Mae Taeng Rom Bai

Taeng Thai of the "Mae Taeng Rom Bai" farm is as beautiful as the song says. From young boys to older men, including the local electronics shop owner and the village mafia boss, everyone is smitten with her. However, Taeng isn't just beautiful; she is incredibly feisty and has claws so sharp that the men in the sub-district are terrified of her. No matter what gifts they send to the beautiful Taeng, she always generously sends return gifts—but they are usually bizarre things like earthworms, dog poop, cow dung, or buffalo manure, depending on her imagination and mood. Next to Mae Taeng Rom Bai farm is Thong Farm, owned by Madam Thip, the mother of Kamjorn and a fierce rival behind many of the bad things that happen at Taeng's farm. The "Witch Lady" tries to seize Taeng's farm to build a resort, as chic resorts are currently trendy in Ratchaburi. With her beloved son returning from abroad, the Madam is even more desperate to get the land for him to manage. The problem is that Taeng fiercely guards her inherited land. No matter how much money the Madam offers, Taeng refuses to sell, preferring to grow Thai melons, watermelons, and hydroponic vegetables, which the Madam thinks won't make much money.
Kamjorn, the Madam's beloved son, returns from the US with his best friend, Maitree. Kamjorn graduated in business management and intends to build the resort his mother wants. Maitree is a Bangkok city boy but studied agriculture, so he asks to intern at Kamjorn's farm. They plan to build a resort combined with a mixed-crop farm. Maitree is handsome, incredibly loyal to his friends, playful, cute, and street-smart, though he always ends up getting pranked by Taeng. Kamjorn, truly a "best friend," constantly drags Maitree into trouble. Kamjorn falls in love with Taeng at first sight and even begs Maitree to be his wingman. The two young men haven't yet experienced the wrath of Taeng and her gang; they only hear from the Madam that Taeng's group calls her a "Witch Lady" because she is a bloodsucking loan shark trying to steal Taeng's farm. Taeng herself dislikes the two young men, assuming the apple doesn't fall far from the tree and that Kamjorn is just a spoiled, greedy brat sent to torment her in his mother's place.
At the farm, Taeng lives with her older brother Bai-boon, and her two best friends, Taeng-on and Haeo, who are children of farm workers but grew up with Taeng. Bai-boon is a handsome, justice-loving protector of the villagers, making many girls fall for him. Taeng-on and her gang are quite feisty, especially known for their sharp tongues. Haeo, a young man around Taeng's age, acts as the girls' loyal sidekick. Taeng-on and Haeo are adventurous go-getters. They frequently retaliate against the Witch Lady and the local thugs who constantly cause trouble, acting as Robin Hoods for the poorer villagers. They keep their Robin Hood identities a secret, as Taeng believes that without someone standing up to the thugs, the villagers would eventually be robbed of all their produce and go bankrupt.
Every year, Hia Lee, the owner of the only electronics shop in the village, organizes a dirt bike race. Bai-boon enters the race, but Hia Lee plans to cheat by cutting Bai-boon's brake lines so his own guy can win. Taeng catches on and thwarts the plan. She and her friends do everything they can to eliminate Hia Lee's minions and stop his racer from crossing the finish line—including dropping a snake on the rival and scattering gravel. While Taeng is battling Hia Lee's men, Kamjorn and Maitree drive into the event but encounter the "Buffalo Bill" gang, ruthless local highway robbers whose identities are unknown. While Kamjorn and Maitree are fleeing the robbers, a girl suddenly drops into their car. It is Taeng, who panicked because the snake she meant to drop on someone else ended up on her own back.
Kamjorn's infatuation begins right then; he sees Taeng as his fallen angel. He begs Maitree to successfully play matchmaker. Maitree tries his best to set them up, but no matter what he does or how expensive the gifts are, Taeng always rejects them, and Maitree ends up getting physically hurt every time. However, Maitree refuses to let his friend down. He starts picking melons from Taeng's farm and giving them to Kamjorn, lying that Taeng sent them. This makes Kamjorn think Taeng has feelings for him. He also realizes his mother doesn't need to steal the land; if he marries Taeng, the land will belong to his mother anyway.
Kamjorn tells his mother to stop bullying Taeng's farm. Madam Thip loves the idea and completely changes her tune, suddenly acting kind, sending delicious food, and inviting Taeng's group over for dinner. Taeng notices the change but assumes the Madam simply gave up on wanting the land. This change delights Kamjorn, as he thinks he can now woo Taeng without any obstacles.
However, Kamjorn isn't the only one eyeing Taeng. Sia Songchai, the local mafia boss, also wants her. He is an older, cunning, and exploitative man. He has a younger sister named Sunee, who is secretly in love with Bai-boon. Sia Songchai does everything to win Taeng's heart. He makes his money by buying crops from villagers at unfair prices, running loan shark operations, illegal gambling dens, and illicit liquor factories, with rumors of him smuggling methamphetamines.
Taeng's group constantly clashes with Sia Songchai's men. Villagers often ask Bai-boon for help because Sia suppresses crop prices. Bai-boon fights for them, and eventually, all the villagers ask Bai-boon to sell their crops through Taeng's farm, as it's the only place Sia doesn't suppress prices (because his sister Sunee asked him not to). Sia also wants to impress Taeng. This situation frustrates Sia because he is forced to buy at higher prices.
To prevent price hikes, Sia orders his men to destroy the villagers' crops and seize their land and equipment if they miss interest payments. This causes great distress. Taeng and Bai-boon must find a way to secretly sell the crops in the city market. Taeng tricks Kamjorn and Maitree into driving a "charity donation" truck, which they gladly do, unaware they are part of Taeng's scheme.
Taeng and Maitree go to Hia Lee to ask for donations. Hia Lee, who has a crush on Taeng, donates heavily despite being stingy. Sia Songchai sees this and donates even more to show up Hia Lee. Neither realizes the "charity truck" is actually full of agricultural produce headed for the city.
Unfortunately, Sia's men discover the truth after the truck leaves. Furious, Sia orders his men to ambush Kamjorn and Maitree and destroy the produce. The two boys are beaten to a pulp and sent back to Thong Farm with a warning letter threatening death if they help Taeng again. Madam Thip is furious that Taeng endangered her son. Hating Taeng's farm anyway, she forbids the boys from associating with them and cancels the marriage plan. However, Maitree's sacrifice wins Taeng's heart. Maitree realizes he has fallen for the same girl as his best friend. Feeling guilty, he tries harder to push Taeng toward Kamjorn while pretending to like Taeng-on instead.
Sia Songchai furiously orders Hia Lee to take drastic measures against the villagers. He forces debtors to sign contracts locking in the old, low crop prices. If they can't pay the interest, he seizes their farming equipment and eventually their land.
Taeng and Bai-boon plan a counterattack, as the villagers are facing a crisis. Meanwhile, Sunee returns from Bangkok. Though slightly spoiled, she has morals, unlike her brother, and loves Bai-boon for his good heart. She visits Bai-boon, but he angrily accuses her of being sent by Sia to mock the poor villagers and kicks her out.
Heartbroken, Sunee yells at Sia. The next morning, Bai-boon finds Sunee's car parked with all the confiscated farming equipment. Sunee paid off the debts with her own money and returned the tools to the villagers. While they are talking, Sia Songchai arrives, sees this, and is so enraged he nearly beats his own sister to death. Luckily, Maitree and Kamjorn pass by and save her. With nowhere to go, Kamjorn asks his mother if Sunee can stay with them. Meanwhile, Madam Thip's niece, Thewi, arrives to do agricultural research. Bai-boon falls for Thewi at first sight, which upsets Sunee. Kamjorn quietly takes care of Sunee and slowly falls in love with her. Maitree continues playing matchmaker for Kamjorn and Taeng but fails, though he secretly catches himself looking at Taeng.
Taeng's group creates a fake electronics shop with an amazing installment promotion to steal Hia Lee's customers. When Hia Lee's sales plummet, he is forced to allow the villagers to pay in installments again. Sia is furious that Hia Lee broke their deal and even angrier when he learns Maitree, Kamjorn, and Taeng are behind it. He sends men to shut down Hia Lee's shop and constantly ambushes Maitree, Kamjorn, and Bai-boon. They narrowly escape every time, sometimes with Taeng's begrudging help, as she doesn't want Maitree to get hurt. Kamjorn, however, mistakenly thinks Taeng is saving him out of love.
Hia Lee turns over a new leaf and organizes a community event to boost morale. Taeng and Maitree perform a traditional Thai singing comedy (Lam Tad). After the event, the Buffalo Bill gang ambushes Madam Thip. Fortunately, Bai-boon and Taeng arrive in time. Bai-boon risks his life to save the Madam, deeply touching her. She asks how she can repay them, and they ask her to loan the villagers money to pay off Sia Songchai. She agrees.
With debts paid off, Sia loses his massive monthly interest income. Frustrated that his men keep getting beaten by Taeng's group, Sia decides to handle it himself. Sunee learns of his plan to kill Kamjorn, Taeng, and Bai-boon, so she warns them and permanently sides with Kamjorn. Furious at his sister's betrayal, Sia tries to shoot her, but Kamjorn saves her. Bai-boon and Maitree, however, end up getting shot.
Sia Songchai is arrested. Bai-boon and Maitree are hospitalized, and Taeng and Thewi constantly visit them. Kamjorn finally realizes Taeng loves Maitree, not him. Surprisingly, he isn't sad because he has realized he is deeply in love with his former rival, Sunee. This incident also makes Sunee see Kamjorn in a new light. His constant, warm presence shifts her feelings away from Bai-boon and toward Kamjorn, especially since she sees Bai-boon happily courting Thewi.
Once Bai-boon and Maitree recover, Maitree realizes he has loved Taeng since they first met. Feeling guilty for "betraying" Kamjorn (unaware Kamjorn loves Sunee now), Maitree distances himself from Taeng. Taeng feels the distance and gets frustrated. Maitree decides to return to Bangkok to avoid hurting his friend and confesses everything to Kamjorn. Kamjorn tells him he has actually fallen for Sunee, so Maitree should finally follow his own heart.
Despite knowing Maitree is clear to date her, Taeng is annoyed that he acted as a matchmaker for so long while knowing she liked him. She plays hard to get. Thinking she hates him, Maitree decides to leave for Bangkok without saying goodbye. On his way, the Buffalo Bill gang surrounds his car. Kamjorn sees Maitree leave and warns Taeng. Taeng jumps into her E-tan tractor, crashes through the bandits to save Maitree, while Kamjorn calls the police, who finally arrest the gang.
That evening, Kamjorn throws a farewell party. Everyone is paired up except Taeng, who waits for Maitree. Just as she is about to give up and leave, the lights go out. Candles are lit, and a staff member approaches her table to light a candle. When he kneels before her, she realizes it is Maitree. He proposes to her, saying he loves her and wants to spend the rest of his life with the girl from the melon farm.
Follow the drama "Mae Taeng Rom Bai" every Monday to Friday at 6:30 PM on Thai TV Color Channel 3. The first episode premieres on Friday, February 24, 2012.