Ronke Oshodi Oke is a talented actress that has moved across different genre of acting. She has the appendage Oke attached to her name because of her natural endowment in the front which she says is nobody’s business if she flaunts it. According to her, some people call her on phone asking her to name her prize that they want to touch her big boobs. She describes such call as disgusting pointing out that as a result of many embarrassing telephone calls, she stopped picking her calls personally. Ronke also talks about her new marriage status, her hubby Sylvester Anthony, her career as an actress, the gains and pains of fame:
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Why have you not been acting for sometime now?
Well, I will say it’s their prayers that have been sustaining me. Their prayer is that I should move ahead in life and it has now been answered. Throughout last year I wasn’t around. It was not as if I am boasting, last year I shuttled from London to America; I was in Atlanta Georgia, Huston Texas and California. I shot part of my movie in America Edemi (my Language) subtitled in English You traveled partly because of production? Yes, production, stage performances, award, and entertainment as a whole.
You’re a stage perfomer?
Yes.
Which major plays have you played in stage performances?
Rotile (flashback). I started my acting career with the stage production Ogun awo yaya in April 1997 and Oroshe in National Theatre. Most Yoruba actors have restricted themselves to Yoruba movies? Just few are doing English movies. Thank God you mentioned few. Anything one is doing in life, if its not encouraging or the people around there are not encouraging you, that person obviously will feel threatened, you won’t feel relaxed. Once you are not an Igbo person, you are not recognised in the English genre of movies. I call them the Igboish people. I am not referring to their directors but some of their producers. When I am saying producers, there are producers in Yoruba and English genre that are professionals they are not detribalised. But there are some of the marketers that came into the business because they felt they’ve made some money, because they saw others doing well, they now want to go into the business. If you are good like some of your Yoruba colleagues, the producers will always come for you no matter who you are? That’s what I am talking about. You mentioned Olu Jacobs, Joke Silva, Bimbo Akintola and others.
How many per cent of Yoruba actors and actresses do you think they have over there?
It’s not up to five percent. The people that are in English movies, its like God has forced them on the English producers, its like they don’t have a choice but to use them because if people don’t see them in home videos, people keep asking why is Omotola not there ? If she is not there or Joke Silva is not there we are not going to buy the movie. These producers at times don’t have a choice. So after my first stage production, I tried to cross to the English movies, I did a couple of movies, after a while they started saying maybe she is sleeping with one marketer or doing this. I just got pissed off and left.
How do you feel when you read some of these negative things about you?
Anita Hogan once said, if you’re coming into the industry come with extra shock absorber, because anything can happen. So if you are determined that in this industry I want to stay and succeed, you will, it might only take time How has married life changed Ronke? Well, it has been good, very good and interesting at least for the past two months, it’s been good, it’s been nice.
You enjoyed your honeymoon?
Yes, I enjoyed it. We had it here in Lagos and it was my choice. I don’t have to travel out before I enjoy myself. I’ve been going out of the country ever before I got married, so there is no big deal. I prefer to stay in my fathers land and do my honey moon.
Didn’t the fact that you are an actress deter him?
No. We’ve been together for the past ten years even before I had my baby, we have been together for long and he understands me.
What’s special about him?
So many things, because if I mention that this particular thing makes him special when that thing is not there again, it means he is no longer special. If I say maybe his behavior or his looks, if that thing is not there again, he will no longer be special. So everything about him is special to me.
Can you do anything for love?
Like what?
Like donating your kidney to somebody you love.
Hmm! me I dey love but my love is not blind. The eyes of my love are wide open. Well, for the kidney, I can’t say yes or no because I’ve not experienced it or had someone close to me. Maybe if it now happens, I can know what to do though and I don’t pray for such a thing.
What informs your style of dressing?
I just like looking good. The event determines the kind of clothes I wear but I just like looking good. Any ugly word a fan used on you? Yes, I want to use this opportunity to tell my fans that when people call me and I don’t pick my calls personally, it’s because of the way people talk on phone. Sometime ago, somebody called me and said Ronke please name your prize, I just want to touch your boobs, its disgusting. Ronke please name your prize I just want to touch your body. It’s annoying, it makes someone mad and that was why I decided not to pick my calls anymore. I allow somebody to pick it. The sweetest thing a male fan has said Some responsible men that appreciate women will call and say Ronke you are beautiful and a good actress. They will tell you a lot of good things What puts you off in a man? If a man doesn’t have respect for a woman. A man should respect a woman. Let’s leave stardom out of this; if you cannot respect me as a woman or respect a fellow woman, I will not respect you either. Some will see you and will say you are arrogant, maybe because of the roles you played in films. You don’t judge because you don’t know me. When I am on screen, I am Ronke Oshodi Oke, as I am now, I am Ronke Ojo. We are two different people but people put the two together.
There is rumour that you like flaunting your boobs?
God have mercy, I flaunt it because He has given it to me, and it’s a gift. I’ll use it to praise God and thank him. Of course I flaunt it. You have to flaunt what your mama gave you, that is it. Whatever they say about that, that’s their problem, it’s a gift from God, I will flaunt it. There are lots of guys, ladies out there that are using silicon, using money to do it, so if God has given it to me free of charge of course, I will flaunt it Doesn’t your husband get jealous? No, that was in the past before we broke up. Now he knows the kind of person I am. People said many things before, he listened to a lot of things and along the line, we broke up but now he has come to realise who I am.
You parted ways for a long time and still came back, what was the magic?
It’s God and destiny. You see when someone loves you; he will love everything about you. If someone loves you and he wants you to be happy, he will love whatever makes you happy.
What do you want God to change about you?
I get angry easily
What of your hubby?
That’s between me and God (general laughter)
The gift he gave you on valentine
Ah! he gave me so many things. I don’t want to tell the whole world because I wouldn’t want anybody to come and snatch him from me.
So he is precious to you
Yes, I call him precious because he is a precious thing. He is a gift from God
How many kids do you want to have?
As many as God wants it. On the average of six, I have one already
About yourself
I am Ronke Ojo and I am a kind person but I wouldn’t take nonsense from anybody. I respect people but I am not afraid of anybody.
Your family
I am from a family of six. My parents are Mr. and Mrs. Ojo. I have one younger sister. My husband’s name is Sylvester Anthony. I have two brothers and one sister
Any childhood experience?
My mother used to be a teacher before she became a petty trader. So whenever she keeps her money, I will go there and take it and she will start asking who took it and I will say I am the one that took it.
Your first time on stage
It wasn’t easy because I started with stage performance standing before a hundred and forty people that are actors. I joined them the third day after filling my form and getting the membership card. I was asked to come for rehearsals the third day and they picked me and said I should do something. Facing the crowd wasn’t easy. Secondly, it was my first time of facing camera. It was my first time on home video and it was like 15 takes before I could get the line and at the end of the day, I couldn’t act in that film but few months later I had a break and here I am.