Filipina drag queen Zahirah Zapanta proudly showcased her Filipino lineage during the premiere of “RuPaul’s Drag Race UK” season 6.
In its first episode, Zahirah graced the hometown runways with a National Filipino regalia, apparently worn by First Lady Liza Marcos, and waved both the Philippine and British flag.
“I’m showing my duality of growing up as a Filipino boy and now I’m a British queen. This pays homage to my love of pageantry, big hair, gowns, jewelry…” she expressed in her talking heads.
On her Instagram post, Zahirah shared her upbringing in Obando, Bulacan, reminiscing about her childhood before moving to Nottingham, England when she was 10.
“I was always very family oriented growing up with loads of cousins, titas, titos, lolas who helped raise me. I was always quite feminine growing up but I was never deterred from just being me,” she wrote.
Now a British citizen, Zahirah expressed how grateful she is for this huge change in her life, saying, “From being surrounded by local pinoys to being surrounded by a melting pot of different cultures. It is a special kind of experience growing up with two very distinct cultures, but I am so forever grateful for it.”
In the same post, she also addressed an incident where she grazed the flag on the floor as she walked down the runway, stressing that it was unintentional and she only wanted to pay homage to her Filipino heritage.
“I do want to apologise for grazing the flag on the floor as I walked down the runway. A fact that I know has caused an upset with some of the Filipino community, and something I had not intended to do. I only wanted to pay homage to my culture and I want you all to know that I am now aware of these mistakes and will try my utmost not to do the same again,” she expressed.
“Gusto ko malaman ng kapwa ko Filipino kung gano ko pinagmamalaki ang aking lahi,” she concluded.
Zahirah is one of the first two drag queens with Filipino descent to compete in the regular season of the franchise.
The Season 6 of RuPaul’s Drag Race UK was broadcasted on September 26.
