I wasn’t happy until I became an actress –Tamara Eteimo

Tamara Eteimo, one of Nollywood’s hottest actresses, and former winner, The Next Movie Star, tells OSEYIZA OOGBODO BLOG how she got into acting. Why did you become an actress? Well, being an actress for me has always been on my mind as a kid. It started from when I was in secondary school. I performed in all the social activities up until I finished and started getting ready for university. I always saw myself as an entertainer, someone who can mimic because I know I’m good at that, mimicking. I just needed to equip my skills and that was one of the reasons why I went to the University of Port Harcourt to study Theatre Arts. How did your family react when they knew you wanted to act? Well, my dad, at first, he wasn’t receptive because he didn’t like it. He just felt actors are wayward people. When I said I wanted to study Theatre Arts, he didn’t like it. He just felt these people (actors) are unserious people. You can’t really go there and be a serious student. So, I told him, “Just give me one year to go and do a programme. If I don’t come out with flying colours and I’m distracted, then I would pick any course of your choice.” And he agreed, of course, after my siblings talked me into going to University of Port Harcourt. So, I went and did the Certificate in Theatre Arts programme. And I came out with a distinction. My dad was so impressed and my mum was also impressed and they got me a car. So, from that moment, they supported me all the way till this moment. Tell us your most challenging role so far. One thing I know for sure is that every role comes with its own challenges. So, I can’t specifically say this is the most challenging because one thing I do is after I accept a script to play a particular role, I try as much as possible to do a research on that character because it’s taking someone else’s life entirely. So, I need to do a research to be able to portray it as believable as possible because this is entirely different from mine. You came into the limelight after winning The Next Movie Star. How did winning it affect your career? Well, winning The Next Movie Star, for me, was the moment my career started. Before it, I was singing in Port Harcourt. I almost finished an album but I wasn’t happy because I’ve known that acting has been my calling from day one. But I just wanted to do something because I know I can sing, I can dance. Rather than just sitting and doing nothing, waiting for manna to fall from heaven or waiting for one producer to just dial my number from nowhere and say, ‘I have a role for you,’ why don’t I use other of my skills while waiting?’ So, my late elder brother, he was a producer. He was the one who produced my first single and it came out very well. And the audience in Port Harcourt liked it. I just felt why don’t I go ahead with this? And I was making money from it. I performed in shows like Crack Ya Ribs in 2009, CARNIRIV 2009, and some other shows held in Port Harcourt. I was making money and people knew me as a musician. But I had always wanted to come into the industry but I didn’t just want to go for auditions and shoot a movie. And they say this girl has talent in acting. No. I was looking for a platform, something that would help me get into the industry. And then the Next Movie Star opportunity came. And I just told myself, ‘this is it.’ You’re a beautiful woman and many male admirers and fans would badger you. How do you handle such attention? Well, what I do is, most times, when these guys come up to me or send me messages, they request for my number. And, of course, I know what these guys want and I know what I want. So, I don’t give them my contact. What I do is, if they want to know about my next production and stuff like that, it’s either I refer them to my fan page because there, it has all the information they need. Or I just engage them. But I don’t have to go in a way that would misinterpret, giving them a wrong impression. So, I try as much as possible to handle them the way I can because you and I know that these guys would keep coming.