Rita Avila on her dolls, creativity, and staying booked and busy

Beyond the headlines, Rita Avila reveals how her dolls reflect a lifetime of storytelling and imagination.

One of Rita Avila’s more talked-about interests: her dolls.

For the actress, the fascination isn’t as eerie as some might assume. It’s imaginative, personal, and rooted in the same creative instinct that has fueled her decades-long career.

“No, not at all,” she said, addressing rumors with a smile. “There’s nothing like that.”

She explained that the dolls—and even the tiny cradles and accessories that come with them—are simply objects of creativity. 

As an actress and an author of story books, she’s used to building worlds in her head. The dolls, in a way, are just an extension of that.

It’s a fitting detail for someone who has spent decades in the industry, slipping in and out of roles, emotions, and entire lifetimes on screen. 

Rita as a storybook author

As an author, Rita has five titles under her belt. “8 Ways to Comfort with Grace” is an inspirational booklet about grief and loss, written after the passing of her son; “Si Erik Tutpik at si Ana Taba” is a children’s book about friendship and bullying, while “The Invisible Wings” and its sequel “The Invisible Wings 2” are faith-based fable about kindness and angels. “Wanna Bet on Love” is Rita’s first novel. 

Rita is very much a veteran with a voice—outspoken when she needs to be, reflective when it counts, and, importantly, still very much in demand. While others slow down, she continues to work steadily, taking on roles that keep her both visible and vital.

That same sense of curiosity recently brought her to Maddox Jewelry, where she finally secured a booking after three attempts.

The showroom, located in Concepcion Uno, Marikina City, has become a destination for jewelry lovers who follow its wildly popular online live selling sessions. Rita, as it turns out, is one of them.

“Pinapanood ko lang, ngayon nandito na ’ko,” she said, amused at finding herself on the other side of the screen.

Maddox Jewelry founder Charo Cordial met the moment with equal enthusiasm, admitting she had long watched Rita in film and television. They compared notes, not just on jewelry, but on sentimentality. Charo shared her attachment to a childhood teddy bear she has kept through the years, while Rita spoke about the emotional depth that has defined her work—from daring roles in her early career to the more introspective performances she continues to take on today.

Through it all, the dolls linger in the background, not as spectacle, but as insight. They reveal a side of Rita who never quite turned off her imagination, and who continues to create even outside the frame of a script.

And maybe that’s the point. Rita has never really stopped building worlds.

 

 

Rita is very much a veteran with a voice—outspoken when she needs to be, reflective when it counts, and, importantly, still very much in demand.

 

 

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