LAST week, Timeout got a shock invitation from the actor Okkar Min Mg for his farewell party. The actor is only 23 but since his first appearance in July 2002 he’s enjoyed broad based appeal. Timeout met with Okkar Min Mg at the party in Mr Guitar bar.

Timeout: Why are you holding a farewell party?

Okkar Min Mg: I’ll go to America at the end of August to study.

That’s a shocking news for your fans. What will you study there and for how long?

I’ll study hotel management and it’ll take four years. After my studies, I’ll continue my acting work and I also plan to act when I visit the country during my school holidays.

Why are you breaking off your acting when you have become a big name?

Further study is a wish for all of us: my parents, relatives and me. I think a lot about my future. It won’t be easy for me to study at an older age so I must study when I’m young. A certificate can give guarantee to earn in life. Another thing is that I’ll be only 27 when I come back. Under 30 is not late for an actor to act at this age. So I’m choosing education as a priority in my life.

What made you want to study hotel management? It’s quite different from your current career.

My father has a travel agency and service company. And we also have a hotel project. So I hope to support my father’s work in this way. As I’m the eldest son, I have to take over my father’s business one day and I should be ready for that day. My mum runs a restaurant. I also want to run my own restaurant.

How do you feel about parting with your fans?

I stopped acting more than one and a half year’s ago to prepare for my studies. Some fans didn’t know this and they asked me which movie I would be performing in when they met me. Though I enjoy my fame, I have to think about my future. I hope they won’t forget me when I come back.

What was your last movie?

It was about one year ago and called ‘Bar’ (What). I costarred with U Kyaw Hein and it was released recently. There are about ten movies I acted in and they will be released while I’m not here although I don’t think my fans will love them because I wasn’t satisfied with my acting in these movies.

How free have you been to do what you want in the past five years?

Sometimes, for personal reasons, I did things I didn’t want to do. I had some problems and some of my films might not be good enough for my fans.

When you come back, what expectations do you have for your acting career?

I’m sure that acting will not be my first choice anymore. I’ll direct my attention more towards business but I’ll continue to act as a secondary career. I’ll try to forget all the good or bad things that happened in the past and come back new… There are many roles I’ve never acted and I also want to try difficult roles. I’ll give more attention to the quality of the movies than the quantity I release.