With many movie roles in various capacities to her credit, beautiful script interpreter, Adediwura Adesegha, proudly stands out among the rising stars in the movie world. Wole Adepoju engaged the cross – over actress in an interview session and so much were uncovered about her.
What is your reaction to the death of that rising actress, Bisi Komolafe?
It is indeed a sad one because it was really an unfortunate one. She was doing well before her sudden death. It is really painful. Although, we never met but what I saw after her death was bad. Can you imagine some terrible people, who claim to be in the same industry with her, wore hot red lipsticks at her burial and started posting diverse styles of pictures via Black Berry? That is seriously condemnable and it tells so much that there is no love in the industry, it is really sad.
What else have you been doing because you hardly appear in movies these days?
I have been working, so I am a little bit surprised that some people think I have been silent. Although, it has not been an everyday thing, I grab each opportunity as it comes. I presently have some of my works that have just been released in the market. There are movies I have been working on, while some are out, some are yet to be released.
There is this belief that you do only Yoruba movies?
That is totally incorrect. Although, I do more of Yoruba stuff because that is where I find myself more, but I sure do take part in the English productions, but they are mainly Soap Opera. I take part in Eldorado by Fidelis Duker and…there are some others in the pipeline as I speak with you. So those who say or think I do only Yoruba stuffs are wrong.
You appear like one who is not really driven by passion to be an actor. Is it so?
The passion to be an actress is based on how you want to portray yourself as an actress. Some actresses might want recognition by all means, but that does not apply to me. What I do is that I want people to talk about me , I want people to call me and not me forcing myself on them . I don’t want a situation whereby people will feel so sure of my attendance at an event , even when they don’t know if I will be coming or not . So, it is not that my passion for the industry is not strong, but the fact is that if you become a regular face at parties and events, even the media men who write about you will start looking for new faces to write about. So, you won’t catch me doing that because I have my dignity and pride. Let me give you a scenario, some months back, I celebrated my birthday and a lot of big names were in attendance, and I wondered if I had reached that level to attract such personalities . That is how it should be.
You have been in the industry for a while, how would describe yourself because you used to describe yourself as upcoming?
Naturally, everyone would like to elevate himself or herself. Presently, I will say I am in the third level because I see it as a level thing. It can be likened to a child that is just born, the child will not crawl the same day he or she is born. In the same vein, it is not the day the child crawls that he or she will walk, so it is all about life stages. But some people don’t want to crawl before they walk. I am in the third level simply because I am about to produce my own movie. My first level was rough, but I learnt and mixed up with people. I tried to force myself on them in a descent way by being friends with them. But in second level, I started getting jobs, some lead roles and others sub–roles. My third level now is how to elevate myself. I want to do things for myself. I want to do things for people and society too. When I produce my movie, premier and sell it, then I can confidently say I am at the forefront. We have something that is called a plot in every movie. There is expository level where you expose yourself, there is rising action and that is where I am now, and there is also the climax. After the climax, you have falling action. This is a fact, and people who have gone to school to be educated in movie production will tell you this. Actresses like Liz Benson had their climax then, while Funke Akindele is in her climax now, she will still get to her falling action because other people will grow. That is a fact when it comes to this job.
Will it be right to say that actresses such as Bukky Wright and Fathia Balogun are now in falling action?
If you say that, yes, you will be right. At a point, nobody knew Funke Akindele, but now she’s in her climax as an actress. Genevieve Nnaji, Liz Benson, Fathia Balogun, Joke Silver and even Bukky Wright have all had their climax periods too. But presently they are in the falling action. They will still get to resolution because it is how you manage the line of action that matters.
What is your view on how far an actress should interpret a script?
It all depends on the kind of job you are doing, and the kind of roles you are interpreting. For me, it can get to a point that you tell a producer if you don’t like the way they are portraying you. It is not that I am being proud, but it will get to a point when you tell your producer, ‘this is what I can do’. I want to give back to the society that has made me, but I w want to do it in the most appropriate way. The kind of people you associate with also tells a lot about you. There was a time a certain university wanted to do a programme and asked some of the young ladies in the university to pick a female role model and when this girl mentioned a name in the movie industry, they simply told her that person was not a good role model. It would interest you that the name that was mentioned was a top name in the movie industry and although the media sees her as a top actress, the fact remains that her image is bad. So, it tells you a lot about the kind of movie industry we have. Don’t get me wrong here, not all actresses are bad.
Is there any part of your body you consider as your greatest asset, the part men can’t resist?
Talking about that, we have the physical aspect and the spiritual and other aspect that surround that question. When we talk about physical attributes, it has to do with my shape, it has to do with whatever you think you can flaunt. For example, at a night club scene where you are expected to dress in a manner that portrays a club girl, so in that case, I think I have something I should be able to flaunt. I have got boobs. (Laughs) On a serious note, it has to do with your educational background. You have to be educated. The way the world is going now, you must be talented and outspoken. You must be an extrovert and must be able to face challenges. I think I have a sound educational background and so too are my physical attributes. So I am well packaged.
You must be having it tough with men because of your shape and boobs. How do handle that?
My boobs and shape do get me attracted to men just like it happens to every other lady that has it but I think I have been able to handle it well. Besides, it is really no big deal to get advances from men because it is like a daily routine. It is left to you as a lady to be responsible and respect yourself.
You have been able stay without scandals, what is the secret?
What I think is considered as scandal for actresses mostly is their relationships with men. What I think is that the ability to control what you do is important and I don’t see why my affair with men should create scandals for me. It is a matter of choice. If you want to play along and if you feel otherwise, you play yourself out of the game.
When should your fans expect you to get married?
Having a man to oneself is another job entirely. You have to search, open your eyes and pray. It is not something you just say ‘okay, I love him’, while what you have for him is not real. Some would be in love at the beginning but later, as the year rolls by, the love evaporates. As regards when I will be married, I will keep you posted.
How often do have sex?
I read it in a magazine that if you can have sex like three times in a week or more, it is really another form of exercise. So, sex is good. But how often I have it is personal and not for public to know about. (General laughter).
Tell us more about the movie you want to shoot?
Basically, it’s a project I want to use to launch myself in the aspect of production as a producer. The story line will be about trust and how you get to be stabbed in the back by a person you trust.
What is unique about the movie?
There is no story line that has not been done before. However, it depends on how you interpret it, produce and present it to the people. This is because at the end of the day, people might not even look at it as something that has been done before. Rather, they will see the uniqueness in your own job.
Do you have a working title?
It will be titled 7pm and work is in progress. But the challenge we are facing now is that the cast we are using is unique, and we are having challenge in picking a date to role –tape. However, we are not rushing things because we want to do things properly.
Don’t you think it is too early for you to become a producer?
Thank you. To start with and in my own sincere opinion, I don’t want to believe there should be particular years one must have spent in the industry before producing a movie. We have seen people who don’t belong to the industry that are producers. So, I really do not see any big deal in it. However, I will totally subscribe to the idea that whatever production that is being done should be of standard and quality. Having said that, before you decide you want to do a particular thing, you would have searched yourself and asked if you are ready for it. This is because there is nothing you do in this world that does not have its ups and downs. You have to face challenges. The fact that some people produced their first movies, and they tell you that they don’t think they want to produce any more because of challenges they faced does not deter me. So, yes, I am ready for this new road and its challenges. Besides, it has become a kind of trend in the industry that you are considered progressing when you start producing your own movies and I don’t want to be left out, especially, when I am convinced that I have got the wherewithal to be a producer. Also, I can tell you that my fans will not be disappointed when the job is concluded.
