Nigerian Movie Star Profile
Ngozi Nwosu
Have you always wanted to be an actress?
All my life, this is what I have always wanted to be. It has been acting all
the way. I remember that when I was in primary school, I was very much
involved in drama. Everything about me has been entertainment throughout.
When I wanted to study at the university, I opted for Mass Communication.
The course has to do with entertainment as well. So, everything about me has
always been entertainment. Today, I am here and I thank God for it.
How has it been, getting to where you are now?
It has been tough; it has been smooth as well. Life is filled with ups and
downs. Anybody for whom all things go smoothly should watch it, he will soon
die. Life goes up and comes down, a little to the front and a little to the
back; and then it gets stable.
You hit the limelight with Living in Bondage, and became popular after
that. But you have not featured in too many movies ever since. Did you
decide to take a break?
I never took a break. This profession is what I know how to do best.
Inasmuch as I don’t feature as regularly as I used to in home movies, I am
still in the entertainment industry.
On whether I took a break, I think you should ask producers. They are the
ones who have this notion that we are old faces and they would rather use
new faces in their movies.
Really, I don’t understand the politics that is going on in the movie
industry. That is the truth. Your being an old face should be no reason for
you not to get roles. In this our job, there is always a role for anybody at
any age. This is a profession where there is no retirement. I don’t know
what is wrong with our people sometimes.
I had this problem of people saying that because I work for a particular
person, it was the reason I was not getting roles.
But for crying out loud, a freelance artiste is a freelance artiste. Had it
been I signed a contract with a particular company, then I would be
restricted to that company without doing any other thing unless I have
permission from that company.
We are all freelancers. We work with whoever pays us. I don’t know where
they get this idea that because I am working for Amaka Igwe, I am occupied
and I cannot work for any other person. It is not fair at all.
It may be because you don’t belong to the right caucus…
I don’t belong to any caucus. If you are good, you are good. Why should I
belong to a particular group? Look, this is still a profession where your
talent speaks for you. If you are good, you will certainly get jobs. You do
not have to belong somewhere before you get roles. If you do, that means you
do not have confidence in yourself.
To the best of my knowledge, I am a good actress. My awards speak for me. I
know that with time, everything will normalise. That is the way I see it.
Are you really bitter?
Somehow, I am bitter. I have come to this world to make a living. What if I
didn’t have any other means of livelihood, what becomes of me? That is why
we have a lot of artistes today who are frustrated and they go into things
that they are not supposed to do. Those who don’t have the wherewithal, they
get themselves involved in so many trash and at the end of the day, they
make headlines. This is because they are frustrated, besides the fact that
they are also greedy.
An actor is not supposed to starve. We are not supposed to be redundant,
unless you are not good. Even when you are not good, there are still jobs
for you.
They should stop this caucus nonsense. They should stop this ‘I am the
piper, I call the tune’ attitude. It is not right at all. We should throw
sentiments to the winds and embrace what is right.
Your association recently denounced an actor for alleged drug
trafficking…
How can they say he is not an actor? Once an actor, you’re always an actor.
Whether he pays his dues or not, whether he is Nollywood or ‘No wood’, the
guy has been acting for years. If he were a nobody, they wouldn’t have
linked him to us. He is even a known face in the industry. Let us be
realistic. Nobody should run away when there is a problem.
It is believed that artistes are mostly into this crime of drug
trafficking, using their profession as front…
I don’t know about that. Anyone who is in the drug business is greedy. I
don’t believe an artiste should be involved in drug trafficking. We are the
future. People want to emulate us, irrespective of the fact that they don’t
know who we really are other than that they see us on TV and in the movies.
Some of us are some peoples’ role models. A lot of people call me daily and
tell me how much they appreciate what I am doing and how they would want to
be like me.
Then, for somebody like me to be caught with drugs, what have I portrayed to
the people out there who believed so much in me? How will I explain it to my
fans? All the years I spent trying to build this name will vanish in the
twinkle of an eye, everything will go down the drain. Mind you, nobody out
there is interested in the reason you went into that crime. The name is
soiled and it is over for you.
We should be careful what we do. Even if it were my mother who said I should
carry drugs, I would never do it.
You are also popular for your role as ‘Peace’ in Fuji House of Commotion.
How did it come about?
Amaka watched me for some time in some of the soaps I featured in.
I was in Ripples where I played the role of Madam V Boot. She saw me one day
and told me that she knew that we would work together some day.
That day eventually came. I was called for an audition and I got the role.
People say some artistes are really what they act. In your own case, can
you be a second wife?
I am too jealous for that. I can’t be a second wife. It is not as if I have
not had offers, but because of my jealous nature, I don’t think I want to
find myself in that second wife mess. I don’t know how I will handle it.
Most of your colleagues are into NGO ‘business’, you don’t seem to have
joined them…
I don’t have an NGO and I am not intending to have one. Most of them are
just trying to look for greener pastures in case of tomorrow. The way it is
now, we are like a flower that has its time to bloom. Maybe they believe
that there would be a time they would shine and a time they would die, so
they are trying to establish something that would sustain them. You are
entitled to do whatever you feel can make you happy.
What is your vision?
My vision is to see this industry go higher than high. I want us to get to
where we can compete with Hollywood. I know that we will get there some day.
There was a time artistes could not even afford to dress well, let alone buy
cars. But look at us now, the story is very different. We are living big.
Have you been embarrassed by any of your fans?
I have been embarrassed one hundred and one million times.
Which incident are you likely not to forget in a hurry?
There was a day a man walked up to me and lashed me thoroughly. He insulted
me from head to toe. He said I was a wicked woman, and that I should wait
for his wife to come and deal with me.
Can you imagine? I was dumbfounded! What was my own with this guy? After
abusing me, he walked away.
Don’t such experiences make you feel like quitting?
No matter what, I am not going to quit. This is a profession in which I have
found peace and joy. This is where I will be until I drop dead.
Do the scandals that come with your line of duty affect you?
No way! When you allow such things to weigh you down, then you will go down
the drain. Such is not good for an actor. Try as much as possible to be
scandal-free. But some things are inevitable. We are all human beings and we
are likely to make mistakes. When such comes, you take them in good faith.
Most artistes do not make good spouses…
When it comes to that, it is a matter of the heart. It happens in every walk
of life. I don’t see the reason an artiste’s own should be any different.
How come it is not celebrated when it happens in other professions? I have
attended a wedding that lasted three days. How come nobody heard anything
about it?
Marriage and divorce are matters of the heart like I said. It is he that
wears the shoes that knows where it pinches him the most.
When you are in a relationship, it depends on what you see before you opt
out. Marriage is not something people should dabble in. It is not something
that should be discussed on the pages of newspapers. It is left for the
couple to fashion out the way they want their thing.
Nobody should talk about marriage when he or she is not married.
You were married before…
I was married before. So? I am no longer married.
Why did you break up with your husband?
My marriage was hell. I don’t mind the way I am now. I am very much okay.
As an Igbo woman, the society usually stigmatises a woman who married and
divorced…
Abeg forget that. That was in the olden days jare. I still say that he who
wears the shoes knows where it pinches most. If you are not married, don’t
talk about marriage because you will not understand it.
So you belong to the school of thought that believes that if your
marriage is not working, get out…
Yes o! I believe strongly in that. When a marriage is not working, things
could go wrong. It can lead to so many things. It can lead to hypertension,
it can lead to death. That is the truth. Why would you want to lose your
life because you want to remain married?
If you are happy in your marriage, I wish you luck. If you are not happy in
your marriage, get the hell out of it!
Are you going to condemn the whole male folk because of one bad
experience?
One bad experience is not bad enough for me to condemn the whole male folk.
I am not saying I will not get married again, I will try again if I find
what I am looking for. All men are the same. It is just that some are
slightly different. Remember, I said slightly.
Do you regret your marriage?
Do I? No.
Filmography: Greatest Weapon, Thunderbolt, Fake Doctor, A Cry For Help, Dark Secret, Dr Thomas, True Or False, Daddy Must Obey, Fork Up, Vineyard, Harbinger, Ikuku, Night and Day, No Shaking, Open Secret, Private Sin, Slave Master and Living In Bondage
Tel:571-247-2679 email:contact@nigeriamovies.net
