Igba N Bajo: Revisiting Nigeria’s widowhood practices

Lead actress, Bukky Wright and Akin
Lewis in the movie

Remdel Optimum Communication (ROCOM), is set to release a new home video that highlights pain widows unleash on family members of their deceased husbands.

ONE of the country’s leading entertainment companies, Remdel Optimum Communication, producers of the phenomenal Afonja, Owo Eje, Bashorun Gaa and other movies will soon release a new movie with a radical view on widows and widowhood practice in Nigeria.

Shot with about N4 million in Akure, Ondo State and entitled Igba N Bajo, the film features top Nollywood artistes and upcoming ones like Bukky Wright, Akin Lewis, Ayo Mogaji, Adebayo Faleti and Ganiyat Ogundele.

And although widows’ plight has dominated themes of Nigerian movies in recent times, ROCOM’s Igba N Bajo takes a look at the other side of widowhood. It depicts the pains widows unleash on dependants and bereaved family members. Igba N Bajo set in modern Nigeria is the story of Wuraola (Bukky Wright), whose husband, Wale (Taiwo Adeyemi), a successful businessman and breadwinner of his family dies intestate. The death leaves many shattered and hopeless.

His siblings, including several dependants and his aged mother are full of hopes that his bereaved wife would continue to cater for their needs from his vast estate. But Wuraola on the prompting of Ofinga (Akin Lewis), her lawyer thinks otherwise. He believes Wuraola should jealously protect her late husband’s estate and shun all entreaties from her in-laws for assistance. Tension heightens, conflicts rage and Wuraola seeks for redress in the court of law following threats by her late husband’s siblings-Adio (Gbemisola Adeoti) and Dola (Ganiyat Ogundele).

Igba N Bajo brings to fore the raging conflict between cultural values and modernity as represented by the principles of common law, which states that in the absence of a will (intestate), the estate of the deceased belongs to the children, who in cases they are under aged, would be administered by their mother. This practice sharply contrasts with African family values which do not discriminate between nuclear and extended family.

The movie, unlike scores of its ilk on widows that have drawn sympathy for widows would elicit pathos for bereaved family members and dependants who suffer rejection from heartless widows who though may win in the court of law but lose in the public court.

Igba N Bajo, written by renowned author, Prof. Akinwunmi Isola (MON), screen played by Ade Adeniji with contributions from Biodun Ibitola and Tunji Bamishigbin who directed the movie, also parades an array of tested and reliable role interpreters. The producer, Biodun Ibitola draws a league of veteran actors including Prof. Akinwunmi Isola and Alagba Adebayo Faleti who narrates the story. The robust cast includes other veteransTubosun Odunsi, Kareem Adepoju, Ayo Mogaji of Feyikogbon fame and Kola Oyewo. The presence of veteran actresses, Biodun Duro-Ladipo, popularly known as Oya and ageless Margaret Adejobi of Kootu Asipa fame would ad a notch up for Igba N Bajo.

Why Emeka Mba may not succeed as NFVCB boss

EMEKA Mba, Director General of the National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB), has his destiny in his own hand. He has everything that could make him a Nuhu Ribadu or Professor Dora Akunyili at his present assignment. The Nigerian movie industry as is obviously is booming and if well managed could bring millions of dollars to the nation’s economy as well as stakeholder’s pockets. Movie People was at a popular rendezvous in Lagos last week where happenings in the Nigerian movie industry took the centre-stage.

At the gathering comprising professionals in the industry it was argued and agreed that the Censors Board is part of the bane of the Nigerian movie industry. They argued that the NFVCB, during an event held last year February asked marketers to come and register with it with N500, 000 renewable every two years. They equally agreed that those at the helms of affairs at the board are not professionals who couldn’t differentiate a television camera from a video camera.

“When you have wrong professionals in a field you don’t expect good result. It is only when round pegs are identified and put where they belong that we can have a viable movie industry” said one of the veteran actors at the joint. “If Emeka has done anything to improve this industry, let him come out and tell us. He’s not a professional and doesn’t know anything about movies. Ribadu succeeded in EFCC because he’s a policeman, both Charles Soludo, the CBN Governor and Dora Akunyili also made a difference in their parastatals because they are professionals, let the government also put a professional at the helm of affairs and see if the situation won’t change”, enthused another prominent actor.