Tried as much as she could to escape the hands of providence, actress, and fashion enthusiast Ini Dima-Okojie would eventually find herself in the acting world, where she is making waves with her peerless interpretation of roles, writes Vanessa Obioha
“If it’s meant to be, it’s meant to be.” That’s the popular phrase of ‘Namaste Wahala,’ a Nollywood and Bollywood collaboration released on Netflix early this year and starred Ini Dima-Okojie. In a way, that phrase reflects Dima-Okojie’s acting career.
The young actress who started as a production assistant on the set of ‘Before 30’ before clinching a role in the TV series ‘Taste of Love’ ignored her true calling in the make-believe world for most of her younger life. It is not necessarily because the passion didn’t burn glowingly inside of her. In fact, there are moments of her childhood where she would escape to an imaginary world, creating a story universe for characters in her head.
To re-enact this in real life requires Dima-Okojie to outgrow her diffidence. Often, she prayed silently to be as outspoken as her sister Ivie who was at that age, in the spotlight as one of the characters in the defunct kids’ programme ‘Children of the World.’ Both sisters share a strong sibling bond which is evident on their Instagram pages. They also have a striking semblance.
By the time she got into the university, her confidence was boosted but not high enough to pursue an acting career. Despite efforts to channel her career into investment banking after studying International Relations at Covenant University, Dima-Okojie could not resist the steady hands of providence. It was only a matter of time before she joined the movie world and is considered one of the leading actresses in the industry today.
“Every fibre of my being tried to run away from it (acting),” she said in a recent meeting. I used to be a very shy kid. I love fashion, and I found ways to express myself through that a lot. But it is a different love when I watch films. Whenever I watch films or TV shows I love, it takes me to a place where I want to be able to do the same thing and make people feel the way I do. I always wanted to act. Eventually, when I couldn’t get over the feeling, I had to do it. I was even surprised, and sometimes I asked myself if this was really my path. So I guess it turned to reality and was meant to be.”
Now in her sixth year as a screen actor, Dima-Okojie betrayed no hint of shyness. Known for her impressive fashion style, the actress donned a long black gown with stripy balloon sleeves. Her hands were likewise adorned with fashionable rings and bracelets. She wore a face shield in adherence to the COVID-19 health guidelinesWhen she began to speak, her words sometimes flowed in torrents; other times, they were punctuated by sighs as if weighing their implications. For instance, when asked if there was any belief about Nollywood she had before joining the industry and now found to be false today, she took a long pause before responding.
“It all looked easy from afar. You don’t really know how much work actors put in to elicit the kind of reaction they get from fans. I know we have a long way to go, but I have so much appreciation for filmmakers, particularly when making films in an environment that is not necessarily structured in ways that make the process easy. You just have to give kudos to people that are able to invest in the industry and work day in, day out to make the films possible.”
Her gait, in a way, reflected the meaning of her name Inibokun which she shortened during her university days because many mispronounced it. The meaning of the name, she said, is like a story.
“It’s the name of a unique bird. This bird is supposed to be beautiful and stunning. Whenever she comes to the river bank, the other birds make way for her to perform. So it means to be graceful,” she explained dramatically.
She recalled how many mistook her for the Nollywood actress Ini Edo when she first joined the industry. “It happened a lot. When I introduced myself as Ini, the response I often got was ‘abadie,’ which means ‘how are you’ in Ibibio, and I’m lost. I have to explain that this Ini is from Edo state,” she said amusingly.
Those days are way behind her now. Mention her name, and people would easily recall her characters in different web, TV, and film productions. In the successful drama series ‘Battleground’, she is remembered as Teniola Bhadmus. In ‘North East,’ she is known as Hadiza Ahmed, who despite her father’s objection to her love interest Emeka played by OC Ukeje, due to their religious and cultural differences, eventually married him. The actress insisted on learning Hausa from the locals even though it was not required of her to portray the character.
In ‘Oga! Pastor,’ the short-lived web series by Ndani TV, Dima-Okojie played a challenging character Olaitan Geshinde whose husband, a clergyman, turned out to be a philanderer.
“I had never experienced what I experienced with my character in ‘Oga! Pastor’,” she said of her character. “The character was going through a lot, and for me to play her truthfully, I really needed to break myself down emotionally, mentally, and there was almost the moment where I didn’t even realise what I was capable of.
“I didn’t realise that there are moments when you lose yourself. The situation feels too real. The first time I had a glimpse of that was in ‘Battleground’ when my character Teniola lost her baby. I truly felt like I’d lost the baby. Even when the director yelled ‘stop,’ I was still crying. It was Aunty Shaffy Bello that consoled me. But for Olaitan, that feeling lasted a whole month.”
However, for her character Didi in ‘Namaste Wahala,’ the cross-cultural rom-com directed by Indian filmmaker Hamisha Daryani Ahuja, the Edo state-born actress didn’t expect the feedback she received from the audience.
“I knew that people would appreciate the underlying topics in the film, such as the fight against gender-based violence and women empowerment. What I didn’t expect was the global attention. I didn’t expect people to relate to it so much. It apparently resonated with so many people because I got messages from all over the world. Spain, China, Britain,” she said.
The film was originally slated for a cinematic release last year before the pandemic, but it gained a global audience with Netflix’s enormous reach. Dima-Okojie sees this as a good thing for the Nigerian film industry. To prepare for her character, the actress researched the culture of the Asian country and was amazed by the similarities in family values between the country and Nigeria. She initially auditioned for her character’s friend Angie (Anee Icha) but was asked to play the lead role on the spot.
Her outstanding performance fetched her the role, although she confessed that she spent hours on YouTube learning the Indian dance moves. The film allowed her to star alongside Richard Mofe-Damijo, described as one of her screen idols.
Another character that broke her down is ‘The Wait,’ her latest flick that saw her performing alongside one of her favourite actresses Nse Ikpe-Etim. She played a young wife who’s been married for 10 years and unable to conceive.
“You can imagine the pressure from her family. She didn’t want to adopt either.”
She described the set of the film as special due to the way the cast interpreted their roles and the emotional appeal of the storyline.
“I cried during the premiere. I cried again during the first screening to an extent that I begin to wonder why I’m crying over a film I starred in. It was so emotional and addresses the topics that we need to talk about in our films. Just seeing the reaction of the audience made me grateful that I was able to get myself to play that character as truthfully as possible. It’s another character that took a lot from me, but it was absolutely worth it to tell that story.”
Such stories, she said, need to be told by Nollywood so that people can easily relate and share their experiences.
“I think it’s important that filmmakers are confident in the story they want to tell instead of worrying about audience reactions or box-office successes.”
Dima-Okojie also had a story to tell, which she shared with her fans last year. Having been diagnosed with fibroids in 2017, she was advised to go for surgery last year. The actress took a bold step to share her journey with her fans on social media. Quite a few criticised her for exposing her private life to the world, but for the actress, it was more of getting the conversation going about the disease which affects more than 100,000 women in Nigeria today.
“I felt vulnerable sharing that part of my life, but I believed it was necessary to do so,” she said. “You know social media is a place where we always put our best foot forward, sharing happy moments. I wanted fans to also see this part of me and help those who are going through similar situations. My parents spoke to me about it when I was first diagnosed, but there’s a difference when you are experiencing it and being able to speak to someone that is also experiencing it and understands you.
“Eight out of every 10 women must be suffering from fibroids, but they are not speaking about it. I felt so alone, and I needed to put it out there so that people can be sensitive in the way they address women who unknowingly may be going through such issues. There is so much negativity and preconceived notions about fibroids.”
At the moment, she is living healthy and taking each step at a time, and fulfilling her long-time dream to be an actress.
“There are many ways we can try and orchestrate how we go things through life. We can put down rules and plan for the next five or 10 years, but it all boils down to destiny. I’m a Christian, and I believe in destiny. I believe that you can’t sit idly and expect destiny to happen. You must work towards it, but there’s a level of destiny that you cannot orchestrate on your own. If it’s meant to be, it’s meant to be.”
