that markets collectable figurines often sold in 'blind boxes'. A buyer of a blind box toy does not know exactly what design they will receive until they open the packaging. The starting price for Labubu blind box toys sold in Pop Mart's stores is around 50 yuan. The character's popularity skyrocketed after Lisa of the Korean pop music group Blackpink was spotted with a Labubu and praised the doll in interviews and online posts. Many celebrities followed. In May, British football star David Beckham shared a photo on Instagram of his Labubu attached to a bag. One Yongle auction bidder, a restaurant owner who only gave her surname as Du, said she had planned to spend a maximum of 20,000 yuan but walked away empty handed as the final prices were too high. 'My child likes it, so every time… Labubu released new products, we will buy one or two items. It is hard to explain its popularity, but it must have moved this generation,' she said. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.


AsiaOne
10 hours ago
- AsiaOne
50% savings, bigger house: Shaun Chen shares more on why he moved family to JB, Entertainment News
PUBLISHED ON June 10, 2025 9:50 AM By Candice Cai Shaun Chen made headlines last year when he revealed he'd packed his bags and moved back to Malaysia with his family. His wife Celine, who's also Malaysian, and their daughters Nellie, nine, and Neia, seven, have reportedly been living in a rented home in Johor Bahru's (JB) Eco Botanic City since Aug 1. In a recent interview with actor-host Allan Wu on the latter's podcast Call Us Daddy, the 46-year-old actor shared more about his lifestyle now and reasons for the move. As a Malaysian citizen, Shaun shared that it was a "natural and logical choice" to return to the country eventually, coupled with the fact that they also have extended family there. He added that the cost of education and expenditure in Singapore was also a factor. "So one day I thought, since we already had the plan to make the move, why not make it earlier," he added. His wife was positive about it, said Shaun, and was the one who suggested that they live in JB so that he can commute to Singapore for work. Not a 'downgrade' Citing the various pull factors for moving, he stated that the main reason was their Malaysian citizenship. "Because we're Malaysians, we have an advantage; we can reduce our living costs as well and stay in a bigger house," said Shaun, whose hometown is in Negeri Sembilan. He added that both he and his wife had lived in bigger houses, compared to in Singapore, when they were growing up. "If we stayed in Singapore, I don't know if I'll have a chance to stay in landed [property]. I don't think so, because I'm not a Singaporean." When asked for a rough figure on how much they are able to save, Shaun shared that it would be between "30 per cent and 50 per cent". [embed] Despite being comfortable living in Malaysia, he noted during the interview that he does not rule out the possibility of staying in Singapore in the future — for instance, if his kids were to study here. Reflecting on comments from netizens about his move, he shared that while most were encouraging, some wondered if he was facing any difficulties or if it was a "downgrade". "I don't think it's a downgrade, I've upgraded my lifestyle," he quipped, while making sure to emphasise: "Doesn't mean living here (in Singapore) is not good". "I love the Singapore lifestyle, it's just different," he said. "Malaysia has a bigger space, and it's my country, that's the main thing," he added, giving the decision a solid rating of "eight upon 10". Later on in the interview, he also estimated that the cost of a year's public school fees and after-school care in Singapore for a permanent resident to be almost equivalent to an international school education in Malaysia, which is about RM32,000 (S$9,700) annually. Becoming 'an ambassador for JB' Interestingly, he noted that following the move, friends and acquaintances he hadn't met for some time began contacting him to ask about his lifestyle now, "as if I'm the ambassador [for JB]", he joked. "I thought, 'Oh no, do I have to make a list of what we have here in Iskandar Puteri'," he said, revealing earlier that the district near the Second Link is "more spacious and less congested". On his commute for shoots in Singapore, Shaun shared that it is typically a 45-minute drive from home and 1.5 hours if there's a jam, but it can take up to two to three hours if it's "a really bad jam", which he said doesn't happen often. Elaborating more on the family's lifestyle in Malaysia, Shaun added that they live in a landed home within a gated community where there's more space for his two daughters. It's "very safe", so the children are able to play with their friends freely within the compound, said Shaun. He added that the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur is also easily accessible via a flight from Senai Airport or by car. "Wow, I'm really becoming the ambassador of JB," he joked. While he's accustomed to being recognised by fans both in Singapore and across the Causeway, he acknowledged that Malaysians are more enthusiastic. But a note to fans who happen to spot him in public, he's happy to pose for photographs as long as they ask. "If you ask, I'll definitely say yes, just don't take photos in secret," he stated good-naturedly. [[nid:674060]] candicecai@ This website is best viewed using the latest versions of web browsers.