Encomium
…debunks marriage breakup
FAMOUS actress, Ronke Ojo-Anthony, otherwise known as Oshodi Oke has defended why she still lives with her mother, despite being happily married to Gbolahan Anthony, a.k.a Sir White. She rubbished the tale that things are no longer at ease in her union with the handsome auto dealer.
The fair-skinned thespian also spoke on her new office as National Financial Secretary of the new association in the industry right now, Theatre Art and Motion Pictures Practitioners of Nigeria (TAMPPAN) and other issues.
What are you working on at the moment, career wise?
I am working on my new project entitled, One Step (Igbese kan). Very soon it will hit the market.
What’s it about?
It’s all about the mistakes we have made that haunt our present. And there were some steps we take that, throughout our lifetime, we would still be grateful to God for those decisions. And we will be bold and proud that this and this were the decisions I made at a certain stage that shaped my life. And there were some decisions you might have made out of ignorance that would be haunting our present even the future. What I am trying to point out is that whatever decision or step we take, we need to seek God’s consent and the people that really know much about life, I mean the wise ones. There is this thing called youthful exuberance, it affects everybody that passed through that stage. Although, I am still young, I can’t deny that I am trying to tell those that are just trying to come up, especially the undergraduates, they should watch their steps.
Who are the stars in the movie?
My humble self, Femi Adebayo, Jaiye Kuti, Wale Akorede Okunu and a lot of other notable faces.
Is Igbese kan a low or high budget film?
It’s a low budget film but a project on its own.
It’s quite a while you produced a movie, why are you just rolling out another one now?
It’s true. I shot the film before I travelled to the US to have my baby. So, the movie came out late because I wasn’t around to monitor it. And since I returned I have not shot any movie. I just said okay, ‘What can I do this year?’ I just put everything together to ensure this production becomes real in order to keep my fans informed that I am back fully. Also to pass a message to the public and at the same time entertain.
Would you say your long absence has affected your career in anyway?
Not at all. When I came back, the first thing I told people was that one needs to have interest of what one does at heart all the time. Second, you need to be good at what you do and also be friendly with your colleagues, your producers and other stakeholders. You need to be humble. Wherever you go, they will give you a warm reception. They will just start working with you. So, I don’t have any problem with my colleagues. They were all happy to see me back, I am happy about that.
Now, let’s talk about the industry itself, especially the genre you belong where things have fallen apart leading to the emergence of two or three new associations. What’s your comment on this?
If something is going to be good, it will first go through a lot of challenges. To God be the glory, I personally thank God for today. In the Yoruba movie sector, we need a change, we need to rebrand ourselves. For instance, Coca Cola has been in existence for decades but at least every three or four years, they rebrand it. If they don’t change the cover, they will change its size or the shape of the bottle. Yet, it remains the same Coke. We need people that have the same mind, who think alike and reason the same way, to sit and have a round table talk on how we can move forward. No doubt, piracy is our major problem. But be that as it may, we still have so many other problems apart from piracy. So, the basic thing for the emergence of these new associations, especially Theatre Art and Motion Pictures Practitioners of Nigeria (TAMPPAN), which I belong. We want to move from the Yoruba movie industry to Nigeria movie industry. TAMPPAN is a new association right now in the Nigerian movie industry where its membership spread across almost all the states in Nigeria, including Oyo, Osun, Ekiti, Ondo, Lagos, Edo, Delta, Niger, Kaduna, Sokoto, Kano and even Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. Also, we have our members in the US and UK. So, TAMPPAN is not a Yoruba thing, it’s national. And that puts everybody irrespective of his or her tribe under the same umbrella. Just as I told the national interim chairman of the association, Yemi Solade, I let him know that we’re Nollywood but there is nothing like you’re Yoruba, I am Igbo. We should all be under one umbrella so that we can move forward.
Are you now saying TAMPPAN has that umbrella?
Yes.
So, the emergence of TAMPPAN is the only solution to the problem in the movie industry?
Yes, that’s exactly what I think. That’s what we have been saying for years. If we keep saying governments are not supporting us financially and morally or any other way, and we don’t have one voice, all these things can’t be actualized. If we’re not under one umbrella, who would they talk to. Would they go to Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN), National Association of Nigeria Theatre Art Practitioners (NANTAP), Association of Nigeria Theatre Art Practitioners (ANTP) or The Movie Ambassadors (TMA)? Left to me, I don’t think it’s a good thing. And now everybody wants to be a boss, and this is not helping our industry. Let’s tell ourselves the truth, how many Nollywood stars do we have in Nigeria, and how many of us are known across the globe? Indian films, even if they are not subtitled, people watch their movies and they enjoy them. Even I have personally learnt a little about their language by seeing their movies.
So, it’s right to say you have also quit ANTP finally and defected to TAMPPAN?
Yes, sir. I am even the interim National Financial Secretary of TAMPPAN now.
How are you going to cope with the office and your career because that office is very sensitive and it requires a lot of concentration?
To be honest, it’s stressful a little for now because we’re still an interim government. But to God be the glory, six months will soon end when we will finish our assignments.
Would you like to contest for that same post?
I am not contesting. I like to be an observer.
You’re aware of the fact that Comrade Victor Asaolu was declared the authentic ANTP leader by court, and he has taken over the mantle of leadership of the association despite the fact that the house has collapsed. He has reportedly threatened that he would deal with those of you who moved out of ANTP to form another group legally because you are yet to denounce your ANTP membership. What’s your reaction to this?
I don’t think there is any normal human being with the right senses that will say that kind of thing. And I will like to water that statement, Asaolu is a lettered person so I don’t think he can say such a thing. But if he actually said that, I think something is wrong somewhere. Even if I am a lawyer or medical doctor, I may decide not to practice again. It’s my personal certificate because I went to school for it. Nobody can take me to court for that. And this is a country where there is freedom of association.
I used to be in ANTP and now I chose not to be again, whose business is that? So, if tomorrow I decide to register my own association, will he petition for that. Maybe he doesn’t understand what he is saying. To start with, he is not even the one who gave me the form I filled to join ANTP, so he has no right to challenge me for moving into another association. But if he wants us to go to court on that, there is no problem about it. We’re all ready for him.
Let’s go a little private now. The tale at the moment is that you’re yet to move back to your matrimonial home, suggesting that things are no longer at ease between you and your husband, Anthony Gbolahan a.k.a Sir White…
If you have a partner or spouse who is your friend, you will understand each other very well. Fine, I am a reserved person and on the other hand I am into showbiz. So, for me to manage these two things, you have to be in a reserved area. For instance, when you’re going out or coming in, nobody really knows your movement. Second, I am friendly but I don’t really like crowd. My husband likes Surulere, he is a Surulere person. I like suburbs like Abule Egba, Ijaiye area and so on. So, both of us know how we manage the situation. Whenever I say I am going to Surulere, I just go there to catch fun, see people and things I love to see. But the fact remains that even if I am in Surulere, people don’t really know I am there because I don’t go out. I am not an outgoing person. Most of the events you see me, it’s either I am invited as the master of ceremonies or the celebrant is my friend. Anytime I don’t go out and I am not on set, I go to my husband in Surulere and he understands me very well. All these kidnappings here and there one needs to be very careful. When they kidnap your child and they say they need ransom, what would you do? So, we know how we manage the situation. He also comes to Ijaiye where I live. That’s where my mom lives.
So, your staying in Ijaiye and your hubby living in Surulere, does not mean your marriage is not working as being bandied?
There is nothing wrong with my marriage. That’s how people are just feeling. Recently, City People magazine celebrated me. I received an award. My husband was there with me. So, if there was anything wrong with our union, would he be there? Things like that you can’t hide them from the public. I just believe people only like fabricating issues for whatever reason or reasons best known to them.
– TADE ASIFAT
