Marriage is not on my list for now –Damilare Kuku

Budding actress, Damilare Kuku, tells Saturday Beats about her career and love life

Why did you choose to study Theatre Arts in school?

That’s something I have always wanted to do for a very long time. The first time I knew I wanted to become an actress was when I saw the movie, Sound of Music. I was about seven years old and after watching that movie, I decided immediately that I wanted to become an actress. Luckily for me, I don’t have a mother that puts me in a box. When I decided to study Theatre Arts, my mother called my uncle, a lawyer and lecturer in the University of Lagos, for his opinion. My uncle later called me and asked if I knew what I was getting myself into. He told me about the ups and downs of the profession and advise me to think deeply before making any commitment. After we had the pep talk, everything went well. I think the people I really disappointed were my teachers because they always thought I was going to be a doctor.

Why did they believe you would become a doctor in life?

In school, I was a very brilliant child. I was not comfortable with failure because I knew how much money my parents were pumping into my education.

When you chose to become an actress, was your mother not sceptical?

The funny thing is that my mother is very supportive of my career. All she told me was that I should make sure that I get focused and put my energy towards anything I decided to become in life. My dad was also supportive but I think he had imagined that I would become a doctor in life.

How true is it that young actresses are usually exposed to a lot of vices while working?

I would not say actresses, it is girls in general. I remember some weeks back when I went to discuss some of my projects with somebody and I noticed that half of the time, he was not even listening to me. He was distracted because I am a girl. The industry allows you to make your choice. If you want to be crazy, it is fine but if you want to be a good girl, you can also have your way. I work with some people who are flirts and could be promiscuous but they don’t bring such traits on set. If you want to hang out with them after work, then it is up to you. Nobody would force you to do what you don’t want to do.

So, have you ever been sexually harassed in the course of doing your work?

No, it has never happened to me. I work with MNET, Ebony Life and other organisations and the people I work with are very decent people. They are people who value the arts and your merits are based on your work. They respect you because of the work that you do.

What prompted you to be producing series drama?

I just wanted to become an actress but my mother sat me down and told me that I had to own a production company because as I get bigger, I could produce my own creations and control what happened to them. When I was in my second year in the university, my mother and I co-founded a production company called Red Lips Production. I think my mother just saw the future and felt I needed a background that would help me to be able to make more money as an actress.

We learnt that your drama series, The Odds, can only be viewed on YouTube. Are you aware that there are no financial gains from that move?

I am not doing it to gain anything. I am doing the series to sensitise people and to also showcase my work. I am a young film maker, it is something I am going to be doing for a long while and it can only get better. My aim is to preach about therapy and its usefulness in the society. I feel lots of things are not right with the society we live in but all we do is just to talk about them. A lot of people are angry. What I did was to pick some situations and have them go to therapy just to suggest to the society that therapy is a way out. I think it is time for us to work on making ourselves better.

What is Kakadu The Musical about?

I am an actress in the musical drama genre. It is a theatre production that we started about three years ago. I play the character of a girl named Bisi. The storyline is centred on the civil war. We were at the world economic forum last January.

We learnt that after you produced Efunsetan Aniwura in the university, Professor Akinwunmi Ishola was so impressed he gave you two other scripts to work on. How true is that?

Yes he did. He gave me Oleku, which is a classic, and told me to make it into any kind of adaptation that I like. He also gave me the script of ‘A Play About Lagos.’ Nobody has done A Play About Lagos but I would eventually do it because these are projects I have to work on. If someone of the professor’s repute, a renowned writer, should give you two scripts to work on, you have to take them and begin work as soon as possible.

Did you know him before you directed his play in school?

No I did not. There was a play that I was featured in, Ireke Onibudo, and that was where we met. He met me on stage as an actress and I went to meet him that I loved his work and that I was also a director. He said that no problem I could have it and that I was young so he would love to see what I could do with the script. He did not know me from anywhere and he was so nice to me. I did not pay a dime for the scripts. He is one of the people that inspire me.

How is it running a company with your mother?

It is not easy and we fight virtually every day. We often have different views on issues but we work through them and settle them amicably. I know people often advise against doing business with family but when I am working with my mother, she does not see me as a family member. She sees me as a colleague who has to get things done. We try to work things out, sometimes we might not talk for a week but the job gets done.

How do you have time for your lover?

I am single by choice. Nobody is happy about that in my house because they wish I could just get married and move on with my life. Aside from not being in a relationship, I think my personal life is fine.

Why did you decide to be single even when you know your family wants it otherwise?

Boys are a huge distraction. Once you get into a relationship, you would have to sacrifice at least 30 per cent of your dreams to make that relationship work. If I get married today, I cannot be everywhere. I have to be a mother and a wife. Until I get to that stage in my life when I know that I can sacrifice 30 per cent of my life into another person’s life, I think I would remain like this. Marriage is not on the card for me right now.