Saidi Balogun needs no further introduction
in the movie industry. He has remained one of the most popular faces
among the thespians. Balogun, who spent most of his formative years in
the Northern part of the country, said he was not resting on his oars.
In this interview with SEGUN ADEBAYO, the actor speaks on his latest
flick, You or I and other sundry issues. Excerpts:
You led the pack of actors and actresses to Ondo State during
the re-election campaign of Dr. Olusegun Mimiko as the state governor,
but your decision was said to have pitched you against some of your
colleagues in the industry who campaigned for Rotimi Akeredolu. What
informed your decision?
I have promised not to talk about
this issue again because of the unnecessary dust it raised prior to the
election and afterwards. The truth of the matter is that I did not vote
for the party but for an individual whose style of leadership I so much
love. I have known the governor before the election and I had been
planning to do some projects with the state government before the
election, but when I was invited by the governor to lead his campaign
team, I couldn’t have said no. And, let me make something clear to you
today and some people who have been going around spreading false tales
about my relationship with the governor, I don’t regret voting for him
and I will never regret my decision.
It was rumoured that your involvement was financially influenced, are you saying that it had nothing to do with money?
What
do you mean by it was financially influenced? If the governor required
for my services, are you saying he won’t pay me for that? I am a
professional actor for crying out loud. Let me explain few things to you
for the sake of this interview. When I was invited, before I said yes
to the offer, I had weighed the options before me. I did not follow the
party, I followed the wisdom he possesses. During campaign, his children
followed him throughout and I asked him why he decided to have them on
his train, he told me that everybody is working to achieve a goal. He
also said that he does not believe his children were different or more
special than any other person in the team, so if everybody could rise to
support him, what stops his own children from following them to the
nooks and crannies of the state to campaign.
You haven’t answered my question…
You
mean if my decision was influenced by money? I can tell you
categorically that you are wrong. Let me explain to you this way. When I
clocked 45 years old, last year February, somebody very close to the
governor’s heart also clocked 45. Governor Mimiko loves wearing Ankara; I
produced an all cast Ankara movie last year and Ondo State was created
on February 3 and the governor was born on October 3. I don’t want to
bore you with the things that make our coming together unique, but trust
me, the governor has a very good heart. So, if he had paid me, I am
sure he did that because I offered him my services.
But you were said to have been approached by some key figures in the opposition party…
Yes,
I was approached by a sitting governor, but I don’t want to mention his
name. We chatted for a couple of hours and days before I decided that I
was going to campaign for Mimiko. The man tried to convince me into
changing my mind, but I was not convinced. I don’t have anything against
anybody, I just did what I felt was the best for me as that time. No
regrets though.
In the last few years, you have produced
some movies that were said to have cost you a fortune and you were said
to have not been able to recoup the amount you expended on some of the
projects. Is it true that you are broke?
This question is
very interesting, because I don’t know why some people would have
assumed that I am broke. How did they arrive at that conclusion? I don’t
want to say anything about being broke or not, because even if I am,
how do I convince them it is not true. The truth is that I don’t like
responding to issues like these. To me, they are baseless and silly. I
am not broke. I thank God for what He has done for me and I don’t have
to share what He has done for me with anybody on the pages of the
newspaper, because I want people to know that I am living well. I have
been able to achieve some of the things I had set for myself, as young
man, when I was growing up. So, I have every reason to thank God for His
loving kindness over my life. You are granting this interview with me
now; you should be able to tell if I am broke or not from my appearance
and the little you have seen since you got here today.
How did you manage to raise money to shoot these movies?
Getting
sponsors has been the major problem confronting the movie industry. It
is really a big threat because it is forcing a lot of good producers
into mediocrity. Raising money has not been easy, but I thank God that I
have been able to attract a couple of sponsors who believe in my work.
These people have seen what we have done before and they were impressed.
So, if we come up with any new project, they will surely throw in their
support.
Before now, you hardly appeared on other
people’s movies but it seems that you have rescinded that decision. You
were reported to be jumping from one location to another. What brought
you back?
I guess that’s why some people assumed that I am
broke. I have been busy with a handful of projects, since the middle of
last year. That’s why I have not been frequent at locations. Another
fact is that if your payment does not go down well with me, I may not
take your job. But above all, I didn’t come back because I had run out
of cash. Come to think of it, I am a public figure and I engage in other
projects. I have raised my game to a very meaningful level in the
industry that I don’t have to wait until I feature in movies before I
could put food on my table and smile to the bank. The kinds of projects
that had kept me busy were time-consuming that I had to drop other
things. I don’t want to produce movies that won’t tell the story I want.
What are the projects you are talking about?
I
released Eti Keta last year, an all cast Ankara movie, but the
production had started before then. I have released Ala mi Aye mi,
Modupe Temi, a two cast movie and right now, I am working on releasing
another one, You or I that was shot in three or four different
countries, Spain, South Africa, America and Nigeria. These are
multi-million naira projects and we had made sure that nothing goes
wrong with the production. I have set a standard for myself in the
industry and my aim is to beat that standard each time I churn out a new
project.
You were rumoured to have been lined up for
the mouthwatering Globacom ambassadorial deal, but it did not
materialise. How did you feel?
I don’t know about any deal.
If they had approached me with a deal, I may take it and I may not. You
never can tell. It depends on the condition of the contract. I
appreciate what Globacom is doing to promote our industry, but a lot
still needs to be done by other well-to-do Nigerians so that we can move
the industry forward. If they had approached me, I would gladly welcome
them with both hands.
But why do you think the deal was put off?
I
don’t know about the deal, so I can’t tell you why it was put off. Who
does not like a good thing? May be when they approached me, I will
gladly ask them why they called off the deal in the first place.
You started as an actor before embracing producing that has brought out the best in you. Which do you enjoy most?
Honestly,
I love acting and I am kind of missing it lately. But I have been in
the industry since the early 80s. I started with Enu Orofo. I actually
started as a stage person. It became imperative to build on the
experience I had garnered over the years. I had been producing one man
show across universities in Nigeria a long time ago. What you are seeing
now had started way back, but it is getting more attention now, because
everybody now appreciates what we do.
What is happening to the music aspect of your life?
Entertainment
is general. Eddy Murphy sings, Will Smith sings and his son also. Late
Hubert Ogunde and Isho Pepper sang. If you cannot learn like this,
forget it. I will still go back into music very soon, but, for now, I am
focusing more on movie production.
Some people believe that you should not have ventured into music in the first place...
(Cuts
in)... I have learned not to react to what people say. People could be
mischievous sometimes when they want to make you look stupid by dragging
you into mundane issues. If music was not good for me, I would not have
ventured into it in the first place.
Why do you think Yoruba movie producers don’t pay actors well enough, compared to their counterparts in the English sector?
It
is not peculiar to Nigeria alone, it happens even outside the country.
The solution is simple, if you cannot meet up with my fee, then it is
not necessary I appear in your movie. I have decided now that if you
don’t have a big money, don’t call me to your production, I won’t come.
At
46, you should be getting tired of staying single. You once said that
you don’t plan to quit bachelorhood then, are you planning to remarry
now?
I don’t want to talk about my marital life, for now. I
would really love to talk about my job because that’s what I am
particular about as far as I’m concerned. I am enjoying bachelorhood
more now because it gives me enough time to think deeply on how I can
better the lot of those who are looking up to me. I also want to
concentrate on my new movies. I have a girlfriend that I love and
respect so much, but I would like to keep it like that for now.
Is your girlfriend also in the movie industry?
There you go again. I don’t want to drag her into this interview.
Are you scared to talk about her because your former girl
friend, Funke Adesiyan, was an actress and the relationship ended on a
sad note?
Some issues are better kept undisclosed, so that
you don’t raise another dust that would take many months to settle. As
you can see, I am doing fine. I don’t want to talk on who was that or
when did that happen and to who.
So Fathia Balogun’s chapter has been closed in your life?
I
knew you were heading for that question when you started playing around
with your questions. Anyway, I love the way you have coined it, but the
fact is that I won’t talk about Fathia. I will just love to say no
comment, if I am permitted to use that sentence.
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