Nollywood star actress Halima Abubakar, who stirred lots of controversy in the past, says some of the reports on her get so bad that she was depressed.
How did acting begin for you?
I wanted to be an actress in India actually. When I was growing up in Kano, all we ever watched apart from NTA was Indian movies. They showed them three times in a week. We always looked forward to it. I fell in love with Indian movies and thought I would be the first Nigerian to feature in an Indian movie. I was actually looking forward to that because we had Indian friends. I am still amazed that I didn’t end up in India.
How has it been so far?
I will say it’s been a quite a journey that if I want to gist about it, it will take days. I’m just saying that it was an experience that I needed to learn. If I didn’t learn anything then, it would mean that my being in Nollywood is just be a waste. I didn’t want to go without having to push or give up just because things were not rosy. I’m just going to say that perseverance worked for me and I was consistent even with the rejection, I was still coming to try my best until God decided to answer.
What is most exciting about being a Nollywood actor?
Besides the fact that people recognize you, there is nothing really extraordinary about it. I think interacting with fans is the best feeling. Sometimes it makes me really happy when you meet fans that really appreciate your work and they tell you that they do.
You seem to get bashed a lot on the internet, how do these comments make you feel?
That’s like physical bullying. Online, they are invisible. I believe if you have a problem with me, you should approach me. But if you go online and comment as anonymous or use a strange name, you are still bringing yourself down. Yes, you would make me feel sad, but the damage will not be permanent, but temporary until I am strong enough not to read those comments again. I am going to say it that I am not one of those actresses that say they don’t read blogs. I do. I have been reading blogs for the past five years or so, but I have never commented. Sometimes I am pushed to insult everybody there and comment under anonymous. But then I tell myself, well, they would always remain anonymous while I stay relevant. And so, I bear most of the insults and try not to be bothered about them.
It was not easy. I was depressed for a long time because of things like that. I just felt that people didn’t like me. I didn’t understand how people could still hate me even when I know I am one of the nicest people in Nollywood. I am not disrespecting anybody, I am just saying that even if someone has hurt me several times, I will still be nice to the person. People just go ahead and bash me for no reasons. They don’t even know me and they are saying this and that. Before, I will cry and cry and get depressed. But now, I don’t even bother myself anymore. They don’t know what I’m going through and they don’t know my story.
Which of the stories would you say hurt you the most?
Amongst the many, there was one referring to people who patronize a particular hotel on the island with a politician, and my name was the headline of the publication. If you are saying you saw Halima, then you should have proof. I have never visited that hotel called Four Points. I had my premiere at Oriental Hotel. If I wanted to use Four Points I would have. I hate it when the media knowingly writes things that are not true. They know they are lying but they still go ahead to write because of the pull down syndrome. If you are friends of these selected people, they can make their own people hate you. Before you know it, the person will be writing nonsense and gossiping about you. Love is not like that. Just because you don’t love me shouldn’t be an excuse to attack me. You don’t know the things that I go through everyday. I don’t know everybody’s problems but I know mine. So, it is unfair that they will take whatever frustration out on other people for no reason.
What are your thoughts for Nollywood?
I think we are doing well. We are 20 and we thank God for the journey so far and that we haven’t crashed. You can invest your money into a business that eventually ends up crashing, but we are grateful to God that that is not the case with Nollywood. There was a time that we had crisis for about a year and we are asked not to shoot movies for that period. Anyone who did so was penalized. We were kind of like on a strike for almost a year. Now everything is going on well, production wise and in the growth. I’m not talking about the artistic side, but Nollywood as a workshop. We are growing and also being noticed around the world. If we are not doing something good, I don’t think the rest of the world would have given us this much attention.
What do you think is the major problem in Nollywood?
Tribalism and the ‘pull down syndrome’ are the major problems. Particularly, the ‘pull down syndrome’ is number one. The jealousy, the envy, the maliciousness of some minds is really not necessary. I thought that by now we would have been like one family in Nollywood, but we still have a long way to go when it comes to love in Nollywood. There is no love in Nollywood. There is just ‘pretend love’ on locations. When you attend an event and you see a colleague, you genuinely might like them but they might not reciprocate the feeling. But then again, that’s not your fault. If I don’t come close to you and you say I am unfriendly, it is not my fault. I may be reacting to the way you have acted towards me on several occasions that we may have met. If you have been rude to me, I cannot be your friend, but that does not mean that I am jealous of you.
Lately you have been involved in charity, lets talk about that?
I have been doing charity for a long time. I only became open about it lately because people said I was lying about all that. You know Nigerians- you have to show them certificates, doctor’s reports and police reports to show you are doing a thing before they will believe. And when you show the pictures, they turn around and criticize you for posting the pictures and say that charity is meant to be done privately. Tomorrow, the same people will ask, ‘What has she done for the society?’ At the end of the day, you hardly know how to satisfy people. Now I talk less on the subject of charity. I’m just doing it for myself and for God and not for any acknowledgement. If I think about how people have treated me, I wouldn’t want to do any charity, but then again, I’m not doing it for anyone’s acknowledgement.
You seem to have had a lot of ugly experiences with…
I remember one time that we had problems at home. My dad was retired without notice. All his money and life investment were in Savannah Bank that closed up. Suddenly from a comfortable man he went to a poor man. My mother was always a giver. We used to have people who come to our house to eat because there was always food. Those same people, we had to beg for food. I remember a particular one we went to ask her to give us rice to cook and she said, ‘Everyday you are begging, don’t you get tired?’. And these were the same people we were giving a lot of foodstuffs too.
Has that experience affected the way you look at people?
You see, you don’t repay evil for evil. I have been taught well by my parents to just be nice. Even if people are rude to my face, I just smile and walk away not because I cannot answer back. But what I might say might put you in coma for two days. I chose my words wisely. I don’t talk too much. If because I chose to be like that and you judged me thinking I may have a complex problem, then you don’t know me.
Are you currently in a relationship?
I really would not talk about it because I don’t want to lie.
When do you hope to get married?
I don’t know why people always seem to be putting pressure on other people to get married. When the marriage doesn’t work out, they ‘ll be the first to criticize the person. My parents are not pressurizing me to get married, my family is not pressurizing me to get married, so I don’t see why I should let anyone pressurize me into marriage.
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