Akindele first caught the attention of movie lovers when she starred in the sitcom I Need to Know from 1998 to 2002.
By Kehinde Okeowo
Ace Nollywood actress and producer, Funke Akindele, has traced her success in the movie industry to hard work, dedication, and sacrifice, noting that she “abandons” herself for her work.
The record-breaking filmmaker made this known recently during an interview with BellaNaija.
According to Akindele, she owes her streak of breaking and setting new records in Nigerian cinema to her absolute commitment to her job.
The 48-year-old thespian noted that she rarely parties and does not even do her hair except for special occasions.
Asked why each of her movies performs better than the last and what she does differently to achieve her level of success, the actress attributed it entirely to hard work.
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Akindele said: “It is a lot of work. When I say a lot of work, a lot of giving your all into work. I was looking back, I was telling myself that, ‘People are saying you look beautiful. You’re loving yourself in the mirror. Why did it take you so long to care about yourself?’
”I abandoned myself for work. I don’t even do my hair unless I am going on the red carpet for something very important. I don’t attend parties. I don’t visit people. I put everything into work—research, writing, work.
”I am neck-deep in work. I sacrificed my time. It is only now that I am relaxing, doing a skincare routine, looking beautiful, and smelling nice.
”It was a lot of sacrifice for me. So for me to get all these achievements, and for my last movie to gross 2.7 billion naira, it took a lot of sacrifices.”
Akindele first caught the attention of movie lovers when she starred in the sitcom I Need to Know from 1998 to 2002.
She later became a household name after winning the Africa Movie Academy Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role in 2009.
