MEET Jeanette Aw, the new Queen Of Caldecott Hill.

The 29-year-old was one of the so-called Seven Princesses of MediaCorp, but for a while she seemed to be on her way down.

Last year, she didn't even manage to win a Top Ten Most Popular Female Artiste award at the Star Awards.

Then came The Little Nyonya - the most watched Channel 8 drama in the last 15 years.

'Finally,' said Mr Paul Chan, 40, vice-president, branding and promotions for Channel 8, 'We have a new Ah-Jie after so many years.'

He added: 'The Little Nyonya wouldn't be such a big hit with any other female artiste in the lead role. A lot of its success is attributed to Jeanette who gave life to the roles.'

Already, there are comparisons with Zoe Tay and Fann Wong. Shin Min Daily News hailed her as the third-generation Ah Jie.

Mr Chan gushed: 'The phenomenon we see now for Jeanette is something that we've not seen for any of Zoe's or Fann's shows in recent years.'

She plays both long-suffering deaf-mute Ju Xiang and her daughter Yue Niang in the big-budget Peranakan weepie. Both have become household names.

More than a million people have been tuning in to each episode over the one month the show has aired. That's one in four people here. Her characters' daily misfortunes are the conversation topics of housewives and schoolgirls alike.

But there was nothing weepy about Jeanette when The New Paper On Sunday met her on Friday.

When she emerged in a white T-shirt and baggy army pants in the shade under the National University of Singapore's Central Library, the place seemed to become brighter.

She was all smiles - and why not? She certainly has a lot to be cheery about.

Wednesday's Channel 8 New Year countdown show was the defining moment of her ascension. It released the results of an online poll for the 'Top 8 Most Likeable Female Lead Characters'. She played four of them.

Two of them were, of course, Ju Xiang and Yue Niang. But was it fair for her to get two awards for the same show?

She said it wasn't unfair. Indeed, her fans were worried that having more nominations may dilute her chances for any wins.

Others have said that The Little Nyonya was just a vehicle created to launch Jeanette's career. Was MediaCorp trying to 'push' her up?

'I don't think it's the case, really, sometimes it's about the timing, and Little Nyonya came at the right time,' she said firmly.

'My fans have stood by me even during my low periods. I wouldn't say it's a sudden spurt, but Little Nyonya did add to more people liking me.'

Jeanette would not say whether she considered herself an Ah Jie or not.

'I still feel pretty much the same,' she said.

When this reporter told her some people consider her to be more popular than even Zoe and Fann after this show, she laughed.

She said she didn't see the show as a 'stepping stone'. Yes, people have said it would be a blockbuster, but she said what she and the crew felt was uncertainty.

'We didn't expect such a good response actually, we were all very nervous about it,' she said.

The reaction from the public was surprising, even for her. She once found some girls waiting for her outside a toilet, just to give her a cheer when she stepped out. A viewer crossed a street just to say she's doing a good job.

'It doesn't happen with every drama,' she said. The last time it happened was when she played the lovable Mo Jingjing in the long-running 2003 serial Holland V.

'Even though I've acted in so many dramas, people still say Jingjing, Jingjing. Finally, in six years, I get another role that establishes me as another character,' she said.

She doesn't mind that people see Ju Xiang and Yue Niang on screen, and not Jeanette. At least it's not Jingjing.

From real life to reel life

She said she and the director worked together to shape Ju Xiang and Yue Niang. But what made her such a good fit?

Part of it was her own personal growth.

Since Jingjing, she has experienced death and, in a sense, motherhood.

She is god-mother to triplets (two boys, one girl), who are 3 years old.

When they were just a few months old, their mother - Jeanette's best friend - died in a car crash.

'They call me and talk to me a lot more than they call their dad,' she said.

The father, who works in an events company, travels often, and so the children are often in her care.

There is also dogged determination. Ever since she first emerged, she has been criticised for her poor diction and wooden acting. She has said she takes criticism constructively - and the proof is the fact we met at the university.

She was taking speech lessons there.

But not everyone was sure she is Ah Jie quality yet.

One viewer, Miss Goh Yuping, 22, a student, said the show had put her on another level, but had not made her an Ah Jie.

One factor was her age - she hasn't had enough experience. The second, said Miss Goh, was exposure.

'Earlier there weren't so many actresses, so Zoe and Fann got more exposure. But now there are new actresses every day - it's very hard for her,' she said.

Mrs Kwa Bee Lian, 51, a housewife, felt she had made it popularity-wise, but maybe not acting-wise. She added: 'But she has improved a lot.'

But Mr Lee Tianyang, 22, an NSF man, had no doubt Jeanette has reached Ah Jie status. 'Yes, definitely,' he said, when asked.

'She showed she put in a lot of effort to become top notch.'

MediaCorp's Mr Chan said: 'An Ah-Jie is someone who commands respect and attention on all levels - (with) professionalism, talent and popularity. Jeanette proved she is at her peak form now to assume the status of Ah-Jie.'

The next Zoe Tay or Fann Wong then?

But Jeanette would rather such comparisons weren't made.

'I don't want to be a second Zoe or a second Fann. I don't want to be in the shadow of anyone. People know me as Ou Xuan (her Mandarin name) - that's good enough for me,' she said.

- With additional reporting by Maureen Koh

This article was first published in The New Paper on Jan 4, 2009.