Genevieve Nnaji’s belated celebrations for her 40th birthday last week would be remembered for one viral photo – a reunion of actresses like Omotola Jalade- Ekeinde, Stephanie Okereke Linus, Ini Edo, Rita Dominic and Uche Jumbo – creating a nostalgia-inducing portrait of their younger, amateurish selves in Nollywood. Cheap wigs, braids, thin eyebrows, small purses, and a lot of gauzy clothes.
At first look, I thought someone had unearthed an old photo of them and posted it online for clout. The re-creation was quite flawless, and the comments trailing the photo have revolved around the agelessness of Jalade-Ekeinde and Nnaji. My favourite reaction has been: Are they vampires!? Black Don’t Crack! Dominic is the oldest group at forty-three, Jombo is the youngest at thirty-nine. Together, the viral photo harkened back to old-era Nollywood. With more usage of old Nollywood movies as memes, there’s been a deepening appreciation of the actors of that time, and who are still making appearances in today’s movies.
As for how Nnaji and her colleagues still look young – much of it still boils to drinking seven glasses of water daily. OK, joking! I don’t know really. Perhaps minding your own business? Fairly sure Nnaji has her skincare routine, as does Dominic and Jalade-Ekeinde. That said, don’t be disappointed if you ask them and you are told drink seven glasses of water a day.
When Bernard Dayo isn’t writing about pop culture, he’s watching horror movies and reading comics and trying to pretend his addiction to Netflix isn’t a serious condition.
Leave a reply