A lot of families in the North are dealing with drug abuse – Ali Nuhu

Ali Nuhu is an actor and director who acts in both Hausa and English movies.

Ali Nuhu, who is known as king of Kannywood, has appeared in more than 500 Nollywood and Kannywood films, and earned numerous accolades. 

In a recent interview with Guardian, the Geography graduate from the University of Jos revealed reasons behind his movies which are centered on Advocacy, especially his recent drug related movie.

According to him, in Northern Nigeria, a lot of families have one or two people that are involved in drugs.

Ali Nuhu said, “My course of study on Transmedia Storytelling at the University of Southern California changed my mindset completely on filmmaking. When I got back, I had to do a film on drug abuse, but I concentrated on the rehabilitation aspect of it, because I noticed that in Northern Nigeria, a lot of families have one or two people that are involved in the vice. I felt like it was time for us to contribute our own quota by educating people on this. Then I realised that most people do not even know that you can take someone for rehabilitation. That is why I had to do that film. After that, the next thing was the issue of insecurity. I did a film on the country’s violent extremism, on how the youth are being radicalised and recruited into all these vices. That was an eye opener as well, and it gained a lot of views. It was a huge success.”

As a strong voice when it comes to entertainment from the North, Ali Nuhu speaks on how he able to break through and become a big star.

He said: “It wasn’t easy initially because when I started out, most parents were not comfortable seeing their wards go into a profession like this. Some usually say it is a career for dropouts or people who have no future, but then I believed in the profession and I simply decided to stick to it. Secondly, I didn’t even check into filmmaking, I decided to go into capacity building – that’s what became a launch for my career. For instance, I went to study Transmedia Story Telling in the University of Southern California. That period served as an eye opener for me, and I understood that upon coming back to my society. What I was supposed to do wasn’t just limited to shooting films that have a theme of love, marriages and so on. You need to be someone that is an advocate for the society, to educate and sensitise them. That is what actually encouraged me and pushed me into it.”

On what has kept him going over the years, Ali Nuhu who was born Maiduguri, Borno State stated that for one to be successful in Nollywood, it requires a lot of passion.

“Consistency in this profession, if you have the passion, you will go places. If you have the passion, you just have to do your things right. For most people when they come into the profession, they just feel the only important thing is gaining popularity and all the luxury in the world. But that shouldn’t be your drive. Your drive should be picking the very big scripts, irrespective of whether the role you are playing will fetch money or not. There are productions you do not because of financial gains but because of the level to which it will push your career. You have some outstanding filmmakers that make very good films. Sometimes you come across very good story lines written by good scriptwriters. You try as much as you can to ensure that you have a very good relationship with your colleagues and the media,” he noted.