“The Cave Man 2018,” a Thai internet personality known for living in a cave on Koh Phangan, suddenly went from minor internet celeb to national news overnight after he shared a play-by-play about how he managed to invite a Russian woman back to his cave on Tuesday in a Facebook post that went massively viral.
The post, which was supposed to sound romantic but stuck some people as creepy, the caveman, whose real name is Jatuphum Losiri, 48, described the mesmerizing moment he saw a “slim, beautiful woman” outside a 7-Eleven and decided to approach her.
The post has had 9,000 shares since Tuesday and been widely reported on by Thai media.
“I said to her, ‘You interrupted me. I was riding my motorbike home, but because of your beauty, I had to turn around. I needed to talk to you and find out if you’re beautiful on the inside as well.”
Yikes.
He continued, “She laughed, and after talking to her a bit more, I found out that she was from Russia and this was her last day on Koh Phangan. So I told her: ‘Then this is your last chance to get to know me. We have to find a beautiful place to sit and talk.”
“She hesitated because I was just a stranger in her eyes. She said, ‘I’m not sure. You might be dangerous.’ I smiled and replied, ‘That’s true. I know how you feel. You’re in another country, far from your home and a strange man is inviting you to go with him. Not to worry, I’m not dangerous. And the place I’m taking you to is not remote. If you feel uneasy, you can shout out for help.”
“When she heard that, she said yes and hopped onto the back of my bike.”
The post prompted some Thai men to call the caveman their idol, praising him for his courage and verbal skills.
But hours after the story went viral, the caveman posted a photo of a different, mysterious woman sleeping in his bed, shocking netizens who were still smitten by his first post.
“No matter how tired I was last night, I still woke up at 6am. Then I’ll make coffee and mediate. But someone is still sleeping,” he captioned the photo, which drew much criticism as people assumed he had not asked permission from the woman before posting it.
But it certainly shouldn’t have surprised anybody with any familiarity with Jatuphum’s social media posts.
Even before his post with the Russian woman brought him national news coverage, he had already become something of a minor internet celeb for his posts showcasing his cave-dwelling minimalistic lifestyle on the Full Moon Party island. According to reports, the cave is located on private land and no one has forbidden Jatuphum from living there after he found it empty and moved in about 8 months ago.
But in addition to advocating his own brand of cro-magnon living, Bangkok-born Jatuphum has also used his Facebook account to document the many Western women he has welcomed to his cave, something he’s certainly not shy to talk about.
“I’m so tired. Every time I’m out of the cave, I get in a trouble. Now I have to take her to look at my cave,” said the caption.
https://www.facebook.com/156788408463114/photos/a.156796671795621/321657865309500/?type=3&theater
“Sometimes being a caveman gets you in trouble. As you can see …” he captioned another photo with a different woman.
“This happens every time I’m out of the cave,” he wrote.
https://www.facebook.com/156788408463114/photos/a.156796671795621/181221312686490/?type=3&theater
After his story made it onto national news programs, Jatuphum told reporters that he’s just another romantic guy and he didn’t expect any backlash against his posts.
“I deleted the picture [of the woman in his bed]. I don’t want this woman who has been with me to feel bad when she finds out about it. Even though, you can’t tell who it is based on the photo,” he said in a broadcast interview with Amarin TV.
“I just posted it for fun. I didn’t think there’d be a backlash, but I know that there will be people who agree and disagree, no matter what I do,” he said vaguely.
He told the news outlet the woman in his bed is just one of his lovers and she’s not the Russian woman from the previous post.
He also told the media that he mostly dates Western women and hasn’t had a Thai girlfriend in a very long time. He insisted he never lures women into his cave or forces himself on them.
“If you find my posts disturbing, then you should not follow me. I didn’t force anyone to follow this page. Only the people who share the same dream and lifestyle as me would have fun here [on this platform],” he announced on Facebook yesterday.
So what happened to the Russian woman? The caveman made another post to say that she was the one who got away, after he asked for permission to kiss her and she said no.
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