PUBLISHED ONSeptember 24, 2025 10:42 AMBYKristy ChuaThis novice actress deserves boomz-ing applause.
Ris Low, the winner of Miss World Singapore 2009, is back in the limelight again for her past endeavour on the big screen.
The 35-year-old is best known for coining the term "boomz" which many Singaporeans still use today. In a video clip from August 2009, an interviewer from the former entertainment platform RazorTV had asked the then 19-year-old what she loved about fashion.
Sharing what she liked to wear when she was feeling "naughty", Ris uttered the iconic words: "I'll wear something rad (red), something loud. Something, you know, boomz. Something that shouts 'me'!"
She then confessed that she had once strutted down Orchard Road in a "bigini" (bikini) and - as a self-proclaimed fashionista - advised that leopard "preens" (prints) could match with khaki.
Soon after her virality, her time as Miss World Singapore was cut short when she was found to have been convicted of credit card fraud. She stepped down from her title of her own accord in September 2009.
Ris, who now goes by the name May, has reclaimed her place in the spotlight with the awards she recently received for her lead role in the thriller film Justice Devil, which was filmed in 2013.
The passion project of 39-year-old filmmaker Harva Raj, the film rose from hibernation after he submitted it to various independent film circuits earlier this year.
Ris portrays Ellen, a mother looking to avenge her five-year-old daughter who was violently murdered by drug kingpins.
For her performance, she received the best actress awards at the Hollywood Blood Horror Festival in Los Angeles and Chile's South Film and Arts Academy Festival in January and February respectively.
The movie also won best feature film at other international film festivals, including the World Film Festival in Cannes, Miami International Gold Awards and Champs-Elysees Film Awards.
Saying that her wins were "a shock", the one-time movie star told The Straits Times: "I would have given my performance an 'F'. I had no acting experience, didn't take any classes and I found the filming process very tiring."
Harva revealed to the English daily that Justice Devil's script was intended to reflect Ris' turbulent life in the public eye, with the role of Ellen written with her in mind.
Currently, Ris has a four-year-old son with her 51-year-old Singaporean husband and works as a clinic manager at an aesthetics clinic.
But one thing has stayed the same: She still says "boomz", even joking about it with her family.
[[nid:723107]]
