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When Nse Ikpe-Etim
played Omoze, fiery wife to a philandering husband (the usual suspect,
Ramsey Tokunbo Noah) in the 2008 Emem Isong hit, ‘Reloaded’, little did
she know that the character would fetch her instant fame. She
immediately struck a chord with viewers, especially the female folk,
who responded with empathy.

Not only is
‘Reloaded’ her most talked about movie to date, it earned her a
nomination for Best Actress in a Leading Role at the African Movie
Academy Awards (AMAA) a year later (Funke Akindele won the award, for
‘Jenifa’). After a 13-year hiatus from the scene, the leggy actress
bounced back with a sterling performance which, in her own words,
surpassed her expectations. “I had an opportunity to see the script
before anyone else, so I knew about the story line,” she says of
‘Reloaded’. “It was not the role I wanted, but when I was given [it], I
only prayed that the director (Isong) will not have my head because I
knew I was really rusty. I had not done anything in a while, but I
guess I delivered. Then I did ‘Guilty Pleasures’.”

The ambience of the
Swe Bar & Lounge on Lagos Island, where this impromptu interview
holds, is serene, with only pockets of people in some corners, yet the
Akwa-Ibom born actress does not go around unnoticed. As soon as she
steps in a few fans recognise her and then a male fan walks up to her,
hugs her, and says, “Oh, you are so beautiful!” Embarrassed, she
mutters “thank you.” At first glance, she does not come across as an
‘in your face’ actress, yet a conversation with her is a roller-coaster
ride, as her assertive nature and storytelling prowess kick in.

Daddy’s girl

As the first child
in a close-knit family of 6 children, the actress was at an early age
entrusted with the responsibility of looking after her younger ones. “I
learnt to read at an early age because my daddy would not let me read
what girls my age were reading, so I grew up really early. I started
reading Sidney Sheldon when I was about 11 or so. I had one doll; I
also had a dog and a canary. I grew up reading books much more than I
watched TV.”

As a child, she
knew she would end up in the arts but her banker-father, like many
Nigerian parents, would not hear anything of that because he wanted her
in the sciences. Ikpe-Etim was a step closer to reading her dream
course – Theatre Arts – after her father’s death, but she still had one
more hurdle to cross: her mum, a teacher.

“My mum filled my
Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) form for Law but I tore
it up, went to my dad’s friend, and begged him for money (told him I
didn’t have money to buy JAMB form). I bought the JAMB form, and then I
filled in Theatre Arts (laughs). Mum found out a year later; I was
already studying Theatre Arts at the University of Calabar (UNICAL).
There was nothing she could do, but she has been supportive.”

Nse enters Nollywood

As one of the few
actresses who starred in the early Nollywood flicks, Ikpe-Etim’s foray
into movies began in 1995 upon graduation from the university, when she
appeared in ‘Venom of Justice’ as an extra. She was then cast in ‘The
Scars of Womanhood’ – as an extra, but as a friend to the lead actress,
Kate Henshaw. Ikpe-Etim later featured in other movies, including
‘Rampage’ and ‘Inheritance’, before she left the scene in search of
bigger challenges.

The search

As a self-confessed
perfectionist, the actress has spent her life searching for greener
pastures in various disciplines. She tried her hands out at banking but
left because, “It was a bit too much and stifling for me, and I
couldn’t handle it. I was in banking for three and half years; in two
banks.” A love for fashion then led her into the fashion industry “as a
back end.” “I sewed lots of things, clothed men for a while, and worked
for an establishment as their brand and marketing director, and then I
left.” With a childhood love for cooking, Ikpe-Etim turned her culinary
expertise into an income generating business, launching a catering
outfit in Abuja.

Now back in the
Nollywood fold, she’s convinced this is where she belongs. “I came back
to the industry two years ago because I think I had tried everything
and found out that my heart and soul lay here in Nollywood. After
‘Reloaded,’ I discovered that I should come back to Nollywood. I was
literally forced to do the role by Emem Isong, so I did it. She was
like ‘you want me to call someone else from Lagos when you are here in
Abuja? (the movie was shot in the Federal Capital Territory). It’s up
your street…’ So I did it.”

Steamy roles

During her active
years, Eucharia Anunobi was dubbed Nigeria’s Sharon Stone on account of
her steamy roles. These days, she seems to have found a match in Nse
Ikpe-Etim who fills such roles convincingly. Laughing, she recalls her
infamous swimming pool and parlour romance scenes with Ghanaian actor,
Majid Michael, in ‘Guilty Pleasures.’

“I believe that as
an actor one must realise that you need to get into characterization
properly. I decided that I have to steal from different styles of
acting, so I stole a bit of Stanislavski and so I just go into it with
situations and emotions within me, and bring them out and I used them
for my scenes. It only gets difficult to interprete if you put them
into your mind and say: “my society”. So, as an actor, I have to give
my best.”

Thoroughbred

Nse seems to be
living out her childhood love for acting these days, with a high regard
for Italian movie legend, Sophia Loren (the first actress to win an
Academy Award for a non-English-speaking performance). She would stop
at nothing to reach the zenith of her career. For budding actresses who
wish to play her in real life, she has some tips: “You would have to
live with me because I am not the girl next door. Sometimes, I am
called a ladette.”

Not every script
tickles her fancy, and she says she wouldn’t jeopardise her good name
and professionalism for anything in the world. “I don’t feature in just
any movie. I look at the construction of the script, I liaise with the
director on how he wants the story to be interpreted, and then if I am
in tune with the story, I give it a shot.”

The stage will
always be the first love for Nse Ikpe-Etim, born under the horoscope
sign of Libra. “There is no feeling like the stage because you feel
like a demigod, and you so can’t afford to make a mistake. If you do
make a mistake, better make it look as though you are acting. In a
film, you can just swing it because the director can say: cut.”

Lesson learnt

The actress says
she has learnt from the school of life which, according to her, is the
best place to gain knowledge. As this interview comes to a close she
shares with me the greatest thing she has learnt as an actress. “I have
learnt to accept my mistakes, accept me for me, live with my mistakes,
and just move on with the times.”