Fast-rising Yoruba actress, Empress Anu Sosanya
would describe herself as a simple person but one
with everything but a simple dream. Her dream is to
be one of the biggest stars there is, and she appears
good on her way, as she already has a number of
good movies to her credit. In this chat, she talks
about her career, love and the industry.
My growing up was awesome, but at the same time,
rough. I lived with my mother who had to cater for
her eight children. We went through thick and thin
then, but I thank God that today, the story has
changed. My siblings and I are doing well in our
various fields.
Did your mother okay your going into acting?
Convincing my family took a lot of effort. It was only
my sister who bought into my dream from the
beginning. I had to organise a family conference to
plead my case. My mother insisted I had to go to a
tertiary school before I would be allowed to act. I
studied marketing at the Lagos State University.
Surprisingly, we have marketers too in film
production. So it all works together, I don’t feel bad
about it all.
What went wrong between your parents?
It’s their issue because I was still a baby then.
Didn’t you bother to ask questions?
We grew up living like that. Though, we spent
sometime with him which I’d say wasn’t fun at all. We
always had to come back to my mother.
Did your father re-marry?
It is not as though he married another woman, my
dad is a flirt. Even as an old man, he is still fresh and
cute. He gets women at his beck and call.
At what point did you miss the “father” figure in your
life?
I missed him as a child especially during parents -
teachers meeting in my school. I saw my mates with
their mum and dad having fun. And due to the nature
of my mum’s job, she wasn’t always available. The
pressure was too much on my mum, though she
never made us feel my dad’s absence. I love her for
that. I don’t wish my daughter such an experience.
How did you get the name ‘Empress’?
It was through a friend who encouraged me. We
became friends after he saw my first production. One
day, he called me and told me “You are an Empress
and don’t let people oppress you, build an empire
each time”. So my first BBM name was Empress Anu
Sosanya and since then, the name stuck.
What’s your view about the industry?
We are not there yet because I see a lot missing. I
hardly watch Nollywood these days. I don’t want to
sound like I’m condemning our industry, but we have
to work more on our films. Our story-lines,
costumes, and our subtitles to mention a few, need
to be checked and corrected. I agree that piracy is
really killing the business, but we should not
compromise our standard because of that.
Will you agree that another factor responsible for
this is that our market is saturated?
I totally agree and that is because everybody wants to
be an actress and also a producer. And not all of us
went through training. We have many talents in
Nollywood who want to showcase their talents but
lack the opportunity. These people believe that
producing their own movie will showcase them, but
sometimes, they do poor quality movies due to lack
of funds.
How about one person producing, directing and
playing the lead role in a movie?
I don’t know much about that. I think that can be
linked to cutting cost. An actor might decide to direct
the movie instead of getting a director who will take
away a large percentage of his capital. This kills the
product itself. When a film lacks professional touch, it
collapses. We should learn to know and understand
our limits.
Are you married?
No, but I have a child.
How did it happen?
It just happened. So many people didn’t know I was
pregnant. People say it is not too good having a child
out of wedlock but I am a proud mother. I love my
daughter to a fault. I am not encouraging people to
have children out of wedlock though.
This seems to be a trend in Nollywood, what’s your
opinion?
I don’t know about that, but I won’t have a baby
simply because my colleagues have theirs out of
wedlock. I do whatever pleases me and at my own
convenience.
Have you ever been turned on while doing a movie
role?
I am yet to meet that actor who will arouse me on
set. I don’t get turned on easily. In fact when that
happens, I will call for a press conference.
What turns you on?
I have not met that kind of man. It has to be natural,
genuine, and delivered with ease.
How’s your sex life ?
Sex is communication, it is passing a message to one’s
partner. If I’m in a relationship, I know it is not right
to have sex outside marriage but I have to know and
understand the sexual ability of my future partner.
This is somebody I want to spend the rest of my life
with. Sex is fun.
When was the last time you had sex?
It’s been a long time but I am looking for that
relationship that will make me want to have sex
every second and every minute. For now, I want to
be very sure, I don’t want to have sex for the sake of
having sex. I need a person that will not make me
cry, take me for granted or let me down.
It seems you are heartbroken?
I am not. I am happy with what life has to offer.
The worst thing ever said or written about you?
It was when I shot my third production Edidi (The
bond). Mercy Aigbe and I acted as lesbians. It later
went viral that I was a lesbian. It didn’t really get to
me because I know very well that we are not. I didn’t
even lift a finger because of the story. I just let it go.
Have you had any reason to reject scripts?
Yes I have. Some script lack professionalism and
being part of such film will only belittle me.
What is new on your plate?
I have a new film titled “Oluwere” which will soon hit
the market. It is about a young lady whose father was
too busy to have time for her, but only provides her
money. Find out more when you watch the movie.
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