Oh Seung-hyun Stars in the KBS Drama “Snow White”

“I wish my face were smaller. I could be prettier with my eyes, nose, and lips smaller.”

Oh Seung-hyun (26, picture) plays Hee-won, a plastic-surgery perfect announcer, in KBS2’s new Monday and Tuesday drama “Snow White.” Its first episode broadcasts on March 15.

Hee-won competes with Young-hee (Lim Jung-hwa), who works at a bakery, to win the love of his fellow announcer Jin-woo (Yoen Jung-hoon). Hee-won is a tomboyish character with many components of comedy in the drama. For instance, she farts everywhere and eats Kimbop (seaweed roll) on the streets.

Oh Seung-hyun has mostly played an aggressive city girl in dramas including “Made for Each Other” at MBC and “Screen” at SBS. Her looks match very well to that image as well.

“I want to totally alter that image in this drama. I want to introduce the other side of my image.”

She is particularly focused on breaking that image because she has been mistaken many times for a cold person since the beginning of her career. She debuted in the show “Rookie” for SBS in 2000, and she said that she was “criticized a lot because of her character speaking up for what she liked and did not like.”

“I am not used to acting pretty and all foxy in the entertainment business. We all know that those are faked. And I think just being frank is better.”

She answered a question asking whether or not she has had plastic surgery by saying, “I will not give those typical answers. So, just judge from your own perspective.”

Oh Seung-hyun won an award at the Super Elite Model Contest in 1997, but she was not interested in becoming a full time entertainer. That is why she was introduced as an actress only in 2000. She was not ambitious in acting, so she was just acting as told. But she started to think deeply about her acting since assuming a leading role on “Screen.”

She walks in 10cm heels at home to keep up her shape.

“Walk with your back straight and chin up in high heels. You’ll start swearing in 30 minutes.”

Kyung-Je Kim kathycho@donga.com