I Don’t Believe I’m D Most Beautiful: Popular Yoruba Actress Ayomide Reveals

We have seen the likes of Bukky Wright, Biodun Okeowo, Temitope Osoba to know the Yoruba sector of Nollywood is blessed with some beautiful women. Gone are the days of the drab characters with only stories to tell, now the Yoruba screen is populated by beautiful girls, who would have you glued to your seats for more than just the juicy stories. Ayomide Dawodu, from Ikorodu would not beat her chest that she is the most beautiful girl in Yoruba films but if the eyes could truly see, she is more than a sight to behold. Pictures don’t lie, so they say. Hear her story and meet the girl that may very well be the Marilyn Monroe of our time. Tell me how your journey into acting began? I have been into acting for over four years now, although it’s been off and on because of my education. Now that I am done with my schooling, I am back full time. I just finished school last year. I started acting at Abeokuta. In fact I just saw an advert for audition and I decided to try my luck and everything went well for me. That was how I started acting but because of the distance from Lagos I had to stop going to Abeokuta. I later joined them in Lagos after a year of going to Abeokuta. Through which group or caucus did you establish yourself and why? When I got to Abeokuta I was asked to join a group and I did. That was Segun Ogungbe’s group. But like I said earlier I had to quit because of the distance and came back to Lagos. But I am currently not under any group. But they say you can’t be getting jobs if you are not under any group?When I got to Abeokuta I was asked to join a group and I did. That was Segun Ogungbe’s group.
But like I said earlier I had to quit because of the distance and came back to Lagos. But I am currently not under any group. Yes, so they told me when I started but it seems things are a little different now. I work with different groups but for you to be fully recognised you have to start producing your own films. So, you survived by producing your own movies? No, I haven’t produced any movie but I move with the right people. I am still an upcoming actress. That was why I used the phrase ‘fully recognised ‘ Is it true that Yoruba movies don’t pay very well because you feature in most films on the basis of paddy paddy? Yes, sometimes you don’t get paid for jobs because it involves a friend you are trying to help. At times you may have a friend shooting a film without support from marketers or other sources and because of your relationship you have to do it as a freebie. One good turn deserves another and this rings true in the industry. The problem sometimes is, after spending your money you might end up not finding a marketer that will buy it at a good price. Since you started acting, how much would you say your life has changed and why? So much has changed. People now sometimes recognise me when I go out. Sometimes, people smile and wave at me because they probably have seen a movie I featured. But now, it’s not easy going out like I used to like a girl next door because you never know who is looking at you. Has it affected your relationship with your boyfriend? No, it hasn’t How did your boy friend react when he learnt about your taking up acting as a career? He didn’t discourage me he only gave some words of advice Like? He told me to stay focused and put God first. He also advised that I should not get carried away with the glitz and glamour of the industry. What are the most popular films you have done? Alakada 2 , Aja, Aroba, Ife Oju, Olarotimi, Tani Were, to mention a few There is so much dating going on in the Yoruba industry, haven’t you been tempted to date a fellow actor? No, I haven’t and I can’t date an actor. Besides, dating a colleague is not only peculiar to the movie industry it happens everywhere. Anywhere you have women and men working together such is bound to be common but it is a matter of choice. As a beautiful woman, how often do you have to fight off men? I know what I do to keep them away. I don’t want to say how but I give funny attitudes to discourage them. As an upcoming actress, have you ever got embarassed or clueless on set? That was when I started acting. There was a day on set I was asked to cry and the tears would not come. My God, it was disconcerting. The director was so mad that he started insulting me, in the presence of all other people on set that day. I later managed to cry, probably more from the embarrassment than from any other thing. How perfectly can you deliver a sensual role; like kissing, smooching and even making love on set? I have limitations to the roles I accept. I can’t go nude on set but as for smooching and kissing, I can but there is a limit to it. Have you ever had problems delivering a particular role? That was a traditional movie ‘Korikoto’ by Adebayo Tijani in 2010 where I played the role of one of the Kori girls. In the film I was required to speak real dialectical Yoruba language and not the conventional Yoruba we speak everyday here in Lagos. At first I found it very difficult because it was my first traditional movie but afterward, with the help of the script I overcame it. Would you say the pay is good in the Yoruba industry and how often do you get paid for your roles? If not for the paddy paddy jobs the pay is good. Some call you for jobs and all you get paid for is your feeding allowance and accommodation. But on the whole, the pay is fairly good but as an upcoming actress I don’t have a fixed fee. Has it ever occurred to you or has anyone mentioned to you that you may be the most beautiful girl in Yoruba sector? No, it has never occurred to me but my colleagues sometimes do make me feel I am beautiful. But personally, it has never occurred to me.