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Not many know that the petite duo, Osita Iheme
(Paw Paw) and Chinedu Ikedieze(Aki) who took
the film industry by surprise years back are no
longer as cordial as before.

Although many thought they were related in one
way or the other; maybe because they lived
together, have the same body size, and so on.
However, they soon grew apart,even stopped living
together. This was more noticeable after Chinedu
(Aki) got married.

Chinedu in an interview with Nigerian Tribune,
explained everything. Read excerpts from the
interview below:

Considering the fact that you have been busy
since the beginning of the year, would you say
you don’t have time for yourself?

Yes, I do. What I usually do is that I take a time out
after a hectic work. I travel and I may leave one of
my phones on in case of any important call. Most
times when I am off work, my management team
takes care of other things. My brother, I must take
time to free myself from any stress either for
months or weeks because life is very vital. One is
only useful when one is alive. My body is the engine
room of what I give out.
If I don’t have the physical energy, I won’t be able to
give, as well as sustain my best. I have to make sure
that my body and soul are in order. This is why I go
on vacation. I also unwind, but it is not what I do all
the time. I have reduced the number of times I go to
club as a married man. You will agree with me that
there are some things that I would have to minimize
because I have much more responsibilities now.
More so, I have exercise apparatus in the house to
keep me fit. I love reading books and playing games,
especially the play station. I have a lot of things that
can take my mind away from acting for a period of
time.


Has marriage denied you of enjoying life again?

No. The life of a bachelor is different from that of a
married man. It is expected of you to respect your
spouse. One has to be conscious and make an
adjustment on the kind of life one lived before
settling down. A responsible man must always be
conscious and always stay around his family.

How has life been as a married man?

It has been wonderful and interesting. I thank God
for it. As I said earlier, it requires more of
responsibility than when one was living the life of a
bachelor. I really enjoy my marriage and I thank my
understanding wife who takes care of the home
while I am away.

What is stopping you from joining the list of
celebs that have shown interest in politics?

I would encourage anyone who is interested in the
Nigerian politics system to do so because it is a
good development. We need such faces in
governance. Personally though, I cannot give a
definite answer to that. The fact, however, remains
that we are all part of the game of politicking and
this is the only way we can bring change to the
country. Let’s wait and see the outcome because I
don’t always delve into things without cross-
checking.

If you eventually declare your interest in
politics, which position would you opt for?

That would be determined by my people. They have
the final say on that.

Could it be true that the interest of celebs in
politics is as a result of the purported wealth
being amassed?

I will not agree with that. I don’t think there is any
truth in that because it has no basis. We are human
beings and most of us are intellectuals. Anyone that
wants to go into politics should have it at the back of
his or her mind that they would bring change and
help the people.

In your own take, do you believe that celebrities
can bring the change the people really want?

It is an individual thing because dreams are
different from one person to another. For me, I
would say yes, we can bring about that change.
Shakespeare says that: “The mind is like a basket, no
one knows what the other person is carrying.”
Generally, we are all instruments of change, and
from the things we do, we are like evangelists who
reveal the unknown to the public, especially things
that are happening in the society.
So, if we can achieve this dramatically, we can bring
it to the reality. I believe the mindset of every
entertainer going into politics is to set a standard
and bring positive change to the nation.

Back into acting, it seems you did not discover
yourself until Paw Paw joined you in the
industry?

It wasn’t like that. I started acting in 1998 while I was
still an undergraduate and I have done some major
jobs between 1999 and 2000, especially as
supporting lead role. In fact, I was almost there
before Paw Paw surfaced; he started acting in 2001,
but he was not famous. God miraculously picked the
two of us and featured us in a movie which gave us
a break among others of such stature as ours.
I believe we were not the only ones with small
stature. It was a unique combination which opened
the people’s eyes as well as gave the industry a new
face. Remember, I did not start acting with the
comic aspect. Back in my secondary school days,
my friends knew that I was a funny person.
Everything that happened was for a reason. I guess
it was time for people to know the other side of me,
which also gladdened my heart. I would say that our
coming together stirred the comic thing.

Do you sometimes think you guys might not
have been famous if you had not come together?

I don’t see it that way. As I said earlier, it was a
divine connection. God has a purpose for bringing
us together and every man has his time and season.
Despite our small stature, which many people see
as a disadvantage, fame still located us. The coming
together of Aki and Paw Paw was a prestige to us
and a plus to the industry because it was a usual
way of shooting movies before we were discovered,
especially witchcraft or any other movie. The whole
thing changed when we came on board. We brought
stories that happened to us personally to the screen
and before we knew it, the combination became hot
cake in the market.

Could you recall you guys’ meeting point?

It was easy for me to shuttle between school and
locations in Enugu back then, but Paw Paw usually
came from Aba. I had been in the industry before
him and, according to him, he had been longing to
meet me and we eventually met in 2001 at a
location.

How do you draw inspiration?

Sometimes, I wonder how I come about these
things, but I would say I draw the inspiration from
God and I mimic people a lot, especially when I was
a little boy. My mum does that perfectly. I think it
runs in the blood.
Not that the pranks I played at my tender age
coupled with what I gathered in my surroundings
then gives me joy, but I have been able to bring
them into acting to give people a clear picture of
what is happening in different homes and the
society at large. I love my parents’, unfortunately I
lost my dad last year, but my mum was actually my
source of inspiration because she is a woman that
would ensure that her children have the best.
You are always hyperactive in movies.
Is that
part of your scripts or you act outside of the
scripts?

(Laughs…) The truth is that I always research on any
scripts I lay my hands on. I usually have a mental
picture of how I would want to see myself in a
movie., especially when I want to play the role of a
kid. I pick from how my cousin or nephew play in
the real sense into the character and once I hear
action, I am the character at that moment. Honestly,
I have to be professional about it because if I don’t
do that, I won’t be able to convince my audience. It
has been interesting. Sometimes, I play double role,
which is one of the advantages of my size. I could
play an adult and also a child at the same time.

Have you ever been misrepresented as a kid?

We are all human beings and any body that sees me
for the first time would think I am a baby, but when I talk, my reaction would give the person an
understanding that I am not. I did not create myself
and I cannot change myself either. There is nothing I
can do about that; no amount of plastic surgery can
increase my height, except if God wants me to grow
taller than I am.
I have realised that we leave in a world where
people are easily carried away. A lot of people are
myopic and my perception about life is quite
different from theirs. Sometimes an adult will see
you and misbehave. Despite the cautioning, they still
go ahead to laugh at me and sometimes, many even
try to tease me. People don’t understand that the Aki
they see on the screen is different from Chinedu
Ikedieze.

Are you the only one with a small stature in your
family?

Yes. I don’t know how it happened and I was not
bothered to ask my parents about it. I just knew I
was created that way. I am the first son of the
family.

How were you able to handle the crisis that
struck when you rang your wedding bell?

It wasn’t difficult because I had an effective event
planner. You will agree with me that there must be
division of labour; I cannot be everywhere.
News had it that you asked Paw Paw to vacate
the apartment both of you once leaved in as a
bachelor when you got married
There was no clash between us. Then, the owner of
the property wanted to use it, so we both had to
vacate the apartment. The truth must be told, we
cannot live together forever. We are adults and
someday we would get married. We are not same
twins, I am from Abia and he is from Imo. It’s just
that we are good friends. It is not bad we go our
separate ways, though; we are not far from each
other.

Long story. Dey can't just stay together forever.