“Porque no los dos?” or “why not both?” It was a simple question used to end an argument over taco shells, but 15 years on it’s an international meme.
At the time Mia Agraviador was a plucky six year old and had no idea starring in an advertisement for Old El Paso would have such an enduring legacy.
WATCH BELOW: Old El Paso Hard’n’Soft Taco Kit Ad
Now in her early 20s, Mia is a barista and artist based in Sydney and says she still remembers the shoot clearly.
“I remember the filming well. The whole film crew and the set and, you know, the mansion it was filmed in,” Mia told SBS’s Insight program.
“I was just a little girl… I just went in there to have fun.”
Mia says no one expected the advertisement to have the impact it did.
Her father told Pedestrian TV he calls Mia the “ultimate diplomat” since the ‘porque no los dos?’ meme is rolled out regularly to solve family arguments and petty disagreements.
But, in Mia’s personal life, it hasn’t been all smooth sailing.
“Literally the whole school knew about it,” she said.
WATCH BELOW: Old El Paso girl on SBS Insight
Being asked to ‘“say the line” repeatedly had an effect on Mia and she ended up changing high schools three times.
“I would just, you know, roll with it but deep down I always kind of felt annoyed.
“I never really had a proper, long term friend.”
Mia channelled those feelings into her art. In 2015 one of her paintings, a portrait of her brother, was a finalist in the Young Archibald Prize.
“Since I left high school I’ve done some big growing up… I’m slowly starting to open up,” she said.
“Now when people bring up the taco ad I’m like yeah, that was me.”
Her Instagram bio states, “Yep! I’m the ‘Porque No Los Dos?’ Taco Girl” and she regularly posts videos of herself enjoying tacos and saying the famous line.
Mia has even reprised her role for Old El Paso and appeared in other advertisements for brands such as Koala furniture.
Ultimately, what has been missed in all the fuss is Mia’s own opinions on tacos.
“I’m sorry I don’t have both, I have hard.”
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