I regret being a divorcee –
Monalisa Chinda
April 13, 2013 | 4:00 pm
Showtime People
BENJAMIN NJOKU
Two things are bound to
attract you to Monalisa Chinda
whenever you are privileged to
engage her in a conversation.
They are her frankness and
humility. These attributes
played out last week as
Showtime Celebrity took her
on a trip into her past, her
present and perhaps, her
future. For the first time, Lisa
bares her mind on a number of
issues bothering on her love
life, crashed marriage and
accomplishments. Chiefly, she
confirms that she has found
love again, not ruling out
however, the possibility of
giving marriage a second
chance. Enjoy!!!
Find love again
Do you still believe in
love ?
I believe in
love. Love is
the reason for
our existence.
It’s really not
enough if you
want to get
something
done, you
have to do
away with
that emotion
and be real.
Are you
religious?
I’m from a religious
background. I ‘m an Anglican
and all the moral teachings I
learnt while I was growing up
are still there till date. While I
was seven, I was a member of
my church choir . I attended
an Anglican school,
Archdeacon Memorial
Grammar School, it’s a
convent school. I’m quite
religious.
How did you feel when
your father was
murdered?
Every day that passes by, I
think of that man. God bless
his soul. He was the reason,
I’m doing what I am doing at
the moment. My late dad was a
philanthropist. He would give
out the last money in his
pocket to those who do not
have. I took after my Dad,
whereas my mum was a career
woman.
My dad ensured that his
children were well taken care
of, in all ramifications. He was
a good cook and he spent
greater part of his life in
Germany. As far as I’m
concerned, my dad was a
German. He was always in the
forefront of ensuring that his
children were well catered for.
But my mum was a career
woman before she retired.
We learnt that you are
planning to go into
marriage again. Is it true?
I would love to remarry. In
fact, I’m designed to be under
a man. I’m not going to lie that
I like this ‘single mother
nomenclature. But whereby
there is no one at the moment,
one is bound to get used to the
situation. It’s not a ‘do- or -die
affair’ because I have been
there before, anything I’m
going to do now,it has to be
done right.
I’m not in the school of
thought, where the first one
happened and perhaps, the
second one. No, any bold step
I have to take in settling down
again, it has to be right. I’m
not ready to make another
mistake. But I will definitely
remarry. I believe in the
principles of marriage.
Whether you like it or not,
marriage is a better option.
How soon are you
planning to settle down?
I honestly don’t know about
that, and I can’t tell for now.
Have you found love
again?
It’s neither here nor there. I’m
a lover and I love to love.
It was rumoured recently
that you have found love
again?
Is there anything wrong with
that? I just replied you that I
love to love. What else do you
want to know.
Your fans would want to
know if there is any man
in your life at the
moment?
Yes, there is a man in my life.
…Lanre Nzeribe right?
No comment. This is my
private life.
People are alleging that
you are pregnant for him?
You can see that I’m not
pregnant. Naturally, I’m not
pregnant for anybody.
What do you regret most
about your past?
One thing I regret most is the
fact that I am divorced. Where
I come from, I’m the first
daughter. I’m from a royal
family, it has never been on
record in my family that the
first daughter will walk out of
her matrimonial home. But it
was a matter of life and death,
otherwise, I would have
stayed back and make my
marriage work. I tried to make
it work, but it takes two people
to tango.
That’s the only thing I regret,
having to raise my child
without the father. It’s a bit
painful. But I have to live with
it. It’s better that way than to
expose my little daughter to all
sorts of domestic violence. It
will definitely disorient her and
affect her upbringing. She will
be dis-functional. God knows
the best. May be, I should
have been more careful.
Monalisa Chinda
With such shocking
experience, what would
you say life has taught
you?
I’ m a bit stronger and wiser
now than before. I have known
how not to get involved in
anything emotional again. If
you are emotional even in a
relationship, you don’t get to
think. One shouldn’t allow
her emotion to overrule her
sense of reasoning.
I have understood what it
means to be patient to
persevere and also, to be
careful with people around me.
If somebody around you is
your very good friend, you end
up finding that the person is
actually an enemy in disguise.
I have learnt all of that because
I have been alone. While my
marriage was intact, I was not
keeping friends. After I’m
through with my work, I
usually retire to my house. But
since I’m alone, and having to
mix up with a lot of people, I
have realised that I have to be
very careful and free-minded
and at the same time, be
myself.
In the midst of all these
challenges, what would
you say has kept you
going?
I’m a very strong woman, and
open-minded. I know who I
am. I’m a Godly person, but
I’m not a perfectionist. If I do
something wrong, I will always
find a way to show remorse
and repent of whatever sin I
might have committed. That
has kept me going. I’m highly
determined and focused. I do
not go by what people say
about me.
If your ex- comes back to
you today, will you accept
him again?
God forbid. He’s a closed
chapter in my life.
Does it mean your little
daughter is not missing
her father?
She doesn’t know her father .
She was barely a year when
our marriage crashed. I think
she will ask some day.
Share your experience
with us as a Glo
ambassador?
It has been rewarding for me.
Activities always come up here
and there, going around,
talking about the brand. Glo
has made a long lasting mark
in the country.
How do you describe
yourself?
I’m just the girl-next-door. I
don’t have many ears around
me, I try to be humble. I want
people to be able to reach out
to me. I’m not a difficult
person. I’m an easy-going lady.
You recently premiered
your latest movie,
Weekend Getway, What’s
the movie all about?
First of all, the
premiere was
successful. I
thank God for
that. A lot of
people turned out
to show their
support. The
movie was
produced by
myself ,Ini Edo
and Emem Isong.
It was directed by
Desmond Elliot.
It paraded A-list
actresses, both
young and old
ones in the industry. We had
to create a platform where up
and coming actors star
alongside seasoned actors
which made the film more
unique. The movie is already
selling out in the cinemas.
Between last Friday when it
was premiered and yesterday
( last week), we have made
substantial amount of money
from the box office alone. I
also acted in the movie.
What are your recent
movies?
Kiss &Tell which was produced
in 2010 but premiered in 2011.
My second movie, Cat Walk
was shot in 2010, but
premiered in February, 2012.
My third movie, Weekend
Getway, premiered forth-night
ago.
Why did you go into
production of movies?
Producing has always been at
the back of my mind as an
actress. In fact, I should speak
the minds of a lot of people
who are in the art. They want
to diversify and break new
grounds and to also show the
various things they can do.
Naturally, we all want to try
our hands in other things as
long as it’s within the genre
of entertainment. That’s the
reason I wanted to do
something different. Right
now, I’m even going into live
theatre which is already dying
in this country. Thespians like
myself and a few other people
are trying to revive the dying
live theatre culture in the
country.
Was it why you staged a
dance-drama, “Dance for
Life’ last December?
Yes, because the first outing
was actually sponsored by
myself. That’s why I want to
see how I can get corporate
bodies to partner with me for
the the second edition of the
dance project which I want it
to come up on May29.
Do you dance?
As a Thespian, we all do the
three arms of theatre including
Dance , Music and Acting.
These are the three arms of
theatre, so you must be able to
do the three and then,
specialize in one.
Last December outing,
was it the first time you
actually involved in
dance ?
Yes, it was the first time I
would dance in public. I’ve
never done that before in my
life . I only danced while I was
in the university. As an artiste,
we were involved in all sorts of
performances way back in
school.
How did you feel that
fateful day?
I had mixed-feelings because
of the massive turn-out of
celebrities. Again, it was
because of the fact that a lot of
people enjoyed themselves and
they didn’t want to go home
again. So, I was in between
rolling myself on the floor with
tears of joy and also, praying
that this kind of dance project
should continue. It was a
divine feeling.
Did the project actualise
your dream of reviving
live theatre in Nigeria?
Yes, I’ve always wanted to do
exactly that. I’ve always
wanted to find an opportunity
to revive the dying live theater
in the country. People look at
dance as a non-productive act,
but I don’t think so because
dance is even more vigorous
than acting. You have to love
the art, love theatre and
singing before you can be able
to have a grasp of the
message. The performer on
stage is trying to understand
the message being put across
through dance.
Since you delved into
movie production what
has been your challenges?
It’s been a good experience,
and also, knowing that I’m
getting older, I need to step
aside for the emerging
actresses to excel. But even at
that, it’s really difficult for
them. I think some of the fresh
actresses are joining
Nollywood for different
reasons and probably not for
the love of the industry. They
just have this silly idea that if I
hit the screen, people would
see me and like my face as
well. It’s not done like that.
If you call for an audition
today, and about four
thousand people show up, you
will be shocked to find out that
not up to five of them have
what it takes to be an actress.
The five people would have
rigorous screening before they
are able to deliver their lines.
That also is a very big
challenge. That’s why we keep
recycling a lot of known faces
even when we are getting older
and tired. We still try to look
slim and young, competing
favourably with the younger
ones.
Do you intend to go solo in
your next movie?
Yes, I will like to go solo in my
next movie just to see what it’s
like not wanting to do the
movie with anybody else. But I
will still engage seasoned
directors to direct my movie.
But I want to be the solo
financier and solo producer o f
my next movie. That will
happen before the end of this
year.
We learnt you are
planning to launch a
perfume line?
Yes, I’ve already started and
I’m planning to do a launch of
the perfume in future. The
product is called Monalisa
Mcold Beauty Products. That’s
the brand name I’m using for
now. I have a factory outside
Lagos where the fragrances are
produced. They took samples
of my skin to test if the
products are good for human
consumption. We are
producing body cream, age
defining hand creams, body
mix for men and women and
soap.