MANILA, Philippines - He’s a celebrity himself, but he’s also a talent manager. And as a talent manager, Boy Abunda—who handles Kris Aquino and Mariel Rodriguez, among other celebrities—has learned that there is no standard way of dealing with controversies when talents get involved in difficult issues.

In recent months, both Aquino and Rodriguez have figured prominently in the news for different reasons: Aquino because of her separation from husband James Yap, and Rodriguez, following the revelation of her romance with action star Robin Padilla.

Since Padilla pledged his love for Rodriguez on "Entertainment Live" (where he slipped a diamond ring on her finger and told her, “Hindi ako nagsinungaling sa iyo, Mariel. Mahal kita”) the rumors surrounding her have only become more intense, to the point that some are speculating she is pregnant or already married to Padilla.

Abunda came out to deny the rumors.

As manager, Abunda takes things like these on a case-to-case basis. “There is no standard way of dealing with controversies. Each situation is unique to the personality and the incident. What is happening to Kris is unique to Kris, and what is happening to Mariel is unique to her.”

With Aquino, whom he has known for years, Abunda said his role is mostly to listen. “You have to be prudent and cautious. Ultimately, as manager, it’s my job to protect the interests of my artists, and I do that by keeping our communication lines open.”

Abunda has been managing Rodriguez for six or seven years now.

Finding the balance between being a friend and being a manager is “tricky”, but if it is the happiness of the artist that is at stake, Abunda has one hard-and-fast rule: he will always go for what makes his artist happy.

That is why he did not try to stop Rodriguez when she left "Pilipinas Win na Win", ostensibly to follow Padilla to India.

“It’s her life, not mine,” was Abunda’s explanation. “She’s 26. She’s of age. And as her manager, I honor her concept of love. Ma (Mariel’s nickname) has been wanting a vacation, and we couldn’t fix her schedule until Robin came along, and after that, the decisions were quick.”

Abunda doesn’t see a problem in dealing with issues involving Rodriguez or Aquino, or any of his so-called ‘controversial’ talents.

“Manageable issues ito,” he said. “The thing is how you manage [them].”