Carrying the scars of a dreadful pub tragedy

She wouldn't let us take her photo, well aware that her once pretty face is now too scarred to shine on any catwalk.

"No more spotlights for me. Life is now about medicines and operations only," Kanchana, or Ji Ji, said.

She has never left the hos-pital since she was rushed from the upscale Santika pub with 40-per-cent burns to her body on New Year's Day a year ago.

The fire damaged skin on her right hand, right arm, as well as the right part of her back and her face.

"My life has never been the same since. My face is not the same. I don't even want to meet friends who used to be presen-ters with me at glittering events. I threw away my old cell-phone number," the 27-year-old woman said.

Kept in a sterile room for nearly a year now, Ji Ji admit-ted she missed her old life a lot. "Life used to be fun. Jobs used to be so good. I used to be able to send a lot of money to my parents, but not anymore," she said.

Ji Ji is now seeking Bt8 mil-lion in compensation from the pub operator, having spent Bt1 million on medical bills and being informed that more sur-gery will be needed.

It wasn't a consolation that she's not facing the pain alone. Pirawat Chotecharoonphan, 35, bears scars of the Santika fire and the searing memory of his last moments with his girl-friend.

"It used to hurt so much that I wanted to die. Mom knew I was suicidal. So, she stayed at the hospital with me all the time," he said.

Pirawat is now suing the pub operator for Bt5 million in compensation.

"To many people, I might look like a monster," he said.

Pirawat sustained 28-per-cent burns during the inferno. His girlfriend fell down during the stampede out of the pub and was caught in the fire.

"It's so hard losing her that way," said the insurance sales-man, who no longer wished to go out and enjoy life. "I'm no longer the man I was, a funny, boisterous person. I have become an introvert," he said.

Pirawat has not received any real help from Santika Pub except Bt15,000 in initial assis-tance.

Meanwhile, Sommai Lhamjamnong is still grieving over her favourite granddaugh-ter, 21-year-old Pornpimol or Som-O, who was among 66 people killed in the fire.

"Her charred body was unrecognisable," Sommai said. "When I first saw it, I crumbled. It pained me to think how much she had to suffer before she died."

Sommai had raised Som-O from kindergarten after her parents separated. She was everything to her, and ever since her death, Sommai has refused to watch and read news. She is seeking Bt2.5 mil-lion in compensation for Pornpimol's death. "Som-O was a nice, hardworking girl. She studied and worked part-time at a gift shop and gave me Bt2,000 every month."