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A post shared by Iza Calzado Wintle (@missizacalzado) on Aug 1, 2020 at 10:20pm PDT

MANILA -- Iza Calzado and Jodi Sta. Maria play best friends turned bitter rivals in the upcoming ABS-CBN series “Ang Sa Iyo Ay Akin.”

While their characters are at odds with each other, Calzado revealed that there is no competition between her and Sta. Maria.

“Yung sapawan, hindi ganun eh. First of all, alam mo dapat kung ang eksenang ito ay highlight nung character. Ikaw dapat ay you are a support there. Pero kami kasi dito, a lot of our scenes, you have to play your role. Teamwork kasi kami dito,” she told entertainment site Push.

“Kung ang iisipin ko pagpunta dun ay kung paano ako magiging mas magaling sa kanya, hindi kami magiging effective, hindi magiging totoo 'yung nararamdaman namin sa isa’t isa. Grateful kami (ni Jodi) na kami 'yung pinagsama kasi walang ganun,” she added.

Years since they first worked in the 2014 film “Maria Leonora Teresa,” Calzado believes her relationship with Sta. Maria is so much deeper now.

“I appreciate Jodi just as much as she appreciates me now. Mas nakilala ko siya. Noon pa naman eh alam ko na mabuti siyang tao. Pero iba kasi 'pag kasama mo 'yung tao madalas eh,” she said.

“Katulad 'pag kasama mo sa isang bahay mas nakikilala mo 'yung tao, mas puwede ding ma-reveal mo 'yung tunay. Kasi minsan 'pag taping may filter pa. Iba 'yung you allow yourself to be more vulnerable kapag mas close ka na dun sa tao. So kami parang feeling ko nandun na kami sa stage na 'yun.”

The ABS-CBN drama follows Marissa (Sta. Maria), who is consumed by envy of her best friend Ellice’s (Calzado) wealth. In the series’ trailer, Marissa is seen even trading her freedom for money, when Ellice accidentally kills an assailant in self-defense.

In exchange for P10 million from Ellice’s father (Lito Pimentel), Marissa takes responsibility for the homicide and agrees to go to jail, counting on an early release.

Her time behind bars, however, proves torturous and longer than she expected. She soon pins the blame of her misfortune on Ellice, who, unknown to her, protested the deal and consistently checked on Marissa's well-being, only to be given false assurance by her father.

When Marissa is released and receives the money she was promised, she embarks on a cruel mission: to claim everything Ellice owns, including her marriage with Gabriel (Sam Milby) — hence the series' title.

Veteran actress Maricel Soriano is also part of the cast as Sta. Maria’s mother.

With seasoned co-actors and a rich storyline, Calzado said the only competition she sees when she is acting is the one that she has with herself.

“I’m competing with myself and I always want to be better. 'Yung parang gusto ko pag-igihan, gusto ko galingan. Kaya nagtatanong ako lagi, ‘How can I be better?’” she said.

Calzado said she has to be conscious about that and she needs to remind herself that it’s something she needs to address.

“I shouldn’t always ask validation from the outside, I should also know when my work and I am enough. I did workshops but I never really studied for the craft and it’s something that I have been longing to do talaga. So in terms of competition, it was never a competition with another person. Surprisingly, it’s just me with the pressure and that can happen. It’s me trying to outdo myself,” she said.

At the end of the day, Calzado is grateful to be a part of this new teleserye, believing they were all “handpicked by God” to be on this show.

“Nakakatuwa talaga na sabi ko nga, we were handpicked by God including Miss Maria and Sam, of course, and everybody else who is part of the show. Everybody talaga. Kasi ang gaan-gaan ng energy sa set and that’s so important. Talagang nagtuturo siya. And we are so blessed to be at the receiving end of that knowledge and wisdom and technique as well,” she said.

“Ang Sa Iyo Ay Akin,” the first new drama of Kapamilya Channel, will be streaming weeknights via ABS-CBN’s Kapamilya Online Live starting August 17.

The teleserye will air Mondays to Fridays after “FPJ’s Ang Probinsyano” at 8:40 p.m., both on the cable channel and its streaming counterpart.

Full episodes will also be available via iWant and TFC.tv.