Veteran Nollywood actor and filmmaker, Jide Kosoko has shared his thoughts about incessant allegations of sexual harassment in the Nigerian movie industry.
The actor in a recent chat with Punch, published on Sunday, July 14, 2019, said he hasn’t really noticed sexual harassment cases in the industry.
The veteran, however said that any young actress that “gatecrashes” into the industry and lobbies for roles to get famous without passing through the normal training would be harassed.
He further explained;
“That is a normal situation in any industry. You tend to see people trying to fight their way up by hook or crook. However, I have not really noticed sexual harassment in the industry. Yes, I have seen artistes dating one another; but harassment is another issue. I always tell the young girls in the industry that if you gatecrash, they will harass you. If you want to lobby yourself and sell your body to become famous without passing through the normal training, things like that will happen to you.
If you are a trained actor (male or female), nobody can harass you because you would know your rights, and have some good qualities. Good producers and directors would rather go for talented individuals that can interpret roles properly. It is only ‘mad’ and unprofessional directors that would do otherwise”.
With the level of respect the actor possesses, it only right if we look into his words and try to direct our young stars, who want the “Wanna be” lifestyle by force.
With several reports from so many people complaining about being harassed, with will make sense if they learn to follow the process, step by step.
