It’s actually the American version; it started from America and then we did the first one, and KIND. The non-governmental organisation in charge of the play felt we should have the Nigerian stories as well, instead of repeating the American ones. So a Nigerian script was made and that’s the one they have been repeating. The project is about female abuse.
Don’t you think people may misinterpret the concept of the play because of its title - Vagina Monologue?
It’s called Vagina Monologue because it has to do with women and that is the easiest way to differentiate between a man and a woman. Well, that is my own understanding of the whole thing; I did not ask anybody. I know that a lot of Nigerians are usually taken aback by the name.
The play concerns the ordinary woman on the street and students, but it is shown at cinemas and not in schools and other places where you can easily reach out to these categories of people; why?
I can only talk about the ones I have participated in. Though students were not part of them, I know KIND does a lot of things with kids and women and I think it would have got across to schools. You have to understand that Vagina Monologue is not the only play that deals with female abuse. There is a film I shot recently titled Heavens Hell. It’s all about female abuse also.
Why was your TV series Circe of Fate yanked off air?
I guess my sponsors were not able to continue with it because they had too many projects at hand and some had to go; and unfortunately, Circle of Fate was one of them.
Concerning the play, people may have the wrong perception on what you want to teach them about the life of single ladies.
Well, we wanted to use the drama to teach a lot of older women that it pays to be patient. Some of the older women in the country feel that once they hit a particular age and they are not married, then they should be desperate or unhappy about it. I don’t think that’s the right way. I think marriage should be about finding the right person you want to settle down with for the rest of your life, and not just the “next person I can manage so that people will know that I am married.”
Your colleagues always make reference to you when they talk of disciplined actors in Nollywood. How did your training as a thespian contribute to this attribute?
Those days as a theater arts student of the University of Ibadan, if you were late, five marks will be deducted from your score and my lecturers did that a lot of times. I was taught by some of the greatest in the profession, like Professor Femi Osofisan, Professor Dabo Adelugba and Dr. Bamidele.
When they say something you better listen and do as they say. I just carried that along into the industry because I am trained to be an actor and I don’t see why I should dump my training half-way.
You started your movie career with Violated, but did not finish the production. What happened?
I was supposed to play the lead role in Violated, but I had exams and so I ran away. The producer, Amaka Igwe, didn’t forgive me for a long time; but now we are friends. However, the first movie I did was Owo Blow.
After the success of the movie Bounds, which shot you into limelight, you have been inconsistent in movies. Why?
It is not like that. You don’t expect me to shoot five million films in a year and I have never believed in that. My ideal is at least four films in a year, but unfortunately our economy never agrees with four films in a year. If I have my way, I will do just a movie
Have you ever experienced ‘black out’ while on stage?
No! God will never allow that to happen; but that’s what makes you a proper actor and different from other people - you being able to carry on even when your lines disappear, you being able to keep the audience until you get it back or somebody throws the line at you.
Let’s look at one of your most memorable experiences on stage
I will call it challenging because that’s what it was for me and that is the play, Death and the Maiden. It was a story of a woman that was arrested, tied to a cot naked, blind-folded and raped continuously for months. That was my hardest role ever, and at the end of it I felt I have not done justice to the character. The director, Chuck Mike, told me that it was okay and fantastic. I didn’t feel that impact; I felt all they were saying was just to make me feel better and that was one experience that almost killed me.
You have not been doing much of Yoruba movies; why?
I have, because their stories are so good; their ideas are brilliant and they are now spending good money on production. You find out that there are specific producers and when you watch their jobs, you’re always impressed because you are happy with what they have done. I love Yoruba films.
You played the role of an abused wife in the movie, Dangerous. Did you at any point feel ‘is this what I will go through when I get married?’
There are scenes you act in a movie and you may not have experienced it in real life; but a friend or someone you know may have experienced such a situation. Of course, you hear cases of women being beaten and those days in school, what we did was that when we heard such things, we would gather and beat the boy. I attended the University of Ibadan and if such things happened in the presence of girls, they will gather and give the boy a thorough beating. The problem is that there is such huge shame and women facing such a situations don’t usually want to open up; instead they say it’s their fault and somehow they will not want to open up to people.
Which of your stage productions are you particularly attached to?
Igirigi was a school production, a variety package put together by the late Amah Briggs. She made it a memorable performance for me and she was a brilliant director, choreographer, teacher and actor. We lost her too soon.
The press has said a lot of things about you. Which of them really touched you?
The press has said a lot of negative things about me, but I don’t care, and I don’t read them either. A lot of things that have been written about me are false. That seems to be one of the things journalist here do. They form stories, maybe the same way some of my people create controversies. Some of the things that were written about me when I was not even in the country and I don’t really care because people who are close to me - my family and friends-know that I am an open book and I don’t hide anything and so they know. So, when you come up with anything and they say, “Bimbo! No, she can’t do that; I can tell you where she is now.”
At a time they said you were dating Kalu Ikeagwu
Oh! Kalu is my brother.
They said you were about to marry Dede Mabiaku.
Dede and I never planned to marry; but I did date Dede and it was in the public glare and I said so when I was interviewed. We dated for almost two years before we decided that we were better off as friends.
When is your TV drama coming back?
I know it is a nice one because there are still a lot of things we have not showed people. We were just trying to establish the characters when we stopped. We wanted the viewers to see how each character went in his or her desperation to get married, how they went in different directions and the things they did that were not worth it. Eventually, the character that stayed true to herself and decided to wait, finally got the best man. However, they all got married eventually.
Which movie are you passionate about or reflects something about you?
They don’t reflect anything about me, but they are my passion. One of them is The Mourning After, which talked about widowhood in the south eastern part of the country. Another is Freedom in Chains, a film we did for UNFPA, a branch of UN meant for campaign and we took it to a lot of states.
Actors are always in the eye of the storm especially single ladies.
What’s your opinion about some of the controversies in the media that trail your colleagues?
I don’t know because I don’t read some of those funny things; I skip them. Our lives are out there in the public. You walk from Allen to Opebi, it’s in the newspaper; everything we do is in the newspapers. We need privacy as well. So for me, I don’t like to delve into people’s privacy. I protect my private life with everything I have. In the past people knew who I was dating because it was Dede Mabiaku, who is also a public person, and a musician. There is no way you know who I am dating, and you ask me and I will say I am not dating him. No! I don’t do that, but apart from that I protect my privacy with everything I have.
Can you remember any nasty experience like throwing pebbles at you inside the market by your fans because of the role you played in a film etc?
I love going to the market, but I can’t do that any anymore because you are harassed and everybody expects you to give him money and they rush you. I don’t go to the market anymore; I have people that go to the market for me.
What of your wears?
I buy my wears when I travel out of the country or I go to some specific boutiques. I don’t go to the market.
When is Bimbo settling down?
When I meet the right man. If I don’t, I won’t; it’s not by force. I haven’t met the person.
Are you thinking of diverting to music?
I stated off as a musician and I used to sing at the same club with late Jaiye Aboderin. We used to sing at a club called Divine and also in the university a long time ago. I stopped because I had a bad experience on stage. Somebody upset me before I went on stage and I sang off key from the beginning to the end. I could hear myself, but I could not do anything and my elder sister was just in front clapping and cheering me up.
You’re a tomboy; can you remember any of those pranks you played?
I used to beat boys those days after school. I used to fight and I was very aggressive. I remember the April Fool we did to my dad and he didn’t find it funny. When I was younger, if they say Bimbo is sick, it’s serious. I was always in the hospital and my ailment used to be crazy and we played that trick on my father and he did not find it funny.
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