The 35-year-old, real name Muhammad Amir Sabaruddin, chose to relocate to the island in April in search of a quieter life, while also being drawn to the natural beauty of the surfing hotspot.
The venture started as a pop-up store before expanding into a café named Rasa, offering six to seven dishes including nasi lemak and fish sambal.
“When I was there, I missed Malaysian food. And since it was hard to find halal food, I had to cook for myself.
“That’s where the idea of opening a café came about. My café is the first on the island to serve Malaysian food, and it has managed to attract both locals and foreigners,” he told Bernama.
Ben, who acted in the drama series “Playboy itu Suami Aku”, is also managing a small farm for his own use.
“I grow various types of plants and vegetables, including pineapples, mangoes, avocados, lemongrass, turmeric and pandan,” he said, adding he also plans to venture into tilapia farming in the future.
Alongside his island life, Ben has also begun exploring the possibility of pursuing an acting career in the Philippines by connecting with several talent management agencies there.
“They are interested, but the condition is that I must be fluent in Tagalog. So while I work on becoming fluent, they suggested I start with television commercials.
“Once I get used to it and am more fluent, then I can take on bigger projects like dramas or films,” he said.
The Kuala Lumpur-born actor admitted that mastering Tagalog is challenging because each region in the Philippines has its own dialect.
“In the area where I live, they don’t use standard Tagalog. It’s like in Malaysia; for example, the difference between standard Malay and the Kelantanese dialect.
“So, I need to understand the basics of the language first before getting used to the local dialect. For now, I can understand daily conversations but I’m not yet fully fluent.”
The “Legasi: Bomba The Movie” star said his acting career in Malaysia remains important to him.
“But I am now more selective,” he added. “So, in Malaysia, I only want to focus on films because the format is more flexible compared to drama series, which require longer shooting periods.”