It's been 15 years, but I have never been able to come to terms with losing my daughter, said the veteran actor. "Kovit Wattanakul" who lost his youngest daughter, "Mind Mathavee Wattanakul," who died in a car accident when the Mercedes-Benz she was in crashed into the roadside and fell off the Ratchavipha intersection overpass on 9 August 2012, at the age of 21.
Recently, Kovit opened up on the show Mahatsachan Mu EP.85: Questions Awaiting Answers on the Mahatsachan Mu YouTube channel, sharing about the day he lost his daughter.
Kovit said many people often ask if he has been able to accept it. "No one ever does. Please don't ask that question. The day I accepted it was the day I passed away. No one can truly accept it. I still cry to this day."
Kovit shared that his youngest daughter was the closest to him. When he returned from filming, she would sit on his lap and hug him like a friend, even kissing his cheek. His two older daughters were not as affectionate. One night, he came home from filming around midnight. His daughter was watching TV; he hugged and kissed her, saying, "I want to hug you to death." After kissing her, he went to take a shower, but afterwards felt like hugging her again, so he came downstairs and embraced her again, though she seemed annoyed. He loves all three daughters dearly. Then he went to bed.
At 5 a.m., he woke up to a phone call from the police saying, "Are you Mr. Kovit? We are collecting the bodies of your friend and your daughter to take to the hospital." He and his wife were shocked. The police called to inform them of the accident involving their daughter. They rushed to the hospital, praying for a miracle along the way, hoping nothing severe had happened to her. Tears flowed the whole trip. Upon arrival, their daughter was in a room; they stood outside as doctors and nurses performed CPR, pressing so hard that blood came from her nose and ears. Unable to bear it, they told the doctors to stop, but she still did not regain consciousness.
They then went to light incense and told Mind, "If you can, come back, but if not, come back as my daughter in the next life." Finally, they covered her with a cloth. "Oh, I nearly died of heartbreak," he said tearfully. She was taken by ambulance to the Police General Hospital's forensic department. The next morning, he arranged everything at the temple to receive her body from the forensic department. His two older daughters stood by to apply makeup to their sister's body. "My two daughters did her funeral makeup," he said, crying heavily. "I never imagined seeing this scene."
They placed the body on a platform at the temple without sealing it in a coffin yet. She looked like she was just sleeping, not dead. Still beautiful, her skin was fresh, like a normal person, even though she had been refrigerated overnight. He hugged and kissed her even though she was unresponsive for seven days.
During the seven days of the funeral rites, a taxi driver called him, introducing himself as the driver who had followed the Mercedes-Benz on the morning of the accident from the front of the Siam Commercial Bank headquarters. He said that at the accident site, he saw a van suddenly overtake on the left and cut in front of the Mercedes-Benz, which swerved and panicked, hitting the bridge railing. After the impact, the car shot up onto the intersection ramp.
The taxi driver said he heard Mind shout, "Dad, help me!" He said he clearly heard it. The driver asked if he wanted to pursue the case. "I can chase them and check CCTV footage along the way; I remember the license plate, the car color, and brand. Should I pursue it?" "I will." He said he knew it was deliberate.
Kovit thought for a moment and said, "Thank you so much, but no need. First, if I caught them, I would shoot them with all my bullets. But I won't, because if I did, I'd go to jail for sure. And then, how would my other two daughters, my wife, and my mother live? Third, that person is already dead; how would his wife, children, and parents live? And most importantly, if I killed him, my daughter wouldn't come back."
So, he told the taxi driver, "It's okay. I forgive and let it go. I only want to dedicate merit to my daughter. I bear no ill will, just merit for my daughter."
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